feed

[ feed ]

verb (used with object)

, fed, feed·ing.

1. to give food to; supply with nourishment:

   to feed a child.

   Synonyms: sustain, nourish

   Antonyms: starve

2. to yield or serve as food for:

   This land has fed 10 generations.

   Synonyms: sustain, nourish

   Antonyms: starve

3. to provide as food.
4. to furnish for consumption.
5. to satisfy; minister to; gratify:

   Poetry feeds the imagination.

   Synonyms: bolster, encourage, support, nurture

6. to supply for maintenance or operation, as to a machine:

   to feed paper into a photocopier.

7. to provide with the necessary materials for development, maintenance, or operation:

   to feed a printing press with paper.

8. to use (land) as pasture.
9. Theater Informal.
   1. to supply (an actor, especially a comedian) with lines or action, the responses to which are expected to elicit laughter.
   2. to provide cues to (an actor).
   3. Chiefly British. to prompt:

      Stand in the wings and feed them their lines.

10. Radio and Television. to distribute (a local broadcast) via satellite or network.

verb (used without object)

, fed, feed·ing.

1. (especially of animals) to take food; eat:

   cows feeding in a meadow; to feed well.

2. to be nourished or gratified; subsist:

   to feed on grass; to feed on thoughts of revenge.

noun

1. food, especially for farm animals, as cattle, horses or chickens.
2. an allowance, portion, or supply of such food.
3. Informal. a meal, especially a lavish one.
4. the act of feeding.
5. the act or process of feeding a furnace, machine, etc.
6. the material, or the amount of it, so fed or supplied.
7. a feeding mechanism.
8. Electricity. feeder ( def 10 ).
9. Theater Informal.
   1. a line spoken by one actor, the response to which by another actor is expected to cause laughter.
   2. an actor, especially a straight man, who provides such lines.
10. a local television broadcast distributed by satellite or network to a much wider audience, especially nationwide or international.
11. Digital Technology.
    1. a website or application that publishes updates from social media or news-collection websites in reverse chronological order:

       I follow all of the latest celebrity gossip in my Twitter feed.

    2. an XML-based web document that is updated automatically at predetermined intervals and includes descriptive titles or short descriptions and links to recent pages on a website:

       Subscribe to news feeds to get the latest news from around the world.

feed

/ fiːd /

verb

1. to give food to

   to feed the cat

2. to give as food

   to feed meat to the cat

3. intr to eat food

   the horses feed at noon

4. to provide food for

   these supplies can feed 10 million people

5. to provide what is necessary for the existence or development of

   to feed one's imagination

6. to gratify; satisfy

   to feed one's eyes on a beautiful sight

7. also intr to supply (a machine, furnace, etc) with (the necessary materials or fuel) for its operation, or (of such materials) to flow or move forwards into a machine, etc
8. to use (land) as grazing
9. informal.
   theatre to cue (an actor, esp a comedian) with lines or actions
10. sport to pass a ball to (a team-mate)
11. electronics to introduce (electrical energy) into a circuit, esp by means of a feeder
12. also intr; foll by on or upon to eat or cause to eat

noun

1. the act or an instance of feeding
2. food, esp that of animals or babies
3. the process of supplying a machine or furnace with a material or fuel
4. the quantity of material or fuel so supplied
5. computing a facility allowing web users to receive news headlines and updates on their browser from a website as soon as they are published
6. the rate of advance of a cutting tool in a lathe, drill, etc
7. a mechanism that supplies material or fuel or controls the rate of advance of a cutting tool
8. informal.
   theatre a performer, esp a straight man, who provides cues
9. informal.
   a meal

Derived Forms

• ˈfeedable, adjective

Other Words From

• feeda·ble adjective
• outfeed verb (used with object) outfed outfeeding
• re·feed verb refed refeeding
• un·feeda·ble adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of feed¹

First recorded before 950; Middle English feden, Old English fēdan; cognate with Gothic fōdjan, Old Saxon fōdian. See food

Word History and Origins

Origin of feed¹

Old English fēdan ; related to Old Norse fœtha to feed, Old High German fuotan , Gothic fōthjan ; see food , fodder

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. chain feed, to pass (work) successively into a machine in such a manner that each new piece is held in place by or connected to the one before.
2. off one's feed, Slang.
   1. reluctant to eat; without appetite.
   2. dejected; sad.
   3. not well; ill.

More idioms and phrases containing feed

• bite the hand that feeds you
• chicken feed
• off one's feed
• put on the feed bag

Synonym Study

Feed, fodder, forage, provender mean food for animals. Feed is the general word: pig feed; chicken feed. Fodder is especially applied to dry or green feed, as opposed to pasturage, fed to horses, cattle, etc.: fodder for winter feeding; Cornstalks are good fodder. Forage is food that an animal obtains (usually grass, leaves, etc.) by searching about for it: Lost cattle can usually live on forage. Provender denotes dry feed, such as hay, oats, or corn: a supply of provender in the haymow and corn cribs.

Example Sentences

Our study shows that the biggest opportunity is using sugar to feed microbes that make protein.

From Salon

In this way, they obtained spatially and temporally finely resolved locations where vultures fed.

From Science Daily

Residents are fed up with sprawling tent encampments and the associated drug use and street crime.

From Los Angeles Times

“It is certainly sending a message that Californians across the political spectrum are fed up with higher costs and greater uncertainty on Main Street.”

From Los Angeles Times

The event was Netflix’s first foray into streaming a live sporting event, and many viewers complained on social media about losing the feed and buffering.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• bolster
• deliver
• encourage
• fill
• find
• fuel
• give
• maintain
• nourish
• provide
• satisfy
• stuff
• supply
• sustain