refill

UK/ˈɹiː.fɪl/US/ˈɹiː.fɪl/

verbB12 meanings Common in everyday speech and writing · #5,040 of 15,258leans spoken

Other forms: refilled, refilling, refills

To refill is to fill an empty container again. Refill the glass, a refill pack, free refills.

As a noun a refill is both the act and the replacement part — a pen refill, a refill for a cartridge. Free refills on soft drinks are standard in American restaurants and rare in Britain. Refill packs are sold as the cheaper and less wasteful option for soap and cleaning products, and whether they actually reduce plastic depends entirely on the packaging.

Definitions of refill

1verbrefillTo fill an empty container again.B1
“The waiter kept coming back to refill our glasses with water.”
- Said"Can I refill your glass? There's half a bottle left."
- WrittenThe waiter refilled the water without asking, which is the whole secret of good service.
- UsedRefill the pepper mill before it runs out, not after.
- ContrastRefill, not fill. Fill is the first time; refill is every time after, once it has been emptied. fill →
- Not thisTopping up a half-full cup is not really refilling it. Refill means drained first.
- Exchange"Refill?""Just a splash. I'm driving."
- SimplyMy mug is empty. Please refill it.
Patternrefill a glass / bottle / cup · a free refill · refill sth with + liquid · get a refill
2nounreplacementA replacement part or serving.B1
“I bought a refill for my pen instead of a new one.”

Remember it

RE-FILL → FILL it again

It is re + fill: your glass is empty, so fill it again.

hooks ontofill

Also practised as

nounA second glass of the same drink at no charge.

Where it comes from

Proto-Indo-European
*pleh₁-
Middle English
fillen
English
fill
English, today
refill

Built from

*fullaz · Proto-Germanic — full

From re- + fill. fill comes from Middle English fillen. From Middle English fillen, fullen, from Old English fyllan (“to fill, fill up, replenish, satisfy; complete, fulfill”), from Proto-West Germanic fullijan, from Proto-Germanic fullijaną (“to make full, fill”), from fullaz (“full”), from Proto-Indo-European pl̥h₁nós (“full”). Cognate with Scots fill (“to fill”), West Frisian folje (“to fill”), Low German füllen (“to fill”), Dutch vullen (“to fill”), German füllen (“to fill”), Danish fylde (“to fill”), Swedish fylla (“to fill”), Norwegian fylle (“to fill”), Icelandic fylla (“to fill”) and Latin plenus (“full”)

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA

Definitions of refill

1verbrefillTo fill an empty container again.B1

“The waiter kept coming back to refill our glasses with water.”

Said"Can I refill your glass? There's half a bottle left."
WrittenThe waiter refilled the water without asking, which is the whole secret of good service.
UsedRefill the pepper mill before it runs out, not after.
ContrastRefill, not fill. Fill is the first time; refill is every time after, once it has been emptied. fill →
Not thisTopping up a half-full cup is not really refilling it. Refill means drained first.
Exchange"Refill?""Just a splash. I'm driving."
SimplyMy mug is empty. Please refill it.

Patternrefill a glass / bottle / cup · a free refill · refill sth with + liquid · get a refill

2nounreplacementA replacement part or serving.B1

“I bought a refill for my pen instead of a new one.”