Phrasal verb
fuel up
Definition
phrasal verb. to fill a vehicle's tank with gas or petrol so you can keep driving.
phrasal verb. to replenish the fuel supply of a vehicle or machine; often used intransitively or with a reflexive sense in casual contexts.
Examples
“We need to fuel up before we hit the highway.”
“The pilot decided to fuel up at the small regional airport before continuing the long flight across the desert.”
“Logistics managers must ensure that every truck in the fleet has the opportunity to fuel up before the scheduled departure to avoid costly delays.”
Examples
simple
“We need to fuel up before we hit the highway.”
contextual
“The pilot decided to fuel up at the small regional airport before continuing the long flight across the desert.”
complex
“Logistics managers must ensure that every truck in the fleet has the opportunity to fuel up before the scheduled departure to avoid costly delays.”
Usage
commonly used for cars, planes, and boats, but can also figuratively mean eating a large meal.
Teaching tip
point out that while 'fill up' is more common in general British English, 'fuel up' is frequently used in North America and in technical or transport-related contexts.
Pitfall
I need to fuel up the car with.
I need to fuel up the car.
the verb 'fuel up' already implies the use of fuel, so adding 'with' at the end of the sentence is redundant.
Phrasal verb
Particles
up
Separability
optional
Pattern
fuel + up (+ object)
Synonyms
Antonyms
Grammar
Scan code
englishreference.com/q/fuel-up