credit card

American  

noun

1. a card that identifies a person as entitled to have food, merchandise, services, etc., billed on a charge account.

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credit card British  

noun

1. a card issued by banks, businesses, etc, enabling the holder to obtain goods and services on credit

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Etymology

Origin of credit card

An Americanism dating back to 1885–90

Example Sentences

Though adjusted earnings per share of $4.42 was below Jefferies’s $4.88 estimate, a better-than-expected delinquency rate on credit card lending and lower marketing costs are encouraging, they say.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 23, 2026

Investigators were able to identify him as a suspect in the crimes through a gift card he purchased with a stolen credit card.

From BBC • Apr. 22, 2026

Imagine if your credit card company declined every tenth transaction, reviewed and approved them only if you called, and then determined that more than half of the charges were not fraudulent at all.

From MarketWatch • Apr. 22, 2026

I do not recommend running up a bunch of credit card debt to start a music career.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 21, 2026

Because we’re taking him out of his high interest rate credit card debt and putting him into lower interest rate mortgage debt.’

From "The Big Short" by Michael Lewis

Related Words

• bank card