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Indian file   /ˈɪndiən faɪl/   Listen
noun
File  n.  
1.
An orderly succession; a line; a row; as:
(a)
(Mil.) A row of soldiers ranged one behind another; in contradistinction to rank, which designates a row of soldiers standing abreast; a number consisting the depth of a body of troops, which, in the ordinary modern formation, consists of two men, the battalion standing two deep, or in two ranks. Note: The number of files in a company describes its width, as the number of ranks does its depth; thus, 100 men in "fours deep" would be spoken of as 25 files in 4 ranks.
(b)
An orderly collection of papers, arranged in sequence or classified for preservation and reference; as, files of letters or of newspapers; this mail brings English files to the 15th instant.
(c)
The line, wire, or other contrivance, by which papers are put and kept in order. "It is upon a file with the duke's other letters."
(d)
A roll or list. "A file of all the gentry."
2.
Course of thought; thread of narration. (Obs.) "Let me resume the file of my narration."
3.
(computers) A collection of data on a digital recording medium treated as a unit for the purpose of recording, reading, storage, or indexing; such a file is typically accessible by computer programs by the use of a file name. The data may be of any type codable digitally, such as simple ASCII-coded text, complex binary-coded data, or an executable program, or may be itself a collection of other files.
File firing, the act of firing by file, or each file independently of others.
File leader, the soldier at the front of any file, who covers and leads those in rear of him.
File marching, the marching of a line two deep, when faced to the right or left, so that the front and rear rank march side by side.
Indian file, or Single file, a line of people marching one behind another; a single row. Also used adverbially; as, to march Indian file.
On file, preserved in an orderly collection; recorded in some database.
Rank and file.
(a)
The body of soldiers constituting the mass of an army, including corporals and privates.
(b)
Those who constitute the bulk or working members of a party, society, etc., in distinction from the leaders.


adjective
Indian  adj.  
1.
Of or pertaining to India proper; also to the East Indies, or, sometimes, to the West Indies.
2.
Of or pertaining to the aborigines, or Indians, of America; as, Indian wars; the Indian tomahawk.
3.
Made of maize or Indian corn; as, Indian corn, Indian meal, Indian bread, and the like. (U.S.)
Indian bay (Bot.), a lauraceous tree (Persea Indica).
Indian bean (Bot.), a name of the catalpa.
Indian berry. (Bot.) Same as Cocculus indicus.
Indian bread. (Bot.) Same as Cassava.
Indian club, a wooden club, which is swung by the hand for gymnastic exercise.
Indian cordage, cordage made of the fibers of cocoanut husk.
Indian cress (Bot.), nasturtium. See Nasturtium, 2.
Indian cucumber (Bot.), a plant of the genus Medeola (Medeola Virginica), a common in woods in the United States. The white rootstock has a taste like cucumbers.
Indian currant (Bot.), a plant of the genus Symphoricarpus (Symphoricarpus vulgaris), bearing small red berries.
Indian dye, the puccoon.
Indian fig. (Bot.)
(a)
The banyan. See Banyan.
(b)
The prickly pear.
Indian file, single file; arrangement of persons in a row following one after another, the usual way among Indians of traversing woods, especially when on the war path.
Indian fire, a pyrotechnic composition of sulphur, niter, and realgar, burning with a brilliant white light.
Indian grass (Bot.), a coarse, high grass (Chrysopogon nutans), common in the southern portions of the United States; wood grass.
Indian hemp. (Bot.)
(a)
A plant of the genus Apocynum (Apocynum cannabinum), having a milky juice, and a tough, fibrous bark, whence the name. The root it used in medicine and is both emetic and cathartic in properties.
(b)
The variety of common hemp (Cannabis Indica), from which hasheesh is obtained.
Indian mallow (Bot.), the velvet leaf (Abutilon Avicennae). See Abutilon.
Indian meal, ground corn or maize. (U.S.)
Indian millet (Bot.), a tall annual grass (Sorghum vulgare), having many varieties, among which are broom corn, Guinea corn, durra, and the Chinese sugar cane. It is called also Guinea corn. See Durra.
Indian ox (Zool.), the zebu.
Indian paint. See Bloodroot.
Indian paper. See India paper, under India.
Indian physic (Bot.), a plant of two species of the genus Gillenia (Gillenia trifoliata, and Gillenia stipulacea), common in the United States, the roots of which are used in medicine as a mild emetic; called also American ipecac, and bowman's root.
Indian pink. (Bot.)
(a)
The Cypress vine (Ipomoea Quamoclit); so called in the West Indies.
(b)
See China pink, under China.
Indian pipe (Bot.), a low, fleshy herb (Monotropa uniflora), growing in clusters in dark woods, and having scalelike leaves, and a solitary nodding flower. The whole plant is waxy white, but turns black in drying.
Indian plantain (Bot.), a name given to several species of the genus Cacalia, tall herbs with composite white flowers, common through the United States in rich woods.
Indian poke (Bot.), a plant usually known as the white hellebore (Veratrum viride).
Indian pudding, a pudding of which the chief ingredients are Indian meal, milk, and molasses.
Indian purple.
(a)
A dull purple color.
(b)
The pigment of the same name, intensely blue and black.
Indian red.
(a)
A purplish red earth or pigment composed of a silicate of iron and alumina, with magnesia. It comes from the Persian Gulf. Called also Persian red.
(b)
See Almagra.
Indian rice (Bot.), a reedlike water grass. See Rice.
Indian shot (Bot.), a plant of the genus Canna (Canna Indica). The hard black seeds are as large as swan shot. See Canna.
Indian summer, in the United States, a period of warm and pleasant weather occurring late in autumn. See under Summer.
Indian tobacco (Bot.), a species of Lobelia. See Lobelia.
Indian turnip (Bot.), an American plant of the genus Arisaema. Arisaema triphyllum has a wrinkled farinaceous root resembling a small turnip, but with a very acrid juice. See Jack in the Pulpit, and Wake-robin.
Indian wheat, maize or Indian corn.
Indian yellow.
(a)
An intense rich yellow color, deeper than gamboge but less pure than cadmium.
(b)
See Euxanthin.





Collaborative International Dictionary of English 0.48


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"Indian file" Quotes from Famous Books



... rugged surface like the ribs of some petrified monster. On the other hand a wild chaos of boulders and debris made all advance impossible. Between the two ran the irregular track, so narrow in places that they had to travel in Indian file, and so rough that only practised riders could have traversed it at all. Yet in spite of all dangers and difficulties, the hearts of the fugitives were light within them, for every step increased the ...
— A Study In Scarlet • Arthur Conan Doyle
... she turned her gaze southward she was suddenly aware of three figures clearly tricked out against the grey sky above the further fell: their silhouettes showed like midges dapped against the window by a boy, and Meg could see that the centaurs were coming forward on a fair round trot in Indian file. She could not distinguish at the distance horse from rider, but she could note the pose of the horse's head, and the movement against the sky-line. 'Three-quarters of an hour,' commented the ...
— Border Ghost Stories • Howard Pease
... the dim blue spaces and wide wooing vacancies to leeward. It was only an instant; for again his eyes seemed whirling round in his head as he swept the watery circle. The breeze now freshened; the sea began to swell. The birds! —the birds! cried Tashtego. In long Indian file, as when herons take wing, the white birds were now all flying towards Ahab's boat; and when within a few yards began fluttering over the water there, wheeling round and round, with joyous, expectant cries. Their vision was keener than ...
— Moby-Dick • Melville
... while the exploring party were making their way along the foot of the Sierras. Passing around a point on the lake shore, they unexpectedly met a dozen Indian warriors. They were walking directly behind each other in what is known as Indian file, their heads bent forward and their eyes fixed on the ground. The whites turned aside to allow them to pass and naturally watched them with much interest. The Indians neither halted, deviated from the path, spoke nor looked up, but walked straight ...
— The Life of Kit Carson • Edward S. Ellis
... determined to attempt a retreat to camp. It was impossible for him to succeed, for he had a march of full three miles to make; and after encountering the enemy once or twice in the woods, he, with many of his men, was compelled to surrender. Brodhead, while marching through the woods in Indian file to join him, was also attacked and his men dispersed, though most of them, with the lieutenant-colonel himself, escaped to the lines. The rout was speedily communicated to the guards at the two remaining ...
— The Campaign of 1776 around New York and Brooklyn • Henry P. Johnston


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