(tr) to complete (a form, application, etc)
to make or become completely full
First recorded in 1850–55; noun use of verb phrase fill up
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
A 15-gallon fill-up that ran $45 in 2023 can cost close to $70 or more.
From MarketWatch ● May 13, 2026
Most of the gasoline was added recently, but the tank never runs completely dry and so a few molecules from the very first fill-up remain.
From Science Magazine ● Dec. 1, 2023
In another widely circulated image, he appears perplexed at how to pay for a fill-up at a gas station.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 28, 2022
One hitch: Starship will need a fill-up at an Earth-orbiting fuel depot, before heading to the moon.
From Seattle Times ● Aug. 24, 2022
Amateur theatrical companies from the city will be glad to come in return for an appreciative audience and a dance afterward, with a good fill-up on solid farm cooking.
From Dennison Grant: a Novel of To-day by Stead, Robert J. C.
In theory the PM could delay its implementation - but the problem then is that this would mean the prison population would begin to head towards crisis point as cells fill up again.
From BBC ● Jul. 23, 2026
Projections fill up the dining table during meals.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 8, 2026
On her drive back, Starling plans to fill up the back of her car with coolers, and “I’ll get like three frozen Key lime pies to bring with me home.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 3, 2026
In a hilly village northwest of Budapest, siblings Andras and Blanka Arki have brought a bag of plastic containers and bottles to fill up at a roadside water cart in scorching 41C heat.
From Barron's ● Jun. 30, 2026
The edges of Rabiya’s mouth droop, and her eyes start to fill up.
From "Amina's Song" by Hena Khan
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
