to fill one's face

8.5

To eat a lot of food quickly

idiom

: comer a lo bestia

Everyone at the party filled their faces with pizza and cake.

Examples

After the marathon, she was starving and couldn't wait to fill her face at the nearest diner.
Don't fill your face before dinner or you'll spoil your appetite.
Don't fill your face with junk food!
He loves to fill his face with pizza!
After running the race, he couldn't wait to fill his face with burgers and fries.
At the buffet, we all filled our faces with a variety of delicious foods.
She tends to fill her face with snacks while watching movies.

Synonyms

to stuff

vsto fill one's face

Informal

109 5.8

To eat a lot quickly until you feel too full

is about greedy excess rather than simply reaching fullness slowly

to overeat

vsto fill one's face

14 3.1

To eat more food than your body needs at one time

is about greed and lack of restraint rather than health consequences

to gorge

vsto fill one's face

12 5.9

To eat a very large amount of food greedily

focuses on greediness rather than simply being very full

to binge

vsto fill one's face

12 4.5

To do something like eating, drinking, or watching a lot in a short time

focuses specifically on greedy eating rather than many kinds of excess

to sate

vsto fill one's face

11 6.2

To fully satisfy a need like hunger or curiosity

stresses greedy excess and lack of restraint rather than calm satisfaction

to fill up

vsto fill one's face

10 1.9

Eat until you cannot eat any more

focuses on excessive greedy eating rather than simple fullness or satisfaction

to pig out

vsto fill one's face

Informal

7 7.5

Eat a very large amount of food without control

is similar but used when lack of restraint is especially noticeable

to eat like a pig

vsto fill one's face

Offensive

5 7.8

To eat in a very messy and greedy way

is about greedy excess but does not necessarily imply messiness

to overindulge

vsto fill one's face

3 6.2

Let yourself and others have too much food or drink

centers on greedy eating as personal uncontrolled consumption instead

to stuff one's face

vsto fill one's face

Informal

3 8.2

To eat a lot of food very quickly

is greedy too but does not always imply rapid consumption

to eat like a horse

vsto fill one's face

Informal

3 4.9

To eat a very large amount of food

focuses on greedy lack of restraint, not merely large habitual intake

to tuck in

vsto fill one's face

2 4.0

To eat a lot of food eagerly

emphasizes greedy lack of restraint rather than mere eagerness

to make a pig of oneself

vsto fill one's face

Informal

1 7.6

To eat or drink too much

is similar but the key focuses on lack of restraint without shameful image

to ingurgitate

vsto fill one's face

Formal

1 9.9

To eat a lot of food very quickly

covers the same excess but in plainer, more casual expression

to glut

vsto fill one's face

1 7.9

To eat too much food at one time

expresses the same idea but with stronger focus on greed

to engorge

vsto fill one's face

1 7.7

To eat a lot of food quickly without control

focuses on greedy eating rather than simply becoming full

to fress

vsto fill one's face

Slang

1 9.9

To eat a lot of food quickly without control

is the general phrase used in ordinary speech rather than this rare term

to tuck away

vsto fill one's face

1 5.7

To eat a lot of food quickly while enjoying it

is more about uncontrolled greed rather than enthusiastic enjoyment

to gluttonize

vsto fill one's face

9.9

To eat too much food quickly and greedily

is the same action but used more commonly in casual speech

to gormandize

vsto fill one's face

Archaic

9.9

To eat a lot of food in a greedy way until you feel too full

expresses excess eating but in more general everyday language

to gourmandize

vsto fill one's face

9.9

To eat too much in a greedy way

shares greed element but the key stresses lack of restraint more

to englut

vsto fill one's face

Archaic

9.9

To eat too much food in a greedy way

is similar but typically describes the action in ordinary speech

to shovel in

vsto fill one's face

Informal

7.7

To eat a lot of food very fast without stopping

shares greed but the key is not only about fast eating

to scarf out

vsto fill one's face

Informal

8.4

To eat a lot of food very quickly

is the same idea but more common across all tones of speech

to get one's fill

vsto fill one's face

Informal

3.7

Have as much of something as you want until you feel satisfied

is more about uncontrolled greed rather than reaching a wanted satisfaction

Antonyms

to fast

58 4.6

To not eat or drink for a time

to diet

24 3.3

To eat less and control what you eat usually to lose weight or improve health

How Greedy

to fill one's face

8.5

to devour

13 2.9

to gobble

16 2.6

to eat

∞ 1.0

to snack

27 1.0

Surface Forms

fill one's face infinitive

filled one's face past

filled one's face past participle

filling one's face present participle

fills one's face third person singular

Morphology

fill + one's + face

The verb 'fill' combined with 'one's face' evokes filling the mouth/face with food, so a learner who knows the words can partly infer the sense of eating a lot; however the mapping is metaphorical and colloquial rather than literal, and the exact pragmatic meaning ('eat greedily/excessively') is not fully predictable without exposure. Similar 'stuff/fill one's face' idioms exist in some languages but vary, so this is only partially transparent to a B1 learner.

Etymology

Fill one's face uses the verb fill and the noun face, so imagine someone packing so much food into their mouth that their face looks full. That's why it means 'to eat greedily' or 'to eat a lot'.