File blank

File File (f[imac]l), n. [AS. fe['o]l; akin to D. viji, OHG. f[=i]la, f[=i]hala, G. feile, Sw. fil, Dan. fiil, cf. Icel. [thorn][=e]l, Russ. pila, and Skr. pi[,c] to cut out, adorn; perh. akin to E. paint.] 1. A steel instrument, having cutting ridges or teeth, made by indentation with a chisel, used for abrading or smoothing other substances, as metals, wood, etc. [1913 Webster]

Note: A file differs from a rasp in having the furrows made by straight cuts of a chisel, either single or crossed, while the rasp has coarse, single teeth, raised by the pyramidal end of a triangular punch. [1913 Webster]

2. Anything employed to smooth, polish, or rasp, literally or figuratively. [1913 Webster]

Mock the nice touches of the critic's file. --Akenside. [1913 Webster]

3. A shrewd or artful person. [Slang] --Fielding. [1913 Webster]

Will is an old file in spite of his smooth face. --Thackeray. [1913 Webster]

{Bastard file}, {Cross file}, etc. See under {Bastard}, {Cross}, etc.

{Cross-cut file}, a file having two sets of teeth crossing obliquely.

{File blank}, a steel blank shaped and ground ready for cutting to form a file.

{File cutter}, a maker of files.

{Second-cut file}, a file having teeth of a grade next finer than bastard.

{Single-cut file}, a file having only one set of parallel teeth; a float.

{Smooth file}, a file having teeth so fine as to make an almost smooth surface. [1913 Webster]