Fill vs. File — What's the Difference?

To put something into (a container, for example) to capacity or to a desired level

A container, such as a cabinet or folder, for keeping papers in order.

To supply or provide to the fullest extent

A collection of papers or published materials kept or arranged in convenient order.

To build up the level of (low-lying land) with material such as earth or gravel.

(Computers) A collection of data or program records stored as a unit with a single name.

To stop or plug up (an opening, for example).

A line of persons, animals, or things positioned one behind the other.

To repair a cavity of (a tooth).

A line of troops or military vehicles so positioned.

To add a foreign substance to (cloth or wood, for example).

(Games) Any of the rows of squares that run forward and backward between players on a playing board in chess or checkers.

To flow or move into (a container or area), often to capacity

(Archaic) A list or roll.

To pervade

Any of several hardened steel tools with cutting ridges for forming, smoothing, or reducing especially metallic surfaces.

To satiate, as with food and drink

A nail file.

To engage or occupy completely

Chiefly British A crafty or artful person.

To satisfy or meet; fulfill

Powdered sassafras leaves used to thicken and season soups, stews, and gumbos.

To supply what is specified by or required for

To put or keep (papers, for example) in useful order for storage or reference.

To put a person into (a job or position)

To enter (a legal document) as an official record.

To discharge the duties of; occupy

To send or submit (copy) to a newspaper.

To cover the surface of (an inexpensive metal) with a layer of precious metal, such as gold.

To initiate (a lawsuit)

To cause (a sail) to swell.

To march or walk in a line.

To adjust (a yard) so that wind will cause a sail to swell.

To put items in a file.

To become full

To make application; apply

An amount needed to make full, complete, or satisfied

To enter one's name in a political contest

Material for filling a container, cavity, or passage.

To smooth, reduce, or remove with or as if with a file.

A built-up piece of land; an embankment.

To sully or defile.

The material, such as earth or gravel, used for this.

A collection of papers collated and archived together.

(transitive) To occupy fully, to take up all of.

A roll or list.

(transitive) To add contents to (a container, cavity, or the like) so that it is full.

Course of thought; thread of narration.

To enter (something), making it full.

(computing) An aggregation of data on a storage device, identified by a name.

(intransitive) To become full.

(computing) The primary item on the menu bar, containing commands such as open, save, print, etc.

(intransitive) To become pervaded with something.

A row of modular kitchen units and a countertop, consisting of cabinets and appliances below (dishwasher) and next to (stove/cooker) a countertop.

(transitive) To satisfy or obey (an order, request, or requirement).

(North America) file cabinet.

(transitive) To install someone, or be installed, in (a position or office), eliminating a vacancy.

A column of people one behind another, whether "single file" or in a grid pattern.

(transitive) To treat (a tooth) by adding a dental filling to it.

(military) A small detachment of soldiers.

(transitive) To fill or supply fully with food; to feed; to satisfy.

(chess) one of the eight vertical lines of squares on a chessboard (i.e., those identified by a letter).

To trim (a yard) so that the wind blows on the after side of the sails.

A hand tool consisting of a handle to which a block of coarse metal is attached, and used for removing sharp edges or for cutting, especially through metal.

To have sexual intercourse with (a female).

A cunning or resourceful person.

(after a possessive) A sufficient or more than sufficient amount.

(transitive) To commit (official papers) to some office.

An amount that fills a container.

(transitive) To submit (a story) to a newspaper or similar publication.

The filling of a container or area.

(transitive) To place in an archive in a logical place and order.

Inexpensive material used to occupy empty spaces, especially in construction.

(transitive) To store a file aggregation of data on a storage medium such as a disc or another computer.

(archaeology) Soil and/or human-created debris discovered within a cavity or cut in the layers and exposed by excavation; fill soil.

To submit a formal request to some office.

An embankment, as in railroad construction, to fill a hollow or ravine; also, the place which is to be filled.

To set in order; to arrange, or lay away.

(music) A short passage, riff, or rhythmic sound that helps to keep the listener's attention during a break between the phrases of a melody.

(intransitive) To move in a file.

One of the thills or shafts of a carriage.

(transitive) To smooth, grind, or cut with a file.

One of the thills or shafts of a carriage.

(archaic) To defile.

A full supply, as much as supplies want; as much as gives complete satisfaction.

To corrupt.

That which fills; filling; filler; specif., an embankment, as in railroad construction, to fill a hollow or ravine; also, the place which is to be filled.

An orderly succession; a line; a row

To make full; to supply with as much as can be held or contained; to put or pour into, till no more can be received; to occupy the whole capacity of.

An orderly collection of papers, arranged in sequence or classified for preservation and reference; as, files of letters or of newspapers; this mail brings English files to the 15th instant.

To furnish an abudant supply to; to furnish with as mush as is desired or desirable; to occupy the whole of; to swarm in or overrun.

Course of thought; thread of narration.

To fill or supply fully with food; to feed; to satisfy.

A roll or list.

To possess and perform the duties of; to officiate in, as an incumbent; to occupy; to hold; as, a king fills a throne; the president fills the office of chief magistrate; the speaker of the House fills the chair.

A collection of data on a digital recording medium treated as a unit for the purpose of recording, reading, storage, or indexing; - such a file is typically accessible by computer programs by the use of a file name. The data may be of any type codable digitally, such as simple ASCII-coded text, complex binary-coded data, or an executable program, or may be itself a collection of other files.

To supply with an incumbent; as, to fill an office or a vacancy.

A steel instrument, having cutting ridges or teeth, made by indentation with a chisel, used for abrading or smoothing other substances, as metals, wood, etc.

To press and dilate, as a sail; as, the wind filled the sails.

Anything employed to smooth, polish, or rasp, literally or figuratively.

To make an embankment in, or raise the level of (a low place), with earth or gravel.

A shrewd or artful person.

To become full; to have the whole capacity occupied; to have an abundant supply; to be satiated; as, corn fills well in a warm season; the sail fills with the wind.

To set in order; to arrange, or lay away, esp. as papers in a methodical manner for preservation and reverence; to place on file; to insert in its proper place in an arranged body of papers.

To fill a cup or glass for drinking.

To bring before a court or legislative body by presenting proper papers in a regular way; as, to file a petition or bill.

A quantity sufficient to satisfy;

To put upon the files or among the records of a court; to note on (a paper) the fact date of its reception in court.

Any material that fills a space or container;

To march in a file or line, as soldiers, not abreast, but one after another; - generally with off.

Make full, also in a metaphorical sense;

To rub, smooth, or cut away, with a file; to sharpen with a file; as, to file a saw or a tooth.

Become full;

To smooth or polish as with a file.

Occupy the whole of;

To make foul; to defile.

Assume, as of positions or roles;

A set of related records (either written or electronic) kept together

Fill or meet a want or need

A line of persons or things ranged one behind the other

Appoint someone to (a position or a job)

Office furniture consisting of a container for keeping papers in order

Eat until one is sated;

A steel hand tool with small sharp teeth on some or all of its surfaces; used for smoothing wood or metal

Fill to satisfaction;

Record in a public office or in a court of law;

Plug with a substance;

Smooth with a file;

Proceed in line;

File a formal charge against;

Place in a container for keeping records;