file

Etymology 1

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

noun

1. A collection of papers collated and archived together.
2. A roll or list.
3. Course of thought; thread of narration.
   Let me resume the file of my narration. 1642, Henry Wotton, A Short View of the Life and Death of George Villiers
4. (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.
5. (computing) The primary item on the menu bar, containing commands such as open, save, print, etc.
6. 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.
7. (Canada, US) Clipping of file cabinet..
   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. 2010, Beth Critchley Charlton, Englaging the DisEngaged, page 71

verb

1. (transitive) To commit (official papers) to some office.
   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). May 27, 2012, 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
2. (transitive) To submit (a story) to a newspaper or similar publication.
3. (transitive) To place in an archive in a logical place and order.
4. (transitive) To store a file (aggregation of data) on a storage medium such as a disc or another computer.
5. (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.
6. (transitive, obsolete) To set in order; to arrange, or lay away.

Etymology 2

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

noun

1. A column of people one behind another, whether "single file" or in a grid pattern.
   The troops marched in Indian file.
2. (military) A small detachment of soldiers.
3. (chess) one of the eight vertical lines of squares on a chessboard (i.e., those identified by a letter).

verb

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

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

1. 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.
2. (slang, archaic) A cunning or resourceful person.
   The greatest character among them was that of a Pickpocket, or, in truer language, a File. 1743, Henry Fielding, The Life and Death of Jonathan Wild, the Great

verb

1. (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.

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

1. (archaic) To defile.
2. To corrupt.