Definition Definition

feed - Meaning and Examples

Meaning of 'feed' (Webster Dictionary)

1 . Feed [ imp. & p. p.]
- of Fee
2 . Feed [ n.]
- That which is eaten; esp., food for beasts; fodder; pasture; hay; grain, ground or whole; as, the best feed for sheep.
- A grazing or pasture ground.
- An allowance of provender given to a horse, cow, etc.; a meal; as, a feed of corn or oats.
- A meal, or the act of eating.
- The water supplied to steam boilers.
- The motion, or act, of carrying forward the stuff to be operated upon, as cloth to the needle in a sewing machine; or of producing progressive operation upon any material or object in a machine, as, in a turning lathe, by moving the cutting tool along or in the work.
- The supply of material to a machine, as water to a steam boiler, coal to a furnace, or grain to a run of stones.
- The mechanism by which the action of feeding is produced; a feed motion.
3 . Feed [ v. i.]
- To take food; to eat.
- To subject by eating; to satisfy the appetite; to feed one's self (upon something); to prey; -- with on or upon.
- To be nourished, strengthened, or satisfied, as if by food.
- To place cattle to feed; to pasture; to graze.
4 . Feed [ v. t.]
- To give food to; to supply with nourishment; to satisfy the physical huger of.
- To satisfy; grafity or minister to, as any sense, talent, taste, or desire.
- To fill the wants of; to supply with that which is used or wasted; as, springs feed ponds; the hopper feeds the mill; to feed a furnace with coal.
- To nourish, in a general sense; to foster, strengthen, develop, and guard.
- To graze; to cause to be cropped by feeding, as herbage by cattle; as, if grain is too forward in autumn, feed it with sheep.
- To give for food, especially to animals; to furnish for consumption; as, to feed out turnips to the cows; to feed water to a steam boiler.
- To supply (the material to be operated upon) to a machine; as, to feed paper to a printing press.
- To produce progressive operation upon or with (as in wood and metal working machines, so that the work moves to the cutting tool, or the tool to the work).

Meaning of 'feed' (Princeton's WordNet)

1 . feed [ v]
Meaning (1):
- give food to
Example in sentence:
  • don't give the child this tough meat;
  • Feed the starving children in India
Meaning (2):
- introduce continuously
Example in sentence:
  • feed carrots into a food processor
Meaning (3):
- gratify
Example in sentence:
  • feed one's eyes on a gorgeous view
Meaning (4):
- provide as food
Example in sentence:
  • Feed the guests the nuts
Meaning (5):
- profit from in an exploitatory manner
Example in sentence:
  • He feeds on her insecurity
Meaning (6):
- feed into; supply
Example in sentence:
  • Her success feeds her vanity
Meaning (7):
- support or promote
Example in sentence:
  • His admiration fed her vanity
Meaning (8):
- move along, of liquids
Example in sentence:
  • the Missouri feeds into the Mississippi;
  • Water flowed into the cave
Meaning (9):
- serve as food for; be the food for
Example in sentence:
  • This dish feeds six
Meaning (10):
- take in food; used of animals only
Example in sentence:
  • This dog doesn't eat certain kinds of meat;
  • What do whales eat?
Meaning (11):
- provide with fertilizers or add nutrients to
Example in sentence:
  • We should fertilize soil if we want to grow healthy plants