single file
Americannoun
noun
Etymology
Origin of single file
First recorded in 1660–70
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
At one point, visitors were prompted to walk in a single file line past two Secret Service officers holding rifles.
From BBC ● Jul. 25, 2026
They walked in single file, many of them barefoot, carrying flowers, handing out bracelets and picking up new followers along the way.
From Salon ● Feb. 13, 2026
When the race began at 4, two hours before sunrise, we scurried off into the woods in tight single file.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 30, 2025
Compared to cells moving in a single file, clusters were much slower.
From Science Daily ● Jun. 19, 2024
“We go single file along here,” Luke said.
From "The Haunting of Hill House" by Shirley Jackson
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.
