Fulfill

Part of speech: verb

Pronunciation: /fʊlˈfɪl/

Definitions

1. To complete or carry out a duty, promise, or requirement successfully
2. To achieve a desired outcome or to satisfy a condition, thereby ensuring that an obligation, goal, or expectation is met in full capacity
3. To execute or accomplish a task, promise, or intent, leading to the full realization of an anticipated result or agreement

Etymology: "Fulfill" is about as transparent as English compounds get: it joins "full" and "fill," and the Old English ancestor, "fullfyllan," meant literally "to fill full," that is, to fill something to its brim. The sense of completing an obligation grew out of that picture of a vessel brought to capacity. A promise or a duty was imagined as a container that had to be topped up until nothing was missing. The word passed into Middle English as "fulfillen," keeping the same two-part construction. Its spelling has wavered over the centuries, and "fulfil" with a single L remains common in British usage, but the underlying logic has never changed: to fulfill something is to bring it to completion, leaving no gaps.

Synonyms: achieve, accomplish, execute, realize, complete

Antonyms: fail, neglect, abandon, disregard, violate