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The Collaborative International Dictionary
To fill up

Fill \Fill\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Filled; p. pr. & vb. n. Filling.] [OE. fillen, fullen, AS. fyllan, fr. full full; akin to D. vullen, G. f["u]llen, Icel. fylla, Sw. fylla, Dan. fylde, Goth. fulljan. See Full, a.]

  1. 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.

    The rain also filleth the pools.
    --Ps. lxxxiv. 6.

    Jesus saith unto them, Fill the waterpots with water. Anf they filled them up to the brim.
    --John ii. 7.

  2. 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.

    And God blessed them, saying. Be fruitful, and multiply, and fill the waters in the seas.
    --Gen. i. 22.

    The Syrians filled the country.
    --1 Kings xx. 27.

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

    Whence should we have so much bread in the wilderness, as to fillso great a multitude?
    --Matt. xv. 33.

    Things that are sweet and fat are more filling.
    --Bacon.

  4. 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.

  5. To supply with an incumbent; as, to fill an office or a vacancy.
    --A. Hamilton.

  6. (Naut.)

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

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

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

    To fill in, to insert; as, he filled in the figures.

    To fill out, to extend or enlarge to the desired limit; to make complete; as, to fill out a bill.

    To fill up, to make quite full; to fill to the brim or entirely; to occupy completely; to complete. ``The bliss that fills up all the mind.''
    --Pope. ``And fill up that which is behind of the afflictions of Christ.''
    --Col. i. 24.

To fill up

Fill \Fill\, v. i.

  1. 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.

  2. To fill a cup or glass for drinking.

    Give me some wine; fill full.
    --Shak.

    To back and fill. See under Back, v. i.

    To fill up, to grow or become quite full; as, the channel of the river fills up with sand.

Usage examples of "to fill up".

I've listened to Jack's stories for years, but they were always just stories, something to fill up the empty space between nightfall and dawn.

The long accumulated vapors were resolved into water, and the air required to fill up the void produced became a wild and raging tempest.

By the time he had finished, the room was beginning to fill up and he knew exactly what he had to do.

The windy tabletop was beginning to fill up with the company, but the Marines stayed well away from the northern wall.

There was a king-size four-poster bed and a sitting area, and the furniture didn't begin to fill up the space.

The oubliette was not convenient for her anatomy, or she would have used that, as it was enchanted never to fill up.

He paused uneasily, for the wind had died out of the trees, and silence, like a thick fog, had settled into the glade so that his voice seemed to fill up the air with unwanted sound.

Up in front we had to work harder to fill up the space in the conveyor belt so he would feel better.

I like it to fill up empty rooms and leak out of the windows and doors.

As they ate, the canteen slowly began to fill up, mainly with officials and employees of the track.