file

See also: File, filé, and fíle

English

English Wikipedia has an article on:

file

Wikipedia

Pronunciation

(UK, US) IPA^(key): /faɪl/, [faɪ̯(ə)ɫ]
Audio (US): (file)
Rhymes: -aɪl

Etymology 1

From Old French fil (“thread”), from Latin fīlum (“thread”). Doublet of filum.

Noun

file (plural files)

A collection of papers collated and archived together.
- c. 1604–1605 (date written), William Shakespeare, “All’s Well, that Ends Well”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act IV, scene iii]:
  It is upon a file with the duke's other letters.
- 1968 April 5, Paul Simon, “Mrs. Robinson”, in Bookends‎^[2], performed by Simon & Garfunkel:
  We'd like to know a little bit about you for our files
  We'd like to help you learn to help yourself
A roll or list.
- c. 1606 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Macbeth”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act V, scene ii]:
  a file of all the gentry
A course of thought; a thread of narration.
- 1642, Henry Wotton, A Short View of the Life and Death of George Villiers:
  Let me resume the file of my narration.
(computing) An aggregation of data on a storage device, identified by a name.
I'm going to delete these unwanted files to free up some disk space.
(computing) The primary item on the menu bar, containing commands such as open, save, print, etc.
A row of modular kitchen units and a countertop, consisting of cabinets and appliances below (dishwasher) and next to (stove/cooker) a countertop.
Many homes now have double-file kitchens.
(Canada, US) Clipping of file cabinet.
- 2010, Beth Critchley Charlton, Englaging the DisEngaged‎^[3], page 71:
  The Nonfiction Vertical File: […] I spent my university years working in the library at the Maritime School of Social Work. One of my responsibilities was to keep the library's vertical file up to date. The vertical file was a cabinet full of current newspaper and magazine clippings on topics of interest to the students and faculty of the school.

Synonyms

(collection): document, paper

Hyponyms

Hyponyms of file (etymology 1)

Derived terms

Derived terms of file (etymology 1)

Descendants

Descendants of file

→ Armenian: ֆայլ (fayl)
→ Azerbaijani: fayl
→ Belarusian: файл (fajl)
→ Bulgarian: файл (fajl)
→ Bengali: ফাইল (phail)
→ Burmese: ဖိုင် (hpuing)
→ Dutch: file
→ Estonian: fail
→ Finnish: faili
→ German: File
→ Hindi: फ़ाइल (fāil)
→ Hungarian: fájl
→ Italian: file
→ Japanese: ファイル (fairu)
→ Korean: 파일 (pail)
→ Lao: ໄຟລ໌ (fain)
→ Latvian: fails
→ Lithuanian: failas
→ Macedonian: фајл (fajl)
→ Malay: fail
→ Maltese: fajl
→ Oromo: faayila
→ Persian: فایل (fâyl)
→ Portuguese: file
→ Russian: файл (fajl)
- → Kazakh: файл (fail)
- → Kyrgyz: файл (fayl)
- → Mongolian: файл (fajl)
→ Serbo-Croatian:
Cyrillic script: фајл

Latin script: fajl
→ Slovak: fajl
→ Swahili: faili
→ Tajik: файл (fayl)
→ Thai: ไฟล์ (faai)
→ Turkmen: faýl
→ Ukrainian: файл (fajl)
→ Urdu: فائل (fāil)
→ Uzbek: fayl
→ Welsh: ffeil

Translations

collection of papers

Afrikaans: lêer (af)
Arabic: مِلَفّ m (milaff)
Gulf Arabic: ملف m (malaf)

Hijazi Arabic: دوسيه m (dōsē), ملف m (malaf)
Armenian: թղթապանակ (hy) (tʻġtʻapanak)
Belarusian: спра́ва f (správa), па́пка (be) f (pápka), дасье́ n (dasʹjé)
Bulgarian: па́пка (bg) f (pápka), досие́ (bg) n (dosié)
Burmese: ဖိုင် (my) (hpuing)
Catalan: arxiu (ca) m, fitxer (ca) m
Chinese:
Cantonese: 檔案／档案 (dong² on³)

Mandarin: 檔案／档案 (zh) (dàng'àn)
Czech: pořadač m, archiv (cs) m, složka (cs) f, šanon (cs) m
Danish: arkivalie n
Dutch: dossier (nl) n, ordner (nl) m
Esperanto: dosiero
Estonian: toimik
Finnish: kansio (fi)
French: fichier (fr) m, dossier (fr) m
Georgian: ქლიბი (klibi)
German: Akte (de) f, Datei (de) f, Hefter (de) m, Ordner (de) m, Kartei (de) f, Dossier (de) n
Greek: αρχείο (el) n (archeío)
Hungarian: akta (hu)
Ido: dosiero (io), dokumentaro (io)
Irish: comhad m
Italian: archivio (it) m, cartella (it) f
Japanese: 綴じ込み (とじこみ, tojikomi), ファイル (ja) (fairu)
Korean: 서류철(書類綴) (ko) (seoryucheol), 파일 (ko) (pail)
Kurdish:
Northern Kurdish: dosye (ku)
Lao: ແຟ້ມ (fǣm)
Latvian: lieta (lv) f
Lithuanian: byla (lt) f
Macedonian: досие́ n (dosié), картоте́ка f (kartotéka)
Malayalam: പ്രമാണം (ml) (pramāṇaṁ)
Maltese: arkivju m, fajl m
Manchu: ᡩᠠᠩᠰᡝ (dangse)
Norwegian:
Bokmål: arkiv (no) n

Nynorsk: arkiv (nn) n
Pashto: دوسيه (ps) f (dosya)
Persian:
Iranian Persian: پَرْوَنْدِه (fa) (parvande), دوسِیِه (fa) (dosiye)
Polish: kartoteka (pl) f, katalog (pl) m, plik (pl) m
Portuguese: arquivo (pt) m (Brazil), ficheiro (pt) m (Portugal)
Romanian: fișier (ro) n, dosar (ro) n
Russian: де́ло (ru) n (délo), па́пка (ru) f (pápka), досье́ (ru) n (dosʹjé)
Serbo-Croatian:
Cyrillic: фасцѝкл m, датоте́ка f, досје m

Roman: fascìkl (sh) m, datotéka (sh) f, dosje (sh) m
Slovak: spis m, šanón m, archív m
Slovene: fascikel m, mapa f, dosje m
Sotho: faele (st)
Spanish: archivo (es) m, ficha (es) f
Swedish: arkiv (sv) n
Thai: แฟ้ม (th) (fɛ́ɛm)
Turkish: dosya (tr)
Ukrainian: спра́ва (uk) f (správa), па́пка f (pápka), досьє́ n (dosʹjé)
Uyghur: ئارخىپ (arxip), ھۆججەت (höjjet)
Vietnamese: tập tin (vi)

computing, aggregation of data

Afrikaans: lêer (af)
Albanian: skedë (sq) f
Arabic: مِلَفّ m (milaff)
Gulf Arabic: مَلَف m (malaf)
Armenian: նիշք (niškʻ), ֆայլ (hy) (fayl)
Azerbaijani: fayl
Belarusian: файл m (fajl)
Bengali: ফাইল (phail)
Bulgarian: файл m (fajl)
Burmese: ဖိုင် (my) (hpuing)
Catalan: arxiu (ca) m, fitxer (ca) m
Chinese:
Cantonese: 文件 (man⁴ gin^6-2), 檔案／档案 (dong² on³)

Mandarin: 文件 (zh) (wénjiàn), 檔案／档案 (zh) (dàng'àn)
Czech: soubor (cs) m
Danish: fil (da) c
Dutch: bestand (nl) n, file (nl)
Esperanto: dosiero
Estonian: fail (et), säilik
Finnish: tiedosto (fi)
French: fichier (fr) m
Gagauz: fayl
Georgian: ფაილი (paili)
German: Datei (de) f, File n
Greek: αρχείο (el) n (archeío)
Hebrew: קוֹבֶץ (he) m (kovéts)
Hindi: फ़ाइल f (fāil)
Hungarian: fájl (hu), adatállomány (hu)
Icelandic: skrá (is) f, tölvuskrá (is) f
Ido: failo (io), savaro (io)
Indonesian: berkas (id), fail (id)
Irish: comhad m
Italian: file (it) m
Japanese: ファイル (ja) (fairu)
Kapampangan: simpan
Kazakh: файл (fail)
Khmer: ឯកសារ (km) (ʼaekaʼsaa)
Korean: 파일 (ko) (pail)
Kyrgyz: файл (ky) (fayl)
Ladino: dosya
Lao: ໄຟລ໌ (fain), ແຟ້ມ (fǣm)
Latin: fasciculus m
Latvian: fails m, datne f
Lithuanian: failas (lt) m
Luxembourgish: Fichier (lb) m
Macedonian: податоте́ка f (podatotéka), датоте́ка f (datotéka), фајл m (fajl)
Malay: fail (ms)
Maltese: fajl m
Maori: kōnae
Mongolian:
Cyrillic: файл (mn) (fajl)
Norwegian:
Bokmål: fil (no) m or f

Nynorsk: fil f
Occitan: fichièr (oc)
Persian:
Iranian Persian: پَرْوَنْدِه (fa) (parvande), فایْل (fa) (fâyl)
Polish: plik (pl) m
Portuguese: arquivo (pt) m (Brazil), ficheiro (pt) m (Portugal)
Romanian: fișier (ro) n
Russian: файл (ru) m (fajl)
Scots: fyle
Scottish Gaelic: faidhle m
Serbo-Croatian:
Cyrillic: датоте́ка f, фа̑јл m

Roman: datotéka (sh) f, fȃjl (sh) m
Slovak: súbor m
Slovene: datoteka f, fajl m
Sotho: faele (st)
Spanish: archivo (es) m, fichero m
Swedish: fil (sv) c
Tagalog: talaksan
Tajik: файл (tg) (fayl), парванда (parvanda)
Tatar: файл (fayl)
Thai: ไฟล์ (th) (faai)
Tigrinya: ፋይል (fayl)
Turkish: dosya (tr)
Turkmen: faýl
Ukrainian: файл (uk) m (fajl)
Urdu: فائِل f (fāil)
Uyghur: ھۆججەت (höjjet)
Uzbek: fayl (uz)
Vietnamese: tệp (vi), tập tin (vi), tệp tin
Welsh: ffeil (cy) f
West Frisian: bestân (fy) n, triem (fy) c (neologism)
Yiddish: טעקע f (teke)

computing, primary menu item

Danish: filer c
French: fichier (fr) m
German: Datei (de) f
Hungarian: fájl (hu)
Italian: file (it) m
Kazakh: файл (fail)
Korean: 파일 (ko) (pail)
Polish: plik (pl) m
Portuguese: arquivo (pt) m (Brazil), ficheiro (pt) m (Portugal)
Spanish: archivo (es) m
Swedish: arkiv (sv) n
Vietnamese: tệp (vi)

kitchen units and countertop

German: Küchenzeile (de) f

Verb

file (third-person singular simple present files, present participle filing, simple past and past participle filed)

(transitive) To commit (official papers) to some office.
- 2012 May 27, Nathan Rabin, “TV: Review: THE SIMPSONS (CLASSIC): “New Kid On The Block” (season 4, episode 8; originally aired 11/12/1992)”, in The Onion AV Club‎^[4]:
  The episode’s unwillingness to fully commit to the pathos of the Bart-and-Laura subplot is all the more frustrating considering its laugh quota is more than filled by a rollicking B-story that finds Homer, he of the iron stomach and insatiable appetite, filing a lawsuit against The Frying Dutchman when he’s hauled out of the eatery against his will after consuming all of the restaurant’s shrimp (plus two plastic lobsters).
(transitive) To submit (a story) to a newspaper or similar publication.
(transitive) To place in an archive in a logical place and order.
(transitive) To store a file (aggregation of data) on a storage medium such as a disc or another computer.
(intransitive, with for, chiefly law) To submit a formal request to some office.
She filed for divorce the next day.

The company filed for bankruptcy when the office opened on Monday.

They filed for a refund under their warranty.
(transitive, obsolete) To set in order; to arrange, or lay away.
- 1606, Francis Beaumont, John Fletcher, “The Woman-Hater”, in Comedies and Tragedies […], London: […] Humphrey Robinson, […], and for Humphrey Moseley […], published 1679, →OCLC, Act I, scene ii:
  I would have my several courses and my dishes well filed.

Derived terms

Translations

to commit papers

Bulgarian: подавам (bg) (podavam)
Czech: podat (cs) pf
Danish: arkivere (da)
Estonian: esitama
Finnish: jättää (fi); nostaa (fi) (of a lawsuit)
German: Antrag stellen, einreichen (de), eingeben (de)
Greek: καταθέτω (el) (katathéto)
Italian: archiviare (it)
Japanese: 申請する (ja) (しんせいする, shinsei suru), 提起する (ja) (ていきする, teiki suru)
Macedonian: поднесува (podnesuva)
Maltese: tiffajlja f, jiffajlja m
Norwegian: arkivere (no)
Portuguese: arquivar (pt)
Russian: подава́ть докуме́нты impf (podavátʹ dokuménty), подава́ть заявле́ние impf (podavátʹ zajavlénije), подава́ть жа́лобу impf (podavátʹ žálobu)
Spanish: gestionar (es)
Turkish: başvuru yapmak, müracaat etmek (tr)

to archive

Bulgarian: регистри́рам (bg) impf or pf (registríram), картотеки́рам impf or pf (kartotekíram)
Czech: založit (cs) pf, archivovat (cs)
Danish: arkivere (da)
Dutch: archiveren (nl)
Estonian: arhiivima
Finnish: arkistoida (fi)
German: archivieren (de), abheften (de), einsortieren (de)
Greek: αρχειοθετώ (el) (archeiothetó)
Italian: archiviare (it)
Japanese: 保管する (ja) (ほかんする, hokan suru)
Macedonian: архиви́ра impf or pf (arhivíra), регистри́ра impf or pf (registríra)
Norwegian: arkivere (no)
Portuguese: arquivar (pt)
Russian: подшива́ть к де́лу impf (podšivátʹ k délu), сдава́ть в архи́в impf (sdavátʹ v arxív), регистри́ровать (ru) impf (registrírovatʹ), архиви́ровать (ru) impf (arxivírovatʹ)
Spanish: archivar (es)
Swedish: arkivera (sv)
Turkish: arşivlemek (tr)

to store computer data

Bulgarian: запомням (bg) (zapomnjam)
Czech: uložit (cs) pf
Danish: lagre
Dutch: opslaan (nl)
Estonian: salvestama
Finnish: tallentaa (fi)
German: speichern (de), abspeichern (de), abspeichern (de)
Greek: αρχειοθετώ (el) (archeiothetó)
Japanese: 保存する (ja) (ほぞんする, hozon suru)
Norwegian: lagre (no)
Portuguese: salvar (pt), guardar (pt)
Russian: запомина́ть (ru) impf (zapominátʹ), запи́сывать (ru) impf (zapísyvatʹ), сохраня́ть (ru) impf (soxranjátʹ)
Spanish: guardar (es)
Turkish: saklamak (tr)

to make a formal request

Czech: požádat (cs) pf
Danish: fremme
Finnish: hakea (fi), jättää hakemus
German: beantragen (de), einreichen (de), beanspruchen (de)
Italian: depositare (it), intentare (it), presentare (it)
Norwegian: inngi
Bokmål: fremme (no)
Portuguese: registrar (pt)
Russian: подава́ть заявле́ние impf (podavátʹ zajavlénije)
Spanish: gestionar (es), cursar (es)
Turkish: başvurmak (tr), müracaat etmek (tr), talep etmek (tr)

Etymology 2

From French file, from filer (“to spin out, arrange one behind another”), from Latin fīlāre, from filum (“thread”).

Noun

file (plural files)

A column of people one behind another, whether "single file" or in a grid pattern.
Antonym: rank

The troops marched in Indian file.
(military) A small detachment of soldiers.
(chess) One of the eight vertical lines of squares on a chessboard (i.e., those identified by a letter).
Antonym: rank

Derived terms

Translations

column of people

Bulgarian: коло́на (bg) f (kolóna)
Chinese:
Mandarin: 列 (zh) (liè)
Czech: zástup (cs) m
Danish: kø c
Dutch: rij (nl), kolonne, file (nl) (of cars)
Esperanto: vico (eo)
Estonian: kolonn
Finnish: jono (fi)
French: file (fr) f
German: Reihe (de) f
Greek: σειρά (el) (seirá), συστοιχία (el) f (systoichía)
Ancient: στοῖχος m (stoîkhos)
Italian: fila (it) f
Japanese: 列 (ja) (れつ, retsu)
Korean: 줄 (ko) (jul), 열(列) (ko) (yeol), 렬(列) (ko) (ryeol) (North Korea)
Latvian: ierinda f, rinda f
Macedonian: низа f (niza), строј m (stroj), коло́на f (kolóna)
Maltese: ringiela f
Maori: kaha (mi)
Portuguese: fila (pt) f
Russian: коло́нна (ru) f (kolónna), верени́ца (ru) f (vereníca), шере́нга (ru) f (šerénga), строй (ru) m (stroj)
Slovene: kolona f
Spanish: fila (es) f
Swedish: fil (sv) c, kö (sv) c
Thai: แถว (th) (tɛ̌o)

small detachment of soldiers

Maori: kaha (mi), kaha tauā

chess: vertical line of squares

Bulgarian: вертика́ла f (vertikála)
Catalan: columna (ca) f
Czech: sloupec m
Danish: linje (da) c
Dutch: lijn (nl)
Estonian: liin (et)
Finnish: linja (fi)
French: colonne (fr) f
German: Linie (de) f
Greek: στήλη (el) f (stíli)
Hungarian: vonal (hu)
Italian: colonna (it) f
Japanese: 列 (ja) (れつ, retsu)
Latvian: vertikāle f
Lithuanian: vertikalė f
Norwegian:
Bokmål: linje (no) f
Polish: kolumna (pl) f
Portuguese: linha (pt) f, coluna (pt) f
Romanian: coloană (ro) f
Russian: вертика́ль (ru) f (vertikálʹ)
Serbo-Croatian:
Cyrillic: линија f

Roman: linija (sh) f
Slovak: stĺp m
Slovene: linija f
Spanish: columna (es) f
Swedish: linje (sv)

Verb

file (third-person singular simple present files, present participle filing, simple past and past participle filed)

(intransitive) To move in a file.
The applicants kept filing into the room until it was full.

Derived terms

Translations

move in a file or in a line

Danish: defilere
Esperanto: marŝi kolumne
Maori: whakapinepine

Etymology 3

From Middle English file, fyle, from Old English fēl, fēol (“file”), from earlier fīil, from Proto-Germanic *finhlō, *finhilō (“file, rasp”), from Proto-Indo-European *peyḱ- (“to adorn, form”). Cognate with West Frisian file (“file”), Dutch vijl (“file”), German Feile (“file”).

Noun

A file (tool).

file (plural files)

A hand tool consisting of a handle to which a block of coarse metal is attached, and used for removing sharp edges or for cutting, especially through metal.
(slang, archaic) A cunning or resourceful person.
- 1857–1859, W[illiam] M[akepeace] Thackeray, The Virginians. A Tale of the Last Century, volumes (please specify |volume=I or II), London: Bradbury & Evans, […], published 1858–1859, →OCLC:
  Will is an old file, in spite of his smooth face.
- 1743, Henry Fielding, The Life and Death of Jonathan Wild, the Great:
  The greatest character among them was that of a Pickpocket, or, in truer language, a File.

Hyponyms

rasp

Derived terms

terms derived from file (tool) (noun)

Translations

cutting or smoothing tool

Albanian: limë (sq) f
Arabic: مِبْرَد (ar) m (mibrad)
Egyptian Arabic: مبرد m (mabrad)

Moroccan Arabic: مبرد m (mabrad)
Armenian: խարտոց (hy) (xartocʻ)
Azerbaijani: yeyə, törpü, əyə
Bashkir: игәү (igəw)
Basque: lima
Belarusian: напі́льнік m (napílʹnik)
Bengali: রেতি (bn) (reti)
Bulgarian: пила́ (bg) f (pilá)
Burmese: တံစဉ်း (my) (tamcany:)
Carpathian Rusyn: пильник m (pylʹnyk)
Catalan: llima (ca) f
Chinese:
Mandarin: 銼／锉 (zh) (cuò), 銼刀／锉刀 (zh) (cuòdāo)
Czech: pilník (cs) m
Danish: fil (da) c
Daur: xaur
Dutch: vijl (nl) f
Esperanto: fajlilo
Estonian: viil
Finnish: viila (fi)
French: lime (fr) f
Georgian: ქლიბი (klibi)
German: Feile (de) f
Greek: λίμα (el) f (líma)
Ancient: ῥίνη f (rhínē)
Hebrew: פְּצִירָה (he) f (p'tsirá)
Hindi: रेती (hi) f (retī)
Hungarian: reszelő (hu)
Icelandic: þjöl f
Ingrian: napilka
Italian: lima (it), limetta (it) f
Japanese: 鑢 (ja) (やすり, yasuri)
Kazakh: егеу (egeu), түрпі (türpı), қылауық (qylauyq)
Khmer: អង្រូស (km) (ʼɑngruuh)
Korean: 줄 (ko) (jul)
Kyrgyz: өгөө (ky) (ögöö)
Lao: ຕະໄບ (ta bai)
Latin: līma f
Latvian: vīle f
Lithuanian: dildė f, brūžiklis m
Macedonian: турпија f (turpija), еге (ege), пила f (pila)
Malay: kikir (ms)
Malayalam: അരം (ml) (araṁ)
Maltese: lima f
Maori: whaiuru
Mongolian: хуурай (mn) (xuuraj)
Norwegian:
Bokmål: fil (no) m or f
Old High German: fīla
Ottoman Turkish: اگه (eğe), تورپو (törpü), راسپه (raspa), مبرد (mibred), سوهان (suhan)
Persian:
Iranian Persian: سوهان (fa) (suhân)
Polish: pilnik (pl) m
Portuguese: lima (pt), lixa (pt)
Romanian: pilă (ro) f
Russian: напи́льник (ru) m (napílʹnik), пи́лка (ru) f (pílka) (nail file), пи́лочка (ru) f (píločka) (nail file), на́дфиль (ru) m (nádfilʹ) (fine file)
Salar: ütürük, ütürgü
Serbo-Croatian:
Cyrillic: ту̀рпија f

Roman: tùrpija (sh) f
Slovak: pilník m
Slovene: pila (sl) f
Sorbian:
Lower Sorbian: filnik m
Spanish: lima (es) f
Swedish: fil (sv)
Tagalog: kikil (tl)
Tajik: сӯҳон (sühon)
Telugu: ఆకురాయి (te) (ākurāyi)
Thai: ตะไบ (dtà-bai)
Turkish: eğe (tr), törpü (tr)
Turkmen: ige
Ukrainian: напи́лок m (napýlok), пи́лка f (pýlka) (for nails)
Urdu: ریتی f (retī)
Uzbek: egov (uz)
Venetan: łima f
Vietnamese: giũa (vi)
Welsh: rhathell f
Yiddish: פֿײַל f (fayl)

Verb

file (third-person singular simple present files, present participle filing, simple past and past participle filed)

(transitive) To smooth, grind, or cut with a file.
I'd better file the bottoms of the table legs. Otherwise they will scratch the flooring.
- 1879, R[ichard] J[efferies], chapter II, in The Amateur Poacher, London: Smith, Elder, & Co., […], →OCLC:
  Orion hit a rabbit once; but though sore wounded it got to the bury, and, struggling in, the arrow caught the side of the hole and was drawn out. Indeed, a nail filed sharp is not of much avail as an arrowhead; you must have it barbed, and that was a little beyond our skill.

Derived terms

Translations

smooth with a file

Bulgarian: пиля (bg) (pilja)
Czech: pilovat (cs)
Danish: file (da)
Dutch: vijlen (nl)
Esperanto: fajli
Estonian: viilima
Finnish: viilata (fi)
French: limer (fr)
German: feilen (de)
Greek: λιμάρω (el) (limáro), ρινίζω (el) (rinízo)
Hungarian: reszel (hu), megreszel (hu), lereszel (hu)
Icelandic: sverfa (is)
Italian: limare (it)
Japanese: やすり掛け (yasuri gake)
Korean: 쓸다 (ko) (sseulda)
Latin: līmō
Latvian: vīlēt
Macedonian: струга (struga)
Malayalam: രാകുക (ml) (rākuka)
Maltese: jillima m, tillima f
Maori: whaiuru, tīwani, tīwaniwani
Ottoman Turkish: تورپولمك (törpülemek)
Polish: opiłować (pl), opiłowywać (pl)
Portuguese: limar (pt), lixar (pt)
Russian: подпи́ливать (ru) impf (podpílivatʹ), шлифова́ть (ru) impf (šlifovátʹ)
Scottish Gaelic: lìomh
Slovene: piliti
Spanish: limar (es)
Swedish: fila (sv)
Turkish: törpülemek (tr)
Vietnamese: giũa (vi)
Yiddish: פֿײַלן (fayln)

Etymology 4

From Middle English filen (“to defile”), from Old English fȳlan (“to defile, make foul”), from Proto-West Germanic *fūlijan (“to make foul”). More at defile.

Verb

file (third-person singular simple present files, present participle filing, simple past and past participle filed)

(archaic) To defile.
- 1593, anonymous author, The Life and Death of Iacke Straw […], Act I:
  I cannot thinke […] So true a bird would file ſo faire a neſt, […]
- c. 1606 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Macbeth”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act III, scene i]:
  for Banquo's issue have I fil'd my mind
To corrupt.

Anagrams

flie, elif, life, lief, Life, Fiel

Dutch

Etymology 1

From French file (“line, row”), from Late Latin filare, from Latin filum (“thread”). Related to fileren (“to fillet”) and file (“computer file”).

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /ˈfilə/
Audio: (file)
Hyphenation: fi‧le

Noun

file f (plural files, diminutive filetje n)

Synonyms

opstopping

Etymology 2

From English file (“computer file”), from Old French fil (“thread”), from Latin filum (“thread”). Related to fileren (“to fillet”) and file (“queue, traffic jam”).

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /fɑi̯l/, /fɛi̯l/
Audio: (file)
Hyphenation: file

Noun

file m (plural files, diminutive filetje n)

(computing) file (an aggregation of data on a storage device identified by a name)

Anagrams

lief

Esperanto

Etymology

fil- + -e

Adverb

file

filially (in a filial manner or way)

Finnish

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /ˈfileˣ/, [ˈfile̞(ʔ)]
Rhymes: -ile
Syllabification^(key): fi‧le

Noun

file

Alternative form of filee.

Declension

Inflection of file (Kotus type 48/hame, no gradation)
nominative		file	fileet
genitive		fileen	fileiden fileitten
partitive		filettä	fileitä
illative		fileeseen	fileisiin fileihin
		singular	plural
nominative		file	fileet
accusative	nom.	file	fileet
accusative	gen.	fileen	fileet
genitive		fileen	fileiden fileitten
partitive		filettä	fileitä
inessive		fileessä	fileissä
elative		fileestä	fileistä
illative		fileeseen	fileisiin fileihin
adessive		fileellä	fileillä
ablative		fileeltä	fileiltä
allative		fileelle	fileille
essive		fileenä	fileinä
translative		fileeksi	fileiksi
abessive		fileettä	fileittä
instructive		—	filein
comitative		See the possessive forms below.

Possessive forms of file (Kotus type 48/hame, no gradation)

first-person singular possessor
		singular	plural
nominative		fileeni	fileeni
accusative	nom.	fileeni	fileeni
accusative	gen.	fileeni	fileeni
genitive		fileeni	fileideni fileitteni
partitive		filettäni	fileitäni
inessive		fileessäni	fileissäni
elative		fileestäni	fileistäni
illative		fileeseeni	fileisiini fileihini
adessive		fileelläni	fileilläni
ablative		fileeltäni	fileiltäni
allative		fileelleni	fileilleni
essive		fileenäni	fileinäni
translative		fileekseni	fileikseni
abessive		fileettäni	fileittäni
instructive		—	—
comitative		—	fileineni

second-person singular possessor
		singular	plural
nominative		fileesi	fileesi
accusative	nom.	fileesi	fileesi
accusative	gen.	fileesi	fileesi
genitive		fileesi	fileidesi fileittesi
partitive		filettäsi	fileitäsi
inessive		fileessäsi	fileissäsi
elative		fileestäsi	fileistäsi
illative		fileeseesi	fileisiisi fileihisi
adessive		fileelläsi	fileilläsi
ablative		fileeltäsi	fileiltäsi
allative		fileellesi	fileillesi
essive		fileenäsi	fileinäsi
translative		fileeksesi	fileiksesi
abessive		fileettäsi	fileittäsi
instructive		—	—
comitative		—	fileinesi

first-person plural possessor
		singular	plural
nominative		fileemme	fileemme
accusative	nom.	fileemme	fileemme
accusative	gen.	fileemme	fileemme
genitive		fileemme	fileidemme fileittemme
partitive		filettämme	fileitämme
inessive		fileessämme	fileissämme
elative		fileestämme	fileistämme
illative		fileeseemme	fileisiimme fileihimme
adessive		fileellämme	fileillämme
ablative		fileeltämme	fileiltämme
allative		fileellemme	fileillemme
essive		fileenämme	fileinämme
translative		fileeksemme	fileiksemme
abessive		fileettämme	fileittämme
instructive		—	—
comitative		—	fileinemme

second-person plural possessor
		singular	plural
nominative		fileenne	fileenne
accusative	nom.	fileenne	fileenne
accusative	gen.	fileenne	fileenne
genitive		fileenne	fileidenne fileittenne
partitive		filettänne	fileitänne
inessive		fileessänne	fileissänne
elative		fileestänne	fileistänne
illative		fileeseenne	fileisiinne fileihinne
adessive		fileellänne	fileillänne
ablative		fileeltänne	fileiltänne
allative		fileellenne	fileillenne
essive		fileenänne	fileinänne
translative		fileeksenne	fileiksenne
abessive		fileettänne	fileittänne
instructive		—	—
comitative		—	fileinenne

third-person possessor
		singular	plural
nominative		fileensä	fileensä
accusative	nom.	fileensä	fileensä
accusative	gen.	fileensä	fileensä
genitive		fileensä	fileidensä fileittensä
partitive		filettään filettänsä	fileitään fileitänsä
inessive		fileessään fileessänsä	fileissään fileissänsä
elative		fileestään fileestänsä	fileistään fileistänsä
illative		fileeseensä	fileisiinsä fileihinsä
adessive		fileellään fileellänsä	fileillään fileillänsä
ablative		fileeltään fileeltänsä	fileiltään fileiltänsä
allative		fileelleen fileellensä	fileilleen fileillensä
essive		fileenään fileenänsä	fileinään fileinänsä
translative		fileekseen fileeksensä	fileikseen fileiksensä
abessive		fileettään fileettänsä	fileittään fileittänsä
instructive		—	—
comitative		—	fileineen fileinensä

Derived terms

compounds

French

Etymology

From fil or the verb filer.

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /fil/
Audio: (file)
Homophones: fil, filent, files, fils, Phil, -phile

Noun

file f (plural files)

a line of objects placed one after the other
(Belgium) traffic jam
Synonyms: bouchon, embouteillage

Derived terms

Descendants

→ Dutch: file (“queue, traffic jam”)
→ English: file (“column of people”)
→ Spanish: fila

Verb

file

inflection of filer:
1. first/third-person singular present indicative/subjunctive
2. second-person singular imperative

Anagrams

fiel

Irish

Etymology

From Old Irish fili,^[1] from Primitive Irish ᚃᚓᚂᚔᚈᚐᚄ (velitas), from Proto-Celtic *welīts.

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /ˈfʲɪlʲə/^[2]
(Ulster, also) IPA^(key): /ˈfʲɨ̞lʲə/^[3]

Noun

file m (genitive singular file, nominative plural filí)

poet

Declension

Declension of file

Fourth declension

Bare forms

Case	Singular	Plural
Nominative	file	filí
Vocative	a fhile	a fhilí
Genitive	file	filí
Dative	file	filí

Forms with the definite article

Case	Singular	Plural
Nominative	an file	na filí
Genitive	an fhile	na bhfilí
Dative	leis an bhfile don fhile	leis na filí

Archaic declension:

Declension of file

Fifth declension

Bare forms

Case	Singular	Plural
Nominative	file	fileadha
Vocative	a fhile	a fhileadha
Genitive	fileadh	fileadh
Dative	filidh	fileadha

Forms with the definite article

Case	Singular	Plural
Nominative	an file	na fileadha
Genitive	an fhileadh	na bhfileadh
Dative	leis an bhfilidh don fhilidh	leis na fileadha

Derived terms

filíocht
pribhléid an fhile (“poetic licence”)

Mutation

Irish mutation
Radical	Lenition	Eclipsis
file	fhile	bhfile
Note: Some of these forms may be hypothetical. Not every possible mutated form of every word actually occurs.

References

^ Gregory Toner, Sharon Arbuthnot, Máire Ní Mhaonaigh, Marie-Luise Theuerkauf, Dagmar Wodtko, editors (2019), “fili”, in eDIL: Electronic Dictionary of the Irish Language
^ Finck, F. N. (1899) Die araner mundart (in German), volume II, Marburg: Elwert’sche Verlagsbuchhandlung, page 111
^ Quiggin, E. C. (1906) A Dialect of Donegal, Cambridge University Press, page 39

Italian

Etymology 1

Unadapted borrowing from English file.

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /ˈfa.il/^[1]
Rhymes: -ail

Noun

file m (invariable)

(computing) file

Etymology 2

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /ˈfi.le/
Rhymes: -ile
Hyphenation: fì‧le

Noun

file f

plural of fila

References

^ file in Luciano Canepari, Dizionario di Pronuncia Italiana (DiPI)

Anagrams

elfi

Northern Kurdish

Alternative forms

fele, fileh, fillah, fille

Etymology

From Arabic فَلَّاح (fallāḥ), from Classical Syriac ܦܠܚܐ (pallāḥā).^[1] Sedentary Armenians called so after their way of life by nomadic Kurds.^[2] Doublet of pale.

Noun

Central Kurdish	فەلە (fele)

file m or f

Derived terms

filekî (Armenian language)
filetî (Christianity)

References

^ Chyet, Michael L. (2003) “file”, in Kurdish–English Dictionary‎^[1], with selected etymologies by Martin Schwartz, New Haven and London: Yale University Press, page 195a
^ Cabolov, R. L. (2010) Etimologičeskij slovarʹ kurdskovo jazyka [Etymological Dictionary of the Kurdish Language] (in Russian), volume II, Moscow: Russian Academy Press Vostochnaya Literatura, page 354

Norwegian Nynorsk

Etymology 1

From fil f (“a file”).

Alternative forms

fila (a infinitive)

Verb

file (present tense filar/filer, past tense fila/filte, past participle fila/filt, passive infinitive filast, present participle filande, imperative file/fil)

(transitive) To use a file to file.
(transitive) To rub (making a sound).
(transitive, figurative) To polish, refine.

Etymology 2

Probably related to Swedish fil.

Noun

file m (definite singular filen, indefinite plural filar, definite plural filane)

This term needs a translation to English. Please help out and add a translation, then remove the text {{rfdef}}.

References

“file” in The Nynorsk Dictionary.

Old Irish

Verb

file

Alternative form of fil

Picard

Etymology

From Latin filia.

Noun

file f (plural files)

Related terms

fiu

Portuguese

Verb

file

inflection of filar:
1. first/third-person singular present subjunctive
2. third-person singular imperative

Slovene

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /filéː/
Hyphenation: fi‧lé

Noun

filẹ̑ m inan

fillet

Inflection

The diacritics used in this section of the entry are non-tonal. If you are a native tonal speaker, please help by adding the tonal marks.

Masculine inan., soft o-stem
nom. sing.	filé
gen. sing.	filêja
	singular	dual	plural
nominative (imenovȃlnik)	filé	filêja	filêji
genitive (rodȋlnik)	filêja	filêjev	filêjev
dative (dajȃlnik)	filêju	filêjema	filêjem
accusative (tožȋlnik)	filé	filêja	filêje
locative (mẹ̑stnik)	filêju	filêjih	filêjih
instrumental (orọ̑dnik)	filêjem	filêjema	filêji

Spanish

Verb

file

inflection of filar:
1. first/third-person singular present subjunctive
2. third-person singular imperative

Swahili

Verb

-file (infinitive kufile)

(Sheng) to file (to make a formal request)

Turkish

A shopping file. (2)

Etymology

From French filée.^[1]

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /ˈfi.le/, /fiˈle/
Hyphenation: fi‧le

Noun

file (definite accusative fileyi, plural fileler)

A net made of wool, cotton etc.; mesh.
A meshwork bag used for shopping.
A hairnet.
(sports) A net inside the goal in games like association football, handball etc.
(sports) A net that divides the court in games like tennis, volleyball, badminton etc.

Declension

Inflection

Nominative

file

Definite accusative

fileyi

Singular

Plural

Nominative

file

Definite accusative

Dative

Locative

Ablative

Genitive

Possessive forms
Nominative
	Singular	Plural
1st singular	filem	filelerim
2nd singular	filen	filelerin
3rd singular	filesi	fileleri
1st plural	filemiz	filelerimiz
2nd plural	fileniz	fileleriniz
3rd plural	fileleri	fileleri
Definite accusative
	Singular	Plural
1st singular	filemi	filelerimi
2nd singular	fileni	filelerini
3rd singular	filesini	filelerini
1st plural	filemizi	filelerimizi
2nd plural	filenizi	filelerinizi
3rd plural	filelerini	filelerini
Dative
	Singular	Plural
1st singular	fileme	filelerime
2nd singular	filene	filelerine
3rd singular	filesine	filelerine
1st plural	filemize	filelerimize
2nd plural	filenize	filelerinize
3rd plural	filelerine	filelerine
Locative
	Singular	Plural
1st singular	filemde	filelerimde
2nd singular	filende	filelerinde
3rd singular	filesinde	filelerinde
1st plural	filemizde	filelerimizde
2nd plural	filenizde	filelerinizde
3rd plural	filelerinde	filelerinde
Ablative
	Singular	Plural
1st singular	filemden	filelerimden
2nd singular	filenden	filelerinden
3rd singular	filesinden	filelerinden
1st plural	filemizden	filelerimizden
2nd plural	filenizden	filelerinizden
3rd plural	filelerinden	filelerinden
Genitive
	Singular	Plural
1st singular	filemin	filelerimin
2nd singular	filenin	filelerinin
3rd singular	filesinin	filelerinin
1st plural	filemizin	filelerimizin
2nd plural	filenizin	filelerinizin
3rd plural	filelerinin	filelerinin

Derived terms

References

^ Nişanyan, Sevan (2002–) “file”, in Nişanyan Sözlük

file

English

Pronunciation

Etymology 1

Noun

Synonyms

Hyponyms

Derived terms

Descendants

Translations

Verb

Derived terms

Translations

Etymology 2

Noun

Derived terms

Translations

Verb

Derived terms

Translations

Etymology 3

Noun

Hyponyms

Derived terms

Translations

Verb

Derived terms

Translations

Etymology 4

Verb

Anagrams

Dutch

Etymology 1

Pronunciation

Noun

Synonyms

Etymology 2

Pronunciation

Noun

Anagrams

Esperanto

Etymology

Adverb

Finnish

Pronunciation

Noun

Declension

Derived terms

Further reading

French

Etymology

Pronunciation

Noun

Derived terms

Descendants

Verb

Further reading

Anagrams

Irish

Etymology

Pronunciation

Noun

Declension

Derived terms

Mutation

References

Further reading

Italian

Etymology 1

Pronunciation

Noun

Etymology 2

Pronunciation

Noun

References

Anagrams

Northern Kurdish

Alternative forms

Etymology

Noun