file
1
[ fahyl ]
/ faɪl /
noun
verb (used with object), filed, fil·ing.
verb (used without object), filed, fil·ing.
to march in a file or line, one after another, as soldiers: The parade filed past endlessly.
to make application: to file for a civil-service job.
Idioms for file
on file,
arranged in order for convenient reference; in a file: The names are on file in the office.
Origin of file
1
1425–75; late Middle English
filen < Middle French
filer to string documents on a thread or wire, Old French: to wind or spin thread < Late Latin
fīlāre, verbal derivative of Latin
fīlum thread, string
SYNONYMS FOR file
OTHER WORDS FROM file
file·a·ble, adjective fil·er, noun non·fil·er, nounWORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH file
file phialWords nearby file
Definition for file (2 of 4)
file
2
[ fahyl ]
/ faɪl /
noun
a long, narrow tool of steel or other metal having a series of ridges or points on its surfaces for reducing or smoothing surfaces of metal, wood, etc.
a small, similar tool for trimming and cleaning fingernails; nail file.
British Slang.
a cunning, shrewd, or artful person.
verb (used with object), filed, fil·ing.
to reduce, smooth, or remove with or as if with a file.
Origin of file
2
before 900; Middle English; Old English
fīl, fēol; cognate with German
Feile; akin to Greek
pikrós sharp
OTHER WORDS FROM file
file·a·ble, adjective fil·er, nounDefinition for file (3 of 4)
file
3
[ fahyl ]
/ faɪl /
verb (used with object), filed, fil·ing. Archaic.
to defile; corrupt.
Origin of file
3Definition for file (4 of 4)
filé
[ fi-ley, fee-ley ]
/ fɪˈleɪ, ˈfi leɪ /
noun New Orleans Cookery.
a powder made from the ground leaves of the sassafras tree, used as a thickener and to impart a pungent taste to soups, gumbos, and other dishes.
Also called
filé powder.
Origin of filé
1800–10,
Americanism; < Louisiana French; literally, twisted, ropy, stringy (perhaps orig. applied to dishes thickened with the powder), past participle of French
filer; see
file1
Example sentences from the Web for file
British Dictionary definitions for file (1 of 3)
file
1
/ (faɪl) /
noun
verb
Derived forms of file
filer, nounWord Origin for file
C16 (in the sense: string on which documents are hung): from Old French
filer, from Medieval Latin
fīlāre; see
filament
British Dictionary definitions for file (2 of 3)
file
2
/ (faɪl) /
noun
a hand tool consisting essentially of a steel blade with small cutting teeth on some or all of its faces. It is used for shaping or smoothing metal, wood, etc
rare, British slang
a cunning or deceitful person
verb
(tr)
to shape or smooth (a surface) with a file
Derived forms of file
filer, nounWord Origin for file
Old English
fīl; related to Old Saxon
fīla, Old High German
fīhala file, Greek
pikros bitter, sharp
British Dictionary definitions for file (3 of 3)
file
3
/ (faɪl) /
verb
(tr) obsolete
to pollute or defile
Word Origin for file
Old English
fӯlan; related to Middle Low German
vülen; see
defile
1,
filth,
foul
Scientific definitions for file
file
[ fīl ]
A collection of related data or program records stored as a unit with a single name. Files are the basic units that a computer works with in storing and retrieving data.
Idioms and Phrases with file
file
see in single file; on file; rank and file.