tank up
(ambitransitive, slang) To intoxicate oneself, especially with alcohol.
Definitions
(ambitransitive, slang) To intoxicate oneself, especially with alcohol.
One way of insuring that your baby eats enough is to increase his intake during the day, before 11 P.M. By "tanking up," as I call this strategy, you get more food into his tummy, which, in turn, enables him to sleep through longer stret…
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(intransitive) To install a tank.
We Americans have grumbled loudly about rising gasoline prices while tanking up as if almost nothing has happened. Over the Fourth of July holiday, a record 40.7 million Americans took trips of more than 50 miles, up 1.2 percent from a y…
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(ambitransitive, Canada, US) To fill up (for example, a tank in a vehicle with gas, petrol, etc.).
A painter was desirous of drawing the elephant, which was kept in the menagerie at Versailles, [H]e [the elephant] turned his resentment on the master, and tanking up a quantity of water in his trunk, threw it on the paper upon which the…
"tank up" means: To fill up (for example, a tank in a vehicle with gas, petrol, etc.).. This is a fairly neutral word with no inherent risk attached. There is no real cause for parental concern; it is descriptive vocabulary rather than something dangerous. If your child uses it, context will usually make the meaning clear. A brief, curious question about where they heard it is generally enough to know whether to follow up.
"tank up" means: To fill up (for example, a tank in a vehicle with gas, petrol, etc.).. Register: neutral, standard English, usable in most everyday contexts. Note the regional or dialect label (US) — usage may sound odd outside that variety. A common non-native mistake is to use the word in the wrong register, or to assume one fixed meaning when it is actually polysemous; always check the surrounding register and the audience before producing it yourself. In formal writing, prefer a neutral synonym or a short descriptive phrase, and use this word only when you have heard or read it being used naturally in a comparable context.
“Great, Jen 👍 Please fill the tank up again, just in case, and please never spend the night in a motorway car park. 🙏🙏 Do you have the ‘Park4Night’ or ‘CamperContact’ app? I always use them to find good places to stay overnight if I need to. Have fun, enjoy 🤗”
— Bluesky· May 2026
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