fed
ˈfed 
; feeding
; feeding
1
a
: to give food to
b
: to give as food
2
a
: to furnish something essential to the development, sustenance, maintenance, or operation of
reading feeds the mind
b
: to supply (material to be operated on) to a machine
c(1)
: to insert and deposit (something) repeatedly or continuously
feed quarters into a parking meter
(2)
: to insert and deposit something into (something)
Running out to feed the meter every hour doesn't work, because the meter will not permit more than one hour for a given car.—
T. R. Reid
T. R. Reid3
: to produce or provide food for
5
6
: to supply (a fellow actor) with cues and situations that make a role more effective
7
: to pass a ball or puck to (a teammate) especially for a shot at the goal
2
: to become nourished or satisfied or sustained as if by food
3
a
: to become channeled or directed
b
: to move into a machine or opening in order to be used or processed
1
a
: an act of eating
b
: meal
especially
: a large meal
2
a
: food for livestock
specifically
: a mixture or preparation for feeding livestock
b
: the amount given at each feeding
3
a
: material supplied (as to a furnace or machine)
b
: a mechanism by which the action of feeding is effected
c
: the motion or process of carrying forward the material to be operated upon (as in a machine)
d
: the act or process of feeding a signal (such as an audio or video transmission) to a station for broadcast
also
: the signal being fed
a live satellite feed
e
: an Internet service in which updates from electronic information sources (such as blogs or social media accounts) are presented in a continuous stream
an RSS feed
also
: the information presented by such a service
I changed my settings so that all of my cousin's posts would show up at the top of my feed.
4
: the action of passing a ball or puck to a team member who is in position to score
Synonyms
Examples of feed in a Sentence
Verb
He was too weak to feed himself.
We feed the plants with a special fertilizer twice a week.
We fed the horses with apples, oats, and hay.
The children fed apples to the horses.
These supplies could feed a small army for a week.
He doesn't earn enough to feed a family of four.
helping to feed and clothe poor children
They used the wood to feed the fire.
The streams feed the creek.
The motor is fed by an electrical current.
Noun
There's a jam in the paper feed.
We had to cut off the main power feed.
They're showing a live satellite feed of the event.
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Recent Examples on the WebAndrew J. Campa, Los Angeles Times, 19 Sep. 2023
Waste from the beef production facility will feed the fish, and adjacent greenhouses will use discharge from the fish farms as nutrients for plants.
—Mitchell Parton, Dallas News, 19 Sep. 2023
In theory, elevated energy prices could feed into core inflation — which Fed officials are more focused on — if those prices stay high for long enough, jacking up the prices of airfares and freight.
—Bryan Mena, CNN, 19 Sep. 2023
One showed Roker in a tuxedo and his wife in a white dress, veil and long white gloves, another had Roberts feeding Roker a piece of wedding cake and a third pic captured the two hand-in-hand smiling directly at the camera.
—Celeste McCauley, Peoplemag, 17 Sep. 2023
But there’s that struggle with needing to feed a growing population.
—William Earl, Variety, 17 Sep. 2023
The professor assembled a team of social and computer scientists that fed the incident reports — totaling 4 million words — into a computer system.
—cleveland, 17 Sep. 2023
Deliberations started Friday, and the talks dragging out for more than a day behind closed doors fed a rare lack of assurance about how a vote might go in the Texas Capitol, where a dominant Republican majority typically means that outcomes are seldom in doubt.
—Paul J. Weber and Juan A. Lozano, BostonGlobe.com, 16 Sep. 2023
Lasagna is a staple of our dinner tables—the layered pasta casserole is an easy way to feed a crowd (or a hungry family).
—Marianne Williams, Southern Living, 16 Sep. 2023
Tim Chan, The Hollywood Reporter, 8 Sep. 2023
The new roles would mark a continuation of work TikTok has been doing to incorporate more tools and features that help users interact and reinforce their real-world connections within the app, including a feed that shows only content from a user’s friends and TikTok Stories.
—Clare Duffy, CNN, 6 Sep. 2023
He was required to for ones in New York and Miami, and did not request a virtual appearance in Washington, D.C., where such appearances via video feed are common.
—Graham Kates, CBS News, 31 Aug. 2023
People race drones in what’s called first-person view (FPV), using video goggles that display a real-time feed from a camera mounted on the front of the drone.
—IEEE Spectrum, 31 Aug. 2023
The Pressure Cooker competition, which fans could stream on live feeds, went well into Friday morning, ending just before noon ET.
—David Wysong, The Enquirer, 25 Aug. 2023
Like many modern royal moms, Princess Charlene’s Instagram feed featured plenty of fun updates about what her kids were up to.
—Janine Henni, Peoplemag, 24 Aug. 2023
Two years later, fighting a tide of spam and clickbait in users’ feeds, the company voluntarily paid media outlets — including The Post — to deliver some of their best content to readers directly on the platform.
—Will Oremus, Washington Post, 24 Aug. 2023
For one, people who don’t fully understand the terms but see them on their social media feeds might be more likely to weaponize them in relationships to create a power dynamic.
—Time, 24 Aug. 2023
See More
Verb
There, families were fed and children provided toys, Cabrera said.
—Andrew J. Campa, Los Angeles Times, 19 Sep. 2023
Waste from the beef production facility will feed the fish, and adjacent greenhouses will use discharge from the fish farms as nutrients for plants.
—Mitchell Parton, Dallas News, 19 Sep. 2023
In theory, elevated energy prices could feed into core inflation — which Fed officials are more focused on — if those prices stay high for long enough, jacking up the prices of airfares and freight.
—Bryan Mena, CNN, 19 Sep. 2023
One showed Roker in a tuxedo and his wife in a white dress, veil and long white gloves, another had Roberts feeding Roker a piece of wedding cake and a third pic captured the two hand-in-hand smiling directly at the camera.
—Celeste McCauley, Peoplemag, 17 Sep. 2023
But there’s that struggle with needing to feed a growing population.
—William Earl, Variety, 17 Sep. 2023
The professor assembled a team of social and computer scientists that fed the incident reports — totaling 4 million words — into a computer system.
—cleveland, 17 Sep. 2023
Deliberations started Friday, and the talks dragging out for more than a day behind closed doors fed a rare lack of assurance about how a vote might go in the Texas Capitol, where a dominant Republican majority typically means that outcomes are seldom in doubt.
—Paul J. Weber and Juan A. Lozano, BostonGlobe.com, 16 Sep. 2023
Lasagna is a staple of our dinner tables—the layered pasta casserole is an easy way to feed a crowd (or a hungry family).
—Marianne Williams, Southern Living, 16 Sep. 2023
Noun
Sign up for the free trial here to get a live feed of the Alcaraz vs. Medvedev match.
—Tim Chan, The Hollywood Reporter, 8 Sep. 2023
The new roles would mark a continuation of work TikTok has been doing to incorporate more tools and features that help users interact and reinforce their real-world connections within the app, including a feed that shows only content from a user’s friends and TikTok Stories.
—Clare Duffy, CNN, 6 Sep. 2023
He was required to for ones in New York and Miami, and did not request a virtual appearance in Washington, D.C., where such appearances via video feed are common.
—Graham Kates, CBS News, 31 Aug. 2023
People race drones in what’s called first-person view (FPV), using video goggles that display a real-time feed from a camera mounted on the front of the drone.
—IEEE Spectrum, 31 Aug. 2023
The Pressure Cooker competition, which fans could stream on live feeds, went well into Friday morning, ending just before noon ET.
—David Wysong, The Enquirer, 25 Aug. 2023
Like many modern royal moms, Princess Charlene’s Instagram feed featured plenty of fun updates about what her kids were up to.
—Janine Henni, Peoplemag, 24 Aug. 2023
Two years later, fighting a tide of spam and clickbait in users’ feeds, the company voluntarily paid media outlets — including The Post — to deliver some of their best content to readers directly on the platform.
—Will Oremus, Washington Post, 24 Aug. 2023
For one, people who don’t fully understand the terms but see them on their social media feeds might be more likely to weaponize them in relationships to create a power dynamic.
—Time, 24 Aug. 2023
See More
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'feed.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
Etymology
Verb
Middle English feden, from Old English fēdan; akin to Old English fōda food — more at food
First Known Use
Verb
before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1a
Noun
1575, in the meaning defined at sense 1a
Time Traveler
The first known use of feed was
before the 12th century
Phrases Containing feed
Dictionary Entries Near feed
Cite this Entry
“Feed.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/feed. Accessed 24 Sep. 2023.
Copy Citation
Kids Definition
feed
1 of 2 verb
fed
ˈfed
; feeding
; feeding
1
a
: to give food to
b
: to give as food
c
d
: prey entry 2 sense 1a
—used with on, upon, or off
feeds on insects
2
a
: to supply with something necessary
b
: to supply (material to be operated on) to a machine
c
: to nourish or become nourished as if by food
3
a
: to supply for use
b
: to supply (a signal) to an electronic circuit or to a transmitter for broadcast
feed
2 of 2 noun1
: meal entry 1
especially
: a large meal
2
: food for livestock
3
: a mechanism by which feeding is carried out
4
a
: a signal fed to a transmitter
b
: an Internet service in which updates from electronic information sources (as blogs or social media accounts) are presented in a continuous stream
also
: the information presented by such a service
More from Merriam-Webster on feed
Nglish: Translation of feed for Spanish Speakers
Britannica English: Translation of feed for Arabic Speakers
Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about feed
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