Phrasal verbs · Free lesson
Top up a card: add more credit
Imagine a laundry card with a small amount of credit left. You want to add more before your next wash. Topping it up adds funds; using it for the wash spends funds.
Professor Scott MendozaMeaning in this lesson
top up
To add money to an existing prepaid balance.
Example
“I need to top up my laundry card.”
I need to add money to the card I use for the laundry machines.
The short answer
Top up a prepaid card means add money to its balance. You can top up the card or top the card up. Once the card is clear, say top it up, with it between top and up.
Adding credit and spending credit are different actions.
Here, credit means the prepaid money available on the card. It does not mean a new loan. Name the card when introducing it, then use it in the middle of top it up. For the past, double the p: topped it up.
Name the card, then replace it
I need to top up my laundry card.
I need to top my laundry card up.
I need to top it up.
Top up it does not use the normal pronoun order. Top it up keeps the short object between the two parts.
Follow the balance change
Start with an existing balance
My card has some credit left.
Say what you need to do
I need to top it up.
Report the completed action
I topped it up.
Try it now
Track what happens to the balance.
Read all answers and explanations
Nora topped up her prepaid laundry card. What did she do?
She added money to the card’s existing balance.She added prepaid funds. Paying for a wash spends the balance; charging a reader’s battery concerns electrical power instead.
The card has already been mentioned. Keep top up and replace the card with it.
I need to top it up.With this pronoun, say top it up. Do not put it after up or reverse the two parts of the verb.
The action happened yesterday. Choose the correct past-tense spelling and pronoun order.
I topped it up yesterday.The past spelling is topped, with two p letters. It still goes between topped and up.
Build it yourself
Build the message about your card.
Your laundry card needs more credit. Start with I need to and use it for the card.
Choose every piece in order. Select a piece again to move it back.
Your message
0 of 6 piecesYour chosen pieces will appear here.
See a model answer
I need to top it up.
I need to top it up names the action of adding prepaid money. It refers to the card and goes in the middle.
A little more clarity
Common questions
A few useful details before you move on.
Must the balance be zero before I top it up?
No. You can add more money while some remains. A top-up increases the existing balance; it does not require an empty card.
There is still some credit on it, but I’ll top it up.
Does topping up mean I have paid for a wash?
It means you added funds to the card. Paying for the wash uses those funds. The two actions may happen close together, but the expression itself describes adding the money.
I topped it up before I paid for the wash.
Take it into your day
Top up adds money to the balance. For a known card: I need to top it up.
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