fulfill
verb
ful·fill
fu̇(l)-ˈfil 
also fə(l)-
variants
or fulfil
fulfilled; fulfilling
1
a
: to put into effect : execute
He fulfilled his pledge to cut taxes.
b
: to meet the requirements of (a business order)
Their order for more TVs was promptly fulfilled.
c
: to measure up to : satisfy
She hasn't yet fulfilled the requirements needed to graduate.
d
: to bring to an end
she came to install herself and fulfill her time at the house—
Willa Cather
Willa Cather2
a
: to develop the full potentialities of
He has a lot of talent, but he hasn't really fulfilled his potential.
b
: to convert into reality
a sense of the failure of life to fulfill its ultimate expectations—Leslie Rees
Leslie Rees3
archaic
: to make full : fill
her subtle, warm, and golden breath … fulfills him with beatitude—Alfred Tennyson
Alfred Tennyson
fulfiller
noun
Synonyms
Examples of fulfill in a Sentence
He fulfilled his pledge to cut taxes.
She failed to fulfill her obligations.
The program is intended to fulfill the basic needs of children in the community.
If we could have that house, our dreams would be fulfilled.
He fulfilled his childhood wish to become a professional baseball player.
She fulfilled her life's ambition when she started her own business.
He's trying to fulfill himself as an artist.
Recent Examples on the Web
The announcement fulfills one of Biden’s key campaign promises – though not until the tail end of his first term.
—Zachary Schermele, USA TODAY, 19 Apr. 2024
As such the catalog fulfills its mission of keeping the bloom of an exhibition alive long after the dresses have fallen back into slumber.
—Laird Borrelli-Persson, Vogue, 18 Apr. 2024
The fishery community supports many of those initiatives, but also recognizes that the package is largely aspirational, for money hasn’t been appropriated to fulfill all its elements.
—Michael Hiltzik, Los Angeles Times, 18 Apr. 2024
Many of the cuts expire at the end of 2025, and Biden wants to keep a majority of them to fulfill his promise that no one earning less than $400,000 will pay more taxes.
—Chris Megerian, Fortune, 17 Apr. 2024
The request for the review, made by the city and Indianapolis' police Chief Christopher Bailey, fulfills a pledge made last year by the police agency.
—Sarah Nelson, The Indianapolis Star, 16 Apr. 2024
That margin also helped fulfill the legislative wishlist of FPL, one of the most powerful interests in Florida politics.
—Mario Alejandro Ariza, Miami Herald, 12 Apr. 2024
The proposal, which must be approved by the City Council this spring, aims to fulfill the mayor’s promise in January to add 1,000 new beds to the city’s shelter system this year.
—David Garrick, San Diego Union-Tribune, 4 Apr. 2024
That batch follows other shipments sent to Israel over the years to fulfill large munitions orders approved by Congress and the State Department in both 2012 and 2015, U.S. officials said.
—Edward Wong, New York Times, 6 Apr. 2024
Zachary Schermele, USA TODAY, 19 Apr. 2024
As such the catalog fulfills its mission of keeping the bloom of an exhibition alive long after the dresses have fallen back into slumber.
—Laird Borrelli-Persson, Vogue, 18 Apr. 2024
The fishery community supports many of those initiatives, but also recognizes that the package is largely aspirational, for money hasn’t been appropriated to fulfill all its elements.
—Michael Hiltzik, Los Angeles Times, 18 Apr. 2024
Many of the cuts expire at the end of 2025, and Biden wants to keep a majority of them to fulfill his promise that no one earning less than $400,000 will pay more taxes.
—Chris Megerian, Fortune, 17 Apr. 2024
The request for the review, made by the city and Indianapolis' police Chief Christopher Bailey, fulfills a pledge made last year by the police agency.
—Sarah Nelson, The Indianapolis Star, 16 Apr. 2024
That margin also helped fulfill the legislative wishlist of FPL, one of the most powerful interests in Florida politics.
—Mario Alejandro Ariza, Miami Herald, 12 Apr. 2024
The proposal, which must be approved by the City Council this spring, aims to fulfill the mayor’s promise in January to add 1,000 new beds to the city’s shelter system this year.
—David Garrick, San Diego Union-Tribune, 4 Apr. 2024
That batch follows other shipments sent to Israel over the years to fulfill large munitions orders approved by Congress and the State Department in both 2012 and 2015, U.S. officials said.
—Edward Wong, New York Times, 6 Apr. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'fulfill.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near fulfill
Cite this Entry
“Fulfill.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/fulfill. Accessed 23 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
fulfill
verb
ful·fill
variants
or fulfil
fulfilled; fulfilling
1
: accomplish
fulfill a promise
2
: to measure up to : satisfy
fulfill requirements
fulfiller
noun
fulfillment
noun
-mənt
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