fill

fill 1 S1 W1 / fɪl / 动词

1 become/make full [不及物和及物动词] ( also fill up ) if a container or place fills, or if you fill it, enough of something goes into it to make it full :

He poured her a drink, then filled his own glass.

My job was filling the flour sacks.

Take a deep breath and allow your lungs to fill.

fill (something) with something

Her eyes filled with tears .

fill something to the brim/to overflowing (= fill something completely )

a bucket filled to the brim with ice

There was just enough wind to fill the sails.

Miller’s band was filling dance halls (= attracting a lot of people ) all over the country.

2 large thing/number [及物动词] if a thing or group fills something, there is no space left :

Crowds of well-wishers filled the streets.

His wartime experiences would fill a book!

All the seats were filled and a number of people were standing.

Numerous pictures fill every available space .

3 sound/smell/light [及物动词] if a sound, smell, or light fills a place, you notice it because it is very loud or strong :

The smell of freshly baked bread filled the room.

be filled with something

The air was filled with the sound of children’s laughter.

4 emotions [及物动词] if you are filled with an emotion, or if it fills you, you feel it very strongly

be filled with admiration/joy/happiness etc

I was filled with admiration for her.

be filled with horror/fear/anger/doubt/remorse

Their faces were suddenly filled with fear.

fill somebody with something

The prospect filled him with horror.

5 provide something [及物动词] to provide something that is needed or wanted but which has not been available or present before

fill a need/demand

Volunteers fill a real need for teachers in the Somali Republic.

fill a gap/hole/niche etc

I spent most of the summer filling the gaps in my education.

The company has moved quickly to fill the niche in the overnight travel market.

6 spend time [及物动词] if you fill a period of time with a particular activity, you spend that time doing it

fill your time/the days etc (with something)

I have no trouble filling my time.

7 perform a job [及物动词] to perform a particular job, activity, or purpose in an organization, or to find someone or something to do this

fill a post/position/vacancy etc

Women fill 35% of senior management positions.

Thank you for your letter. Unfortunately, the vacancy has already been filled.

The UK should find another weapon to fill the same role .

8 crack/hole [及物动词] ( also fill in ) to put a substance into a hole, crack etc to make a surface level :

Fill in any cracks before starting to paint.

materials developed to fill tooth cavities

9 fill yourself (up)/fill your face informal to eat so much food that you cannot eat any more

10 fill an order to supply the goods that a customer has ordered :

The company is struggling to fill $11 million in back orders.

11 fill the bill American English to have exactly the right qualities 同义词 fit the bill British English :

We needed an experienced reporter and Willis fills the bill.

12 fill sb’s shoes to do the work that someone else normally does, especially when this is difficult because they have set a high standard

THESAURUS

fill to put enough of something into a container to make it full : Jenny filled the kettle and put it on to boil. | Party balloons can be filled with helium.

fill up to fill something completely – used especially about putting petrol in the tank of a car : I need to fill up the car. | The waiter filled up everyone’s glasses. | If the oil tank is less than half full, tell them to fill it up.

load/load up to fill a vehicle with goods, furniture etc : Two men were loading a truck with boxes of melons.

stuff/cram to quickly fill something such as a bag or pocket by pushing things into it tightly : She hurriedly stuffed some things into an overnight bag and left.

refill to fill a container again, after what was in it has been used : I’m just going to refill this bottle from the tap.

top up British English , top off American English to fill a glass or cup that still has some liquid in it : Can I top up your glass of wine?

replenish formal to make something full again, especially with a supply of something such as water or food : The lake is fed by springs that are eternally replenished by the rain.

fill in 短语动词

1 document fill something ↔ in to write all the necessary information on an official document, form etc :

Don’t forget to fill in your boarding cards.

2 tell somebody news fill somebody ↔ in to tell someone about recent events, especially because they have been away from a place

fill somebody ↔ in on

I think you’d better fill me in on what’s been happening.

3 crack/hole fill something ↔ in to put a substance into a hole, crack etc so it is completely full and level

4 fill in time to spend time doing something unimportant because you are waiting for something to happen :

She flipped through a magazine to fill in the time.

5 space fill something ↔ in to paint or draw over the space inside a shape

6 do sb’s job to do someone’s job because they are not there

fill in for

I’m filling in for Joe for a few days.

fill out 短语动词

1 fill something ↔ out to write all the necessary information on an official document, form etc

2 if you fill out, or your body fills out, you become slightly fatter :

Eric has filled out around the waist.

3 if a young person fills out, their body becomes more like an adult’s body, for example by having bigger muscles, developing breasts etc :

At puberty, a girl’s body begins to fill out.

4 fill something ↔ out to add more details to a description or story

fill up 短语动词

1 if a container or place fills up, or if you fill it up, it becomes full

fill up with

Her eyes filled up with tears .

fill something ↔ up

Shall I fill the car up (= with petrol ) ?

2 fill (yourself) up informal to eat so much food that you cannot eat any more

fill (yourself) up with/on

Don’t fill yourself up with cookies.

He filled up on pecan pie.

3 fill somebody up informal food that fills you up makes you feel as though you have eaten a lot when you have only eaten a small amount