fill

I. verb Etymology: Middle English, from Old English fyllan; akin to Old English full full Date: before 12th century transitive verb 1. a. to put into as much as can be held or conveniently contained <

fill a cup with water

> b. to supply with a full complement <

the class is filled

> c. (1) to cause to swell or billow <

wind filled the sails

> (2) to trim (a sail) to catch the wind d. to raise the level of with fill <

filled land

> e. to repair the cavities of (teeth) f. to stop up ; obstruct <

wreckage filled the channel

> g. to stop up the interstices, crevices, or pores of (as cloth, wood, or leather) with a foreign substance 2. a. feed, satiate b. satisfy, fulfill <

fills all requirements

> c. make out, complete — used with out or in <

fill out a form

> <

fill in the blanks

> d. to draw the playing cards necessary to complete (as a straight or flush in poker) 3. a. to occupy the whole of <

smoke filled the room

> b. to spread through <

music filled the air

> c. to make full <

a mind filled with fantasies

> 4. a. to possess and perform the duties of ; hold <

fill an office

> b. to place a person in <

fill a vacancy

> 5. to supply as directed <

fill a prescription

> 6. to cover the surface of with a layer of precious metal intransitive verb to become full II. noun Date: before 12th century 1. a full supply; especially a quantity that satisfies or satiates <

eat your fill

> 2. something that fills: as a. material used to fill a receptacle, cavity, passage, or low place b. a bit of instrumental music that fills the pauses between phrases (as of a vocalist or soloist) c. artificial light used in photography to reduce or eliminate shadows — often used attributively <

fill flash

>