fill-in

1 of 2

noun

: someone or something that fills in

fill in

2 of 2

verb

filled in; filling in; fills in

transitive verb

1
: to enrich (something, such as a design) with detail
2
: to give necessary or recently acquired information to
I'll fill you in

intransitive verb

: to fill a vacancy usually temporarily
interns filled in for regular staffers

Examples of fill-in in a Sentence

Verb my friend quickly filled me in on the portion of the movie that I had missed she's only filling in while the regular secretary is on vacation
Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
The laser instrument appeared to serve as a suitable fill-in, and everything appeared to be working until the spacecraft went silent for several minutes. Kenneth Chang, New York Times, 22 Feb. 2024 Practice squad fullback Jason Cabinda also can play as a fill-in tight end. Dave Birkett, Detroit Free Press, 24 Jan. 2024 Garner, who was a last-minute fill-in speaker to replace Laura Dern and Don Cheadle Thursday, could not have been more proud to have worked with and grown close to her costar. Angel Saunders, Peoplemag, 9 Feb. 2024 At the time of the reshuffling announcement, MSNBC noted its intention to keep Hasan on as an analyst and fill-in host. Becket Adams, National Review, 14 Jan. 2024 The network had announced in November that Hasan would lose his weekly show after three years but would remain as an analyst and fill-in anchor. David Bauder, Fortune, 9 Jan. 2024 Zack Moss Position: Running back Age: 26 2023 salary cap hit: $1.15 million With the Colts: Moss has been an able fill-in when Jonathan Taylor has missed time with injuries. Scott Horner, The Indianapolis Star, 7 Jan. 2024 Even in places where fill-in programming performed reasonably well, the gaps are noticeable. Rick Porter, The Hollywood Reporter, 27 Dec. 2023 Fox News has promoted Gillian Turner to anchor and state department and foreign policy correspondent. Turner, who joined Fox News in 2014 and has worked as a correspondent and fill-in anchor since 2018, will now cover international and domestic issues at the State Department. Alex Weprin, The Hollywood Reporter, 19 Dec. 2023
Verb
Officials have said the service is filling in the gaps in the public transportation system, allowing individual riders to hail a van via a phone app and get dropped off at bus stops or elsewhere in the service area. Sarah Ritter, Kansas City Star, 22 Mar. 2024 Because Gallagher is resigning after that date, the vacancy may be filled in the August and November primary and general elections. Journal Sentinel, 22 Mar. 2024 Fortune reporter Luisa Beltran here filling in for Allie. Byluisa Beltran, Fortune, 20 Mar. 2024 To manager Bob Melvin, who has at least one hole to fill in his starting rotation, Cobb’s speedy recovery carries more significance. Evan Webeck, The Mercury News, 17 Mar. 2024 Do not overlap the crackers and, if necessary, break a few crackers to fill in any gaps. Robin Miller, The Arizona Republic, 14 Mar. 2024 Middleton was able to fill in several of the squares that surrounded the space where the No. 44 card’s swatch would go. Daniel Miller, Los Angeles Times, 14 Mar. 2024 On Broadway, overall attendance is still down about 17 percent: 9.3 million seats have been filled in the current season as of March 3, down from 11.1 million at the same point in 2020. New York Times, 12 Mar. 2024 Matthew McCoy continued to fill in for Francis Mauigoa at starting right tackle. Barry Jackson, Miami Herald, 8 Mar. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'fill-in.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

Noun

1917, in the meaning defined above

Verb

1840, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of fill-in was in 1840

Dictionary Entries Near fill-in

Cite this Entry

“Fill-in.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/fill-in. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

fill in

verb
1
: to furnish with specified information
fill in an application
filled us in on the latest news
2
: to fill a vacancy usually temporarily : substitute
filled in during the emergency
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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