a folder, cabinet, or other container in which papers, letters, etc., are arranged in convenient order for storage or reference.
2.
a collection of papers, records, etc., arranged in convenient order: to make a file for a new account.
3.
Computers. a collection of related data or program records stored on some input/output or auxiliary storage medium: This program's main purpose is to update the customer master file.
4.
a line of persons or things arranged one behind another (distinguished from rank).
5.
Military.
a.
a person in front of or behind another in a military formation.
b.
one step on a promotion list.
6.
one of the vertical lines of squares on a chessboard.
7.
a list or roll.
8.
a string or wire on which papers are strung for preservation and reference.
–verb (used with object)
9.
to place in a file.
10.
to arrange (papers, records, etc.) in convenient order for storage or reference.
11.
Journalism.
a.
to arrange (copy) in the proper order for transmittal by wire.
b.
to transmit (copy), as by wire or telephone: He filed copy from Madrid all through the war.
–verb (used without object)
12.
to march in a file or line, one after another, as soldiers: The parade filed past endlessly.
13.
to make application: to file for a civil-service job.
—Idiom
14.
on file, arranged in order for convenient reference; in a file: The names are on file in the office.
[Origin: 1425–75; late ME filen < MF filer to string documents on a thread or wire, OF: to wind or spin thread < LL fīlāre, v. deriv. of L fīlum thread, string]
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.
2.
a small, similar tool for trimming and cleaning fingernails; nail file.
3.
BritishSlang. a cunning, shrewd, or artful person.
–verb (used with object)
4.
to reduce, smooth, or remove with or as if with a file.
[Origin: bef. 900; ME; OE fīl, féol; c. G Feile; akin to Gk pikrós sharp]
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: 1800–10, Americanism; < LaF; lit., twisted, ropy, stringy (perh. orig. applied to dishes thickened with the powder), ptp. of F filer; see file1]
A container, such as a cabinet or folder, for keeping papers in order.
A collection of papers or published materials kept or arranged in convenient order.
Computer Science A collection of related data or program records stored as a unit with a single name.
A line of persons, animals, or things positioned one behind the other.
A line of troops or military vehicles so positioned.
Games Any of the rows of squares that run forward and backward between players on a playing board in chess or checkers.
Archaic A list or roll.
v.
filed, fil·ing, files
v.
tr.
To put or keep (papers, for example) in useful order for storage or reference.
To enter (a legal document) on public official record.
To send or submit (copy) to a newspaper.
To carry out the first stage of (a lawsuit, for example): filed charges against my associate.
v.
intr.
To march or walk in a line.
To put items in a file.
To make application; apply: filed for a job with the state; file for a divorce.
To enter one's name in a political contest: filed for Congress.
[From Middle English filen, to put documents on file, from Old French filer, to spin thread, to put documents on a thread, from Late Latin fīlāre, to spin, draw out in a long line, from Latin fīlum, thread; see gwhī- in Indo-European roots.]
"to place (papers) in consecutive order for future reference," 1473, from M.Fr. filer "string documents on a wire for preservation or reference," from fil "thread, string," from L. filum "thread," from PIE base *gwhis-lom (cf. Armenian jil "sinew, string, line," Lith. gysla "vein, sinew," O.C.S. zila "vein"). The notion is of documents hung up on a line like drying laundry. Methods have become more sophisticated, but the word has stuck. The noun first attested in Eng. in the military sense, "line or row of men," 1598, from M.Fr. filer in the sense of "spin out (thread), march in file." The noun meaning "arranged collection of papers" is from 1626; computer sense is from 1954.
"metal tool," O.E. feol (Mercian fil), from P.Gmc. *finkhlo (cf. O.H.G. fila, M.Du. vile, Ger. Feile), probably from PIE *pik-/*peik- "cut" (cf. Skt. pimsati "hews out, carves," L. pingere "to paint," O.C.S. pila "file, saw," Lith. pela "file;" see paint). The verb in this sense is from c.1225.
fileAudio Help (fīl) Pronunciation Key
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.
Main Entry: file Pronunciation: 'fI(&)l Function: noun 1: a tool usually of hardened steel with cutting ridges for forming or smoothing surfaces
(as of a tooth) 2: a narrow instrument for shaping fingernails with a fine rough metal or emery surface —filetransitive verbfiled;
fil·ing
Main Entry: file Function: noun : a collection of papers or publications usually arranged or classified; specifically: the papers that make up the record of a
case—on file: in or as if in a file for ready reference
Main Entry: file Function: verb Inflected Forms: filed; fil·ing transitive verb 1 a: to submit (a legal document) to the proper office (as
the office of a clerk of court) for keeping on file among the records esp. as a procedural step in a legal transaction or proceeding <filed a tax return> <a financing statement
filed with the Secretary of State> <filing a notice of appeal>; also:RECORD <filed
a mortgage in the Registry of Deeds> NOTE: In nearly all cases, a document is deemed to be filed when it is actually received by the office to which it is directed. A few cases, however, have
held that a document is filed upon the mailing of it.b: to place (as a document) on file among the records of an office esp. by formally receiving and endorsing <a complaint
filed by the clerk despite the absence of the filing fee> 2: to return (the documentation in a case) to the records of a clerk of court without any determination of the
case; broadly: to conclude (a case) without a determination on its merits 3: to initiate (a judicial or administrative proceeding) by submitting the proper documents
or following proper procedure :BRING <threatened to file charges> <two separate actions were filed by
representatives of the estates —J. H. Friedenthal et al.> intransitive verb 1: to register as a candidate esp. in a primary election 2: to place items
in a file
filefile system An element of data storage in a file system. The history of computing is rich in varied kinds of files and file systems, whether ornate like the Macintosh file system or deficient like many simple pre-1980s file systems that didn't have directories. However, a typical file has these characteristics: * It is a single sequence of bytes (but consider Macintoshresource forks). * It has a finite length, unlike, e.g., a Unixdevice. * It is stored in a non-volatile storage medium (but see ramdrive). * It exists (nominally) in a directory. * It has a name that it can be referred to by in file operations, possibly in combination with its path. Additionally, a file system may support other file attributes, such as permissions; timestamps for creation, last modification, and last access and revision numbers (a` la VMS). Compare: document. (2007-01-04)
An*ni"hi*late\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Annihilated; p. pr. & vb. n. Annihilating.] [L. annihilare; ad + nihilum, nihil, nothing, ne hilum (filum) not a thread, nothing at all. Cf. File, a row.]1. To reduce to nothing or nonexistence; to destroy the existence of; to cause to cease to be. It impossible for any body to be utterly annihilated. --Bacon. 2. To destroy the form or peculiar distinctive properties of, so that the specific thing no longer exists; as, to annihilate a forest by cutting down the trees. "To annihilate the army." --Macaulay. 3. To destroy or eradicate, as a property or attribute of a thing; to make of no effect; to destroy the force, etc., of; as, to annihilate an argument, law, rights, goodness.
De*file"\, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Defiled; p. pr. & vb. n. Defiling.] [F. d['e]filer; pref. d['e]-, for des- (L. dis-) + file a row or line. See File a row.] To march off in a line, file by file; to file off.
De*file"\, v. t. [OE. defoulen, -foilen, to tread down, OF. defouler; de- + fouler to trample (see Full, v. t.), and OE. defoulen to foul (influenced in form by the older verb defoilen). See File to defile, Foul, Defoul.]1. To make foul or impure; to make filthy; to dirty; to befoul; to pollute. They that touch pitch will be defiled. --Shak. 2. To soil or sully; to tarnish, as reputation; to taint. He is . . . among the greatest prelates of this age, however his character may be defiled by . . . dirty hands. --Swift. 3. To injure in purity of character; to corrupt. Defile not yourselves with the idols of Egypt. --Ezek. xx. 7. 4. To corrupt the chastity of; to debauch; to violate. The husband murder'd and the wife defiled. --Prior. 5. To make ceremonially unclean; to pollute. That which dieth of itself, or is torn with beasts, he shall not eat to defile therewith. --Lev. xxii. 8.
En`fi*lade"\ (?; 277), n. [F., fr. enfiler to thread, go trough a street or square, rake with shot; pref. en- (L. in) + fil thread. See File a row.]1. A line or straight passage, or the position of that which lies in a straight line. [R.] 2. (Mil.) A firing in the direction of the length of a trench, or a line of parapet or troops, etc.; a raking fire.
Fil"a*ment\, n. [F. filament, fr. L. filum thread. See File a row.] A thread or threadlike object or appendage; a fiber; esp. (Bot.), the threadlike part of the stamen supporting the anther.
File\ (f[imac]l), n. [F. file row (cf. Pr., Sp., Pg., & It. fila), LL. fila, fr. L. filum a thread. Cf. Enfilade, Filament, Fillet.]1. An orderly succession; a line; a row; as: (a) (Mil) A row of soldiers ranged one behind another; -- in contradistinction to rank, which designates a row of soldiers standing abreast; a number consisting the depth of a body of troops, which, in the ordinary modern formation, consists of two men, the battalion standing two deep, or in two ranks. Note: The number of files in a company describes its width, as the number of ranks does its depth; thus, 100 men in "fours deep" would be spoken of as 25 files in 4 ranks. --Farrow. (b) 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. (c) The line, wire, or other contrivance, by which papers are put and kept in order. It is upon a file with the duke's other letters. --Shak. (d) A roll or list. "A file of all the gentry." --Shak. 2. Course of thought; thread of narration. [Obs.] Let me resume the file of my narration. --Sir H. Wotton. File firing, the act of firing by file, or each file independently of others. File leader, the soldier at the front of any file, who covers and leads those in rear of him. File marching, the marching of a line two deep, when faced to the right or left, so that the front and rear rank march side by side. --Brande & C. Indian file, or Single file, a line of men marching one behind another; a single row. On file, preserved in an orderly collection. Rank and file. (a) The body of soldiers constituing the mass of an army, including corporals and privates. --Wilhelm. (b) Those who constitute the bulk or working members of a party, society, etc., in distinction from the leaders.
File\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Filed; p. pr. & vb. n. Filing.]1. 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. I would have my several courses and my dishes well filed. --Beau. & Fl. 2. To bring before a court or legislative body by presenting proper papers in a regular way; as, to file a petition or bill. --Burrill. 3. (Law) 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. To file a paper, on the part of a party, is to place it in the official custody of the clerk. To file, on the part of the clerk, is to indorse upon the paper the date of its reception, and retain it in his office, subject to inspection by whomsoever it may concern. --Burrill.
File\, v. i. [Cf. F. filer.] (Mil.) To march in a file or line, as soldiers, not abreast, but one after another; -- generally with off. To file with, to follow closely, as one soldier after another in file; to keep pace. My endeavors Have ever come too short of my desires, Yet filed with my abilities. --Shak.
File\, n. [AS. fe['o]l; akin to D. viji, OHG. f[=i]la, f[=i]hala, G. feile, Sw. fil, Dan. fiil, cf. Icel. ??l, Russ. pila, and Skr. pi? to cut out, adorn; perh. akin to E. paint.]1. 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. Note: A file differs from a rasp in having the furrows made by straight cuts of a chisel, either single or crossed, while the rasp has coarse, single teeth, raised by the pyramidal end of a triangular punch. 2. Anything employed to smooth, polish, or rasp, literally or figuratively. Mock the nice touches of the critic's file. --Akenside. 3. A shrewd or artful person. [Slang] --Fielding. Will is an old file in spite of his smooth face. --Thackeray. Bastard file, Cross file, etc. See under Bastard, Cross, etc. Cross-cut file, a file having two sets of teeth crossing obliquely. File blank, a steel blank shaped and ground ready for cutting to form a file. File cutter, a maker of files. Second-cut file, a file having teeth of a grade next finer than bastard. Single-cut file, a file having only one set of parallel teeth; a float. Smooth file, a file having teeth so fine as to make an almost smooth surface.
File\, v. t. 1. To rub, smooth, or cut away, with a file; to sharpen with a file; as, to file a saw or a tooth. 2. To smooth or polish as with a file. --Shak. File your tongue to a little more courtesy. --Sir W. Scott.
File\, v. t. [OE. fulen, filen, foulen, AS. f?lan, fr. f?l foul. See Foul, and cf. Defile, v. t.] To make foul; to defile. [Obs.] All his hairy breast with blood was filed. --Spenser. For Banquo's issue have I filed my mind. --Shak.
Fil"i*grain\, Filigrane \Fil"i*grane\, n. [Sp. filigrana (cf. It. filigrana, E. filigrane), fr. L. filuma thread + granum grain. See File a row, and Grain, and cf. Filigree.] Filigree. [Archaic] With her head . . . touches the crown of filigrane. --Longfellow.
Filth\, n. [OE. filthe, ful[eth]e, AS. f?l[eth], fr. f[=u]l foul; akin to OHG. f[=u]lida. See Foul, and cf. File.]1. Foul matter; anything that soils or defiles; dirt; nastiness. 2. Anything that sullies or defiles the moral character; corruption; pollution. To purify the soul from the dross and filth of sensual delights. --Tillotson. Filth disease (Med.), a disease supposed to be due to pollution of the soil or water.
Flat\, a. [Compar. Flatter; superl. Flattest.] [Akin to Icel. flatr, Sw. flat, Dan. flad, OHG. flaz, and AS. flet floor, G. fl["o]tz stratum, layer.]1. Having an even and horizontal surface, or nearly so, without prominences or depressions; level without inclination; plane. Though sun and moon Were in the flat sea sunk. --Milton. 2. Lying at full length, or spread out, upon the ground; level with the ground or earth; prostrate; as, to lie flat on the ground; hence, fallen; laid low; ruined; destroyed. What ruins kingdoms, and lays cities flat! --Milton. I feel . . . my hopes all flat. --Milton. 3. (Fine Arts) Wanting relief; destitute of variety; without points of prominence and striking interest. A large part of the work is, to me, very flat. --Coleridge. 4. Tasteless; stale; vapid; insipid; dead; as, fruit or drink flat to the taste. 5. Unanimated; dull; uninteresting; without point or spirit; monotonous; as, a flat speech or composition. How weary, stale, flat, and unprofitable Seem to me all the uses of this world. --Shak. 6. Lacking liveliness of commercial exchange and dealings; depressed; dull; as, the market is flat. 7. Clear; unmistakable; peremptory; absolute; positive; downright. Flat burglary as ever was committed. --Shak. A great tobacco taker too, -- that's flat. --Marston. 8. (Mus.) (a) Below the true pitch; hence, as applied to intervals, minor, or lower by a half step; as, a flat seventh; A flat. (b) Not sharp or shrill; not acute; as, a flat sound. 9. (Phonetics) Sonant; vocal; -- applied to any one of the sonant or vocal consonants, as distinguished from a nonsonant (or sharp) consonant. Flat arch. (Arch.) See under Arch, n., 2. (b). Flat cap, cap paper, not folded. See under Paper. Flat chasing, in fine art metal working, a mode of ornamenting silverware, etc., producing figures by dots and lines made with a punching tool. --Knight. Flat chisel, a sculptor's chisel for smoothing. Flat file, a file wider than its thickness, and of rectangular section. See File. Flat nail, a small, sharp-pointed, wrought nail, with a flat, thin head, larger than a tack. --Knight. Flat paper, paper which has not been folded. Flat rail, a railroad rail consisting of a simple flat bar spiked to a longitudinal sleeper. Flat rods (Mining), horizontal or inclined connecting rods, for transmitting motion to pump rods at a distance. --Raymond. Flat rope, a rope made by plaiting instead of twisting; gasket; sennit. Note: Some flat hoisting ropes, as for mining shafts, are made by sewing together a number of ropes, making a wide, flat band. --Knight. Flat space. (Geom.) See Euclidian space. Flat stitch, the process of wood engraving. [Obs.] -- Flat tint (Painting), a coat of water color of one uniform shade. To fall flat (Fig.), to produce no effect; to fail in the intended effect; as, his speech fell flat. Of all who fell by saber or by shot, Not one fell half so flat as Walter Scott. --Lord Erskine.
Foul\ (foul), a. [Compar. Fouler (-[~e]r); superl. Foulest.] [OE. foul, ful, AS. f[=u]l; akin to D. vuil, G. faul rotten, OHG. f[=u]l, Icel. f[=u]l foul, fetid; Dan. fuul, Sw. ful foul, Goth. f[=u]ls fetid, Lith. puti to be putrid, L. putere to stink, be putrid, pus pus, Gr. py`on pus, to cause to rot, Skr. p[=u]y to stink. [root]82. Cf. Defile to foul, File to foul, Filth, Pus, Putrid.]1. Covered with, or containing, extraneous matter which is injurious, noxious, offensive, or obstructive; filthy; dirty; not clean; polluted; nasty; defiled; as, a foul cloth; foul hands; a foul chimney; foul air; a ship's bottom is foul when overgrown with barnacles; a gun becomes foul from repeated firing; a well is foul with polluted water. My face is foul with weeping. --Job. xvi. 16. 2. Scurrilous; obscene or profane; abusive; as, foul words; foul language. 3. Hateful; detestable; shameful; odious; wretched. "The foul with Sycorax." --Shak. Who first seduced them to that foul revolt? --Milton. 4. Loathsome; disgusting; as, a foul disease. 5. Ugly; homely; poor. [Obs.] --Chaucer. Let us, like merchants, show our foulest wares. --Shak. 6. Not favorable; unpropitious; not fair or advantageous; as, a foul wind; a foul road; cloudy or rainy; stormy; not fair; -- said of the wea
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Audio Help [fahyl] Pronunciation Key noun, verb, filed, fil·ing. 
- in Indo-European roots.]