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Showing results for single file. Search instead for in+single+file.
Synonyms

single file

American  

noun

  1. a line of persons or things arranged one behind the other; Indian file.

single file British  

noun

  1. a line of persons, animals, or things ranged one behind the other, either stationary or moving

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of single file

First recorded in 1660–70

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

One by one, cattle fall behind him single file to consume a breakfast of ground corn and hay.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 15, 2026

Drone footage from the weekend showed long lines of men and boys standing or walking in single file.

From Salon • Oct. 30, 2024

Compared to cells moving in a single file, clusters were much slower.

From Science Daily • Jun. 19, 2024

They lined up single file against the brush, in a dusty clearing steps from Highway 94, and waited for Border Patrol agents to pick them up.

From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 5, 2024

They went slowly in single file: Gollum, Sam, Frodo.

From "The Two Towers" by J. R. R. Tolkien

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.