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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

FIX, v.t. [L. firus, figo.]
1. To make stable; to set or establish immovably. The universe is governed by fixed laws.
2. To set or place permanently; to establish. The prince fixed his residence at York. The seat of our government is fixed at Washington in the district of Columbia. Some men have no fixed opinions.
3. To make fast; to fasten; to attach firmly; as, to fix a cord or line to a hook.
4. To set or place steadily; to direct, as the eye, without moving it; to fasten. The gentleman fixed his eyes on the speaker, and addressed him with firmness.
5. To set or direct steadily, without wandering; as, to fix the attention. The preacher fixes the attention of his audience, or the hearers fix their attention on the preacher.
6. To set or make firm, so as to bear a high degree of heat without evaporating; to deprive of volatility. Gold, diamonds, silver, platina, are among the most fixed bodies.
7. To transfix; to pierce. [Little used.]
8. To withhold from motion.
9. In popular use, to put in order; to prepare; to adjust; to set or place in the manner desired or most suitable; as, to fix clothes or dress; to fix the furniture of a room. this use is analogous to that of set, in the phrase, to set a razor.
FIX, v.i.
1. To rest; to settle or remain permanently; to cease from wandering.
Your kindness banishes your fear, resolved to fix forever here.
2. To become firm, so as to resist volatilization.
3. To cease to flow or be fluid; to congeal; to become hard and malleable; as a metallic substance.
To fix on, to settle the opinion or resolution on any thing; to determine on. The contracting parties have fixed on certain leading points. the legislature fixed on Wethersfield as the place for a State Prison.

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

n
1: informal terms for a difficult situation; "he got into a terrible fix"; "he made a muddle of his marriage" [syn: fix, hole, jam, mess, muddle, pickle, kettle of fish]
2: something craved, especially an intravenous injection of a narcotic drug; "she needed a fix of chocolate"
3: the act of putting something in working order again [syn: repair, fix, fixing, fixture, mend, mending, reparation]
4: an exemption granted after influence (e.g., money) is brought to bear; "collusion resulted in tax fixes for gamblers"
5: a determination of the place where something is; "he got a good fix on the target" [syn: localization, localisation, location, locating, fix] v
1: restore by replacing a part or putting together what is torn or broken; "She repaired her TV set"; "Repair my shoes please" [syn: repair, mend, fix, bushel, doctor, furbish up, restore, touch on] [ant: break, bust]
2: cause to be firmly attached; "fasten the lock onto the door"; "she fixed her gaze on the man" [syn: fasten, fix, secure] [ant: unfasten]
3: decide upon or fix definitely; "fix the variables"; "specify the parameters" [syn: specify, set, determine, define, fix, limit]
4: prepare for eating by applying heat; "Cook me dinner, please"; "can you make me an omelette?"; "fix breakfast for the guests, please" [syn: cook, fix, ready, make, prepare]
5: take vengeance on or get even; "We'll get them!"; "That'll fix him good!"; "This time I got him" [syn: pay back, pay off, get, fix]
6: set or place definitely; "Let's fix the date for the party!"
7: kill, preserve, and harden (tissue) in order to prepare for microscopic study
8: make fixed, stable or stationary; "let's fix the picture to the frame" [syn: fixate, fix]
9: make infertile; "in some countries, people with genetically transmissible disabilites are sterilized" [syn: sterilize, sterilise, desex, unsex, desexualize, desexualise, fix]
10: influence an event or its outcome by illegal means; "fix a race"
11: put (something somewhere) firmly; "She posited her hand on his shoulder"; "deposit the suitcase on the bench"; "fix your eyes on this spot" [syn: situate, fix, posit, deposit]
12: make ready or suitable or equip in advance for a particular purpose or for some use, event, etc; "Get the children ready for school!"; "prepare for war"; "I was fixing to leave town after I paid the hotel bill" [syn: fix, prepare, set up, ready, gear up, set]

Merriam Webster's

I. verb Etymology: Middle English, from Latin fixus, past participle of figere to fasten; akin to Lithuanian dygti to sprout, break through Date: 14th century transitive verb 1. a. to make firm, stable, or stationary b. to give a permanent or final form to: as (1) to change into a stable compound or available form <bacteria that fix nitrogen> (2) to kill, harden, and preserve for microscopic study (3) to make the image of (a photographic film) permanent by removing unused salts c. affix, attach 2. a. to hold or direct steadily <fixes his eyes on the horizon> b. to capture the attention of <fixed her with a stare> 3. a. to set or place definitely ; establish b. to make an accurate determination of ; discover <fixing our location on the chart> c. assign <fix the blame> 4. to set in order ; adjust 5. to get ready ; prepare <fix lunch> 6. a. repair, mend <fix the clock> b. restore, cure <the doctor fixed him up> c. spay, castrate 7. a. to get even with b. to influence the actions, outcome, or effect of by improper or illegal methods <the race had been fixed> intransitive verb 1. to become firm, stable, or fixed 2. to get set ; be on the verge <we're fixing to leave soon> 3. to direct one's attention or efforts ; focus; also decide, settle — usually used with on <had fixed on the first Saturday in June> Synonyms: see fasten • fixable adjective II. noun Date: 1809 1. a position of difficulty or embarrassment ; predicament 2. a. the position (as of a ship) determined by bearings, observations, or radio; also a determination of one's position b. an accurate determination or understanding especially by observation or analysis 3. an act or instance of improper or illegal fixing <the fix was in> 4. a supply or dose of something strongly desired or craved <a coffee fix>; especially a shot of a narcotic 5. fixation 6. something that fixes or restores ; solution <an easy fix>

U.S. Military Dictionary

(*) A position determined from terrestrial, electronic, or astronomical data.

Oxford Reference Dictionary

v. & n. --v. 1 tr. make firm or stable; fasten, secure (fixed a picture to the wall). 2 tr. decide, settle, specify (a price, date, etc.). 3 tr. mend, repair. 4 tr. implant (an idea or memory) in the mind (couldn't get the rules fixed in his head). 5 tr. a (foll. by on, upon) direct steadily, set (one's eyes, gaze, attention, or affection). b attract and hold (a person's attention, eyes, etc.). c (foll. by with) single out with one's eyes etc. 6 tr. place definitely or permanently, establish, station. 7 tr. determine the exact nature, position, etc., of; refer (a thing or person) to a definite place or time; identify, locate. 8 a tr. make (eyes, features, etc.) rigid. b intr. (of eyes, features, etc.) become rigid. 9 tr. US colloq. prepare (food or drink) (fixed me a drink). 10 a tr. deprive of fluidity or volatility; congeal. b intr. lose fluidity or volatility, become congealed. 11 tr. colloq. punish, kill, silence, deal with (a person). 12 tr. colloq. a secure the support of (a person) fraudulently, esp. by bribery. b arrange the result of (a race, match, etc.) fraudulently (the competition was fixed). 13 sl. a tr. inject (a person, esp. oneself) with a narcotic. b intr. take an injection of a narcotic. 14 tr. make (a colour, photographic image, or microscope-specimen) fast or permanent. 15 tr. (of a plant or micro-organism) assimilate (nitrogen or carbon dioxide) by forming a non-gaseous compound. 16 tr. castrate or spay (an animal). 17 tr. arrest changes or development in (a language or literature). 18 tr. determine the incidence of (liability etc.). 19 intr. archaic take up one's position. --n. 1 colloq. a position hard to escape from; a dilemma or predicament. 2 a the act of finding one's position by bearings or astronomical observations. b a position found in this way. 3 sl. a dose of a narcotic drug to which one is addicted. 4 US sl. bribery. Phrases and idioms: be fixed (usu. foll. by for) be disposed or affected (regarding) (how is he fixed for money?; how are you fixed for Friday?). fixed capital machinery etc. that remains in the owner's use. fixed-doh Mus. applied to a system of sight-singing in which C is called 'doh', D is called 'ray', etc., irrespective of the key in which they occur (cf. movable-doh). fixed focus a camera focus at a distance from a lens that is not adjustable. fixed idea = IDéE FIXE. fixed income income deriving from a pension, investment at fixed interest, etc. fixed odds predetermined odds in racing etc. (opp. starting price). fixed oil an oil of animal or plant origin used in varnishes, lubricants, illuminants, soaps, etc. fixed point Physics a well-defined reproducible temperature. fixed star Astron. a star so far from the earth as to appear motionless. fix on (or upon) choose, decide on. fix up 1 arrange, organize, prepare. 2 accommodate. 3 (often foll. by with) provide (a person) (fixed me up with a job). Derivatives: fixable adj. fixedly adv. fixedness n. Etymology: ME, partly f. obs. fix fixed f. OF fix or L fixus past part. of figere fix, fasten, partly f. med.L fixare f. fixus

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Fettling Fet"tling, n. 1. (Metal.) A mixture of ore, cinders, etc., used to line the hearth of a puddling furnace. [Eng.] [It is commonly called fix in the United States.] 2. (Pottery) The operation of shaving or smoothing the surface of undried clay ware.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Fix Fix, n. 1. A position of difficulty or embarassment; predicament; dilemma. [Colloq.] Is he not living, then? No. is he dead, then? No, nor dead either. Poor Aroar can not live, and can not die, -- so that he is in an almighty fix. --De Quincey. 2. (Iron Manuf.) fettling. [U.S.]

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Fix Fix (f[i^]ks), a. [OE., fr. L. fixus, p. p. of figere to fix; cf. F. fixe.] Fixed; solidified. [Obs.] --Chaucer.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Fix Fix, v. i. 1. To become fixed; to settle or remain permanently; to cease from wandering; to rest. Your kindness banishes your fear, Resolved to fix forever here. --Waller. 2. To become firm, so as to resist volatilization; to cease to flow or be fluid; to congeal; to become hard and malleable, as a metallic substance. --Bacon. To fix on, to settle the opinion or resolution about; to determine regarding; as, the contracting parties have fixed on certain leading points.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Fix Fix, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Fixed (f[i^]kst); p. pr. & vb. n. Fixing.] [Cf. F. fixer.] 1. To make firm, stable, or fast; to set or place permanently; to fasten immovably; to establish; to implant; to secure; to make definite. An ass's nole I fixed on his head. --Shak. O, fix thy chair of grace, that all my powers May also fix their reverence. --Herbert. His heart is fixed, trusting in the Lord. --Ps. cxii. 7. And fix far deeper in his head their stings. --Milton. 2. To hold steadily; to direct unwaveringly; to fasten, as the eye on an object, the attention on a speaker. Sat fixed in thought the mighty Stagirite. --Pope. One eye on death, and one full fix'd on heaven. --Young. 3. To transfix; to pierce. [Obs.] --Sandys. 4. (Photog.) To render (an impression) permanent by treating with such applications as will make it insensible to the action of light. --Abney. 5. To put in order; to arrange; to dispose of; to adjust; to set to rights; to set or place in the manner desired or most suitable; hence, to repair; as, to fix the clothes; to fix the furniture of a room. [Colloq. U.S.] 6. (Iron Manuf.) To line the hearth of (a puddling furnace) with fettling. Syn: To arrange; prepare; adjust; place; establish; settle; determine.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

(fixes, fixing, fixed) Frequency: The word is one of the 3000 most common words in English. 1. If something is fixed somewhere, it is attached there firmly or securely. It is fixed on the wall... He fixed a bayonet to the end of his rifle. = fasten VERB: be V-ed prep/adv, V n prep/adv 2. If you fix something, for example a date, price, or policy, you decide and say exactly what it will be. He's going to fix a time when I can see him... The prices of milk and cereals, are fixed annually. = set VERB: V n, V n 3. If you fix something for someone, you arrange for it to happen or you organize it for them. I've fixed it for you to see Bonnie Lachlan... It's fixed. He's going to meet us at the airport... They thought that their relatives would be able to fix the visas... He vanished after you fixed him with a job... We fixed for the team to visit our headquarters... They'd fixed yesterday that Mike'd be in late today. VERB: V it for n to-inf, be V-ed, V n, V n with n, V for n to-inf, V that 4. If you fix something which is damaged or which does not work properly, you repair it. He cannot fix the electricity... If something is broken, we get it fixed. = mend VERB: V n, get/have n V-ed 5. If you fix a problem or a bad situation, you deal with it and make it satisfactory. It's not too late to fix the problem, although time is clearly getting short... Fixing a 40-year-old wrong does not mean, however, that history can be undone. VERB: V n, V-ing 6. You can refer to a solution to a problem as a fix. (INFORMAL) Many of those changes could just be a temporary fix. N-COUNT: usu adj N see also quick fix 7. If you fix your eyes on someone or something or if your eyes fix on them, you look at them with complete attention. She fixes her steel-blue eyes on an unsuspecting local official... Her soft brown eyes fixed on Kelly... The child kept her eyes fixed on the wall behind him. VERB: V n on n, V on n, V-ed 8. If someone or something is fixed in your mind, you remember them well, for example because they are very important, interesting, or unusual. Leonard was now fixed in his mind... Amy watched the child's intent face eagerly, trying to fix it in her mind. VERB: be V-ed in n, V n in n 9. If someone fixes a gun, camera, or radar on something, they point it at that thing. The US crew fixed its radar on the Turkish ship... VERB: V n on n 10. If you get a fix on someone or something, you have a clear idea or understanding of them. (INFORMAL) It's been hard to get a steady fix on what's going on. N-SING: a N on n 11. If you fix some food or a drink for someone, you make it or prepare it for them. Sarah fixed some food for us... Let me fix you a drink... Scotty stayed behind to fix lunch. VERB: V n for n, V n n, V n 12. If you fix your hair, clothes, or make-up, you arrange or adjust them so you look neat and tidy, showing you have taken care with your appearance. (INFORMAL) 'I've got to fix my hair,' I said and retreated to my bedroom... VERB: no passive, V n 13. If someone fixes a race, election, contest, or other event, they make unfair or illegal arrangements or use deception to affect the result. They offered opposing players bribes to fix a decisive league match against Valenciennes... ...this week's report of match-fixing. = rig VERB: V n, V-ing [disapproval] • Fix is also a noun. It's all a fix, a deal they've made. N-COUNT 14. If you accuse someone of fixing prices, you accuse them of making unfair arrangements to charge a particular price for something, rather than allowing market forces to decide it. (BUSINESS) ...a suspected cartel that had fixed the price of steel for the construction market... The company is currently in dispute with the government over price fixing. VERB: V n, V-ing [disapproval] 15. An injection of an addictive drug such as heroin can be referred to as a fix. (INFORMAL) N-COUNT 16. You can use fix to refer to an amount of something which a person gets or wants and which helps them physically or psychologically to survive. (INFORMAL) The trouble with her is she needs her daily fix of publicity. ...a quick energy fix. N-COUNT: with supp, oft N of n, n N 17. If you say that you are fixing to do something, you mean that you are planning or intending to do it. (AM INFORMAL) I'm fixing to go to graduate school... VERB: only cont, V to-inf 18. see also fixed, fixings

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

I. v. a. 1. Set, place, establish, plant, fasten, make firm or stable. 2. Attach, tie, connect, fasten, make fast. 3. Determine, define, limit, appoint, settle. 4. Direct steadily, rivet, fasten. 5. Solidify, consolidate. II. v. n. 1. Rest, remain, abide, settle, become permanent. 2. Solidify, congeal, stiffen, grow firm, cease to be fluid or volatile. III. n. Predicament, dilemma, plight, pickle (colloq.).

Moby Thesaurus

KO, acclimate, acclimatize, accommodate, accord, accustom, adapt, adjust, adjust to, affix, afford proof of, aim, aim at, align, allocate, allot, alter, amend, anchor, annex, antitoxin, apportion, approach, arrange, array, ascertain, aspect, assign, assimilate, assure, astronavigation, attach, attend to, attitude, attune, auger, azimuth, baffle, bafflement, bag, bang, base, be quits, bearing, bearings, beat, beat all hollow, beat hollow, bed, belay, bend, best, bewilderment, bite, blast, block out, blot out, booster, booster dose, booster shot, bore, bother, bound, box, break, break in, bribe, brighten up, bring home to, broach, brush up, build, build in, bump off, buy, buy off, carve, case, case harden, cast, castrate, catch, celestial navigation, cement, certify, change, chart, chisel, chronometer, cinch, circle in, circumscribe, circumstance, clamp, clear for action, clear the decks, clear up, clinch, close, close with, coastwise navigation, cobble, codify, collocate, come down on, commission, compose, concenter, concentrate, conclude, condition, confirm, confoundment, confusion, consolan, cook, cook up, coordinate, corner, corrupt, count, countersink, cramp, create, croak, cure, cut, cut to, darn, dead reckoning, deal, deal out, decide, deck, decrease, deep-dye, defeat, define, delimit, delimitate, demarcate, demonstrate, denominate, deploy, desexualize, designate, destroy, determine, dilemma, direct, directionize, discomposure, disconcert, disconcertedness, disconcertion, disconcertment, dish, dismiss all doubt, dispose, distribute, disturbance, divide, do for, do in, do up, doctor, domesticate, domesticize, dose, draft, dress, drill, dropping, drub, drug packet, efform, emasculate, embarrassment, embed, emend, empierce, emplace, enclose, engraft, engrave, enigma, ensure, entrench, equalize, erase, establish, estate, etch, eunuchize, even the score, exposure, familiarize, fashion, fasten, figure, find, find out, fit, fix on, fix up, fixate, focus, follow, follow from, footing, forge, form, formalize, found, frame, frame up, freshen, frontage, furbish, furbish up, gear to, geld, gentle, get, get a fix, get at, get even with, get ready, get to, give it to, give the business, gore, gouge, gouge out, graft, grapple, grease, grease the palm, ground, gun down, habituate, harden, harmonize, have, have a case, hew, hide, hit, hold good, hold on, hold water, hole, home in on, homologate, homologize, honeycomb, hors de combat, housebreak, hypodermic, hypodermic injection, ice, impact, impale, implant, impress, imprint, increase, inculcate, indicate, infix, ingrain, injection, inoculation, inscribe, install, instill, insure, inure, invest, jam, jet injection, key to, knead, knit, knock out, lambaste, lance, lather, lay, lay off, lay out, lay the foundation, level at, lick, lick into shape, lie, line, line of position, line up, localize, locate, location, lodge, loran, lot, lubricate, mainlining, make, make a decision, make arrangements, make certain, make fast, make good, make no doubt, make no mistake, make out, make plumb, make preparations, make quits, make ready, make sure, make sure of, make uniform, make up, mark, mark boundaries, mark off, mark out, mark the periphery, marshal, measure, mend, mention, methodize, mint, mobilize, modality, mode, model, mold, moor, mutilate, mystery, nail down, name, narcotic injection, narcotic shot, naturalize, navigate, needle, neuter, nonplus, normalize, number, off, organize, orient, orientate, orientation, outclass, outdo, outfight, outgeneral, outmaneuver, outpoint, outrun, outsail, outshine, overdose, overhaul, pack, pack the deal, parcel, parcel out, pass, patch, patch up, pay, pay off, pay out, penetrate, perforate, perplexity, perturbation, pick out, pickle, pierce, pilotage, pin down, pink, pinpoint, pitch, place, plan, plane sailing, plant, plight, plot, point, point at, point out, point to, point-to-point navigation, polish, polish off, polish up, popping, portion, position, position line, posture, pother, potion, prearrange, preconcert, precontrive, predesign, predicament, premeditate, preorder, prep, prepare, present, pretreat, prick, print, problem, process, proportion, prove, prove to be, prove true, provide, punch, puncture, punish, purchase, purpose, put, put in, put in commission, put in order, put in place, put in repair, put in shape, put in tune, put to, put up, puzzle, puzzlement, quandary, quantify, quantize, radar, radio beacon, radio bearing, radio navigation, rally, range, rank, rate, rationalize, reach, ready, ready up, ream, ream out, reassure, rebuild, recap, reconcile, recondition, reconstruct, rectify, reduce, regiment, regularize, regulate, remove all doubt, renovate, repair, resolve, retouch, retread, revamp, revise, revive, riddle, rig, right, rivet, root, rope off, rough out, roughcast, roughhew, routinize, rub out, rub up, ruin, rule, run through, scheme, scrape, screw up, sculpt, sculpture, scuttle, seal, season, seat, secure, see that, see to it, select, serve one out, service, set, set at rest, set in, set out, set right, set the limit, set to, set to rights, set up, settle, settle preliminaries, settle the matter, settle the score, settle with, sew up, sextant, shape, shine, shoot down, shooting up, shoran, shot, show, sight on, signify, similarize, sink, situate, situation, skewer, skin, skin alive, skin-popping, sofar, sonar, sop, sort out, space, spay, spear, specialize, specify, spike, spit, spot, spruce, spruce up, square, square accounts, stab, stabilize, stack the cards, stake out, stamp, standardize, standing, state, station, status, steady, stereotype, stew, stick, stipulate, straighten out, suborn, surround, sync, synchronize, systematize, tables, tailor, take a resolution, take care of, take revenge, tame, tamper with, tan, tap, thermoform, thrash, tickle the palm, tighten, tinker, tinker up, tone up, torpedo, touch up, train, train upon, transfix, transpierce, treat, trepan, trephine, triangulate, trice up, trim, trim to, triumph over, trounce, true, true up, try out, tune, tune up, turn, turn upon, unassuredness, undo, unsex, upset, vaccination, vaccine, vamp, vamp up, vest, waste, wedge, whip, will, wipe out, wont, work, work out, worst, zap, zero in on