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on file

 - 6 dictionary results

file

1  [fahyl] noun, verb, filed, fil⋅ing.
Use on file in a Sentence
–noun
1. 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

Related forms:
file⋅a⋅ble, adjective
filer, noun

Synonyms:
10. classify, label, catalog, index, list, categorize.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To on file
file 1   (fīl)   
n.  

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

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

  3. Computer Science A collection of related data or program records stored as a unit with a single name.

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

    2. A line of troops or military vehicles so positioned.

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

  6. Archaic A list or roll.

v.   filed, fil·ing, files

v.   tr.

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

  2. To enter (a legal document) on public official record.

  3. To send or submit (copy) to a newspaper.

  4. To carry out the first stage of (a lawsuit, for example): filed charges against my associate.

v.   intr.

  1. To march or walk in a line.

  2. To put items in a file.

  3. To make application; apply: filed for a job with the state; file for a divorce.

  4. 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.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Legal Dictionary

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
Merriam-Webster's Dictionary of Law, © 1996 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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Medical Dictionary

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 —file transitive verb filed;fil·ing
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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Science Dictionary
file   (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.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2002. Published by Houghton Mifflin. All rights reserved.
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Idioms & Phrases

on file

In or as if in a record for easy reference. For example, There's no job open right now, but we'll keep your résumé on file. The use of file in the sense of "a collection of papers stored for ready reference" dates from the early 1600s.

The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.
Copyright © 1997. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
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