to refill / fill in
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to refill
To make something that has become empty or partly empty full again. This can refer to liquids in containers, goods on shelves, or also data in a form.
Die Regale im Supermarkt werden über Nacht wieder aufgefüllt.
The shelves in the supermarket are restocked overnight.
to fill in
To add material such as soil, sand, or gravel in order to fill a depression or hole or to raise an area.
Das Schlagloch in der Straße wurde provisorisch mit Kies aufgefüllt.
The pothole in the road was temporarily filled in with gravel.
'Auffüllen' is a separable verb. The prefix 'auf-' goes at the end in a main clause, but stays connected to the verb in a subordinate clause. In the infinitive with 'zu', 'zu' goes between the prefix and the verb.
Der Kellner füllt mein Glas wieder auf.
The waiter refills my glass.
The word consists of the prefix 'auf-' and the verb 'füllen' (to fill). The prefix 'auf-' reinforces the meaning here and emphasizes that something is filled again to a full state.
Bitte füll die Kaffeekanne wieder auf, wenn sie leer ist.
Please refill the coffee pot when it's empty.
If you want to specify what something is filled with, use the preposition 'mit' followed by the dative. The pattern is: etwas (Akkusativ) mit etwas (Dativ) auffüllen.
Er füllte die Flasche mit frischem Wasser auf.
He refilled the bottle with fresh water.
Common combinations are 'Vorräte auffüllen' (to replenish supplies), 'ein Glas auffüllen' (to refill a glass), 'den Tank auffüllen' (to fill up the tank), or also, in an abstract sense, 'ein Formular auffüllen' (to fill in a form).
Bevor wir in den Urlaub fahren, müssen wir das Auto volltanken und die Reiseapotheke auffüllen.
Before we go on vacation, we need to fill up the car and restock the travel first-aid kit.
to fill
Füllen generally means making a container full, regardless of whether it was empty or partly empty beforehand. Auffüllen typically presupposes that something is missing and emphasizes adding to it until it is full. When starting from empty, füllen is appropriate; when replenishing a reduced amount, auffüllen is appropriate.
Wir füllen die fast leere Flasche mit Wasser auf.
We refill the almost empty bottle with water.
Wir füllen die neue Flasche mit Wasser.
We fill the new bottle with water.
