tank up

British  

verb

1. to fill the tank of (a vehicle) with petrol

2. slang to imbibe or cause to imbibe a large quantity of alcoholic drink

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tank up Idioms  

1. Fill a gas tank with fuel, as in As soon as we tank up the car we can leave . [First half of 1900s]

2. Drink to the point of intoxication. F. Scott Fitzgerald used this expression in The Great Gatsby (1926): “I think he'd tanked up a good deal at luncheon.” This expression often is put in the passive, meaning “be or become intoxicated,” as in My roommate really got tanked up last night . [ Slang ; c. 1900]

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Example Sentences

“Some people stop to tank up on fuel.”

From Washington Post

“I used to be able to fill the tank up for $40 or $42, and now it’s almost $60,” he lamented as he gassed up his Nissan Sentra at a station in Yonkers, New York, where a gallon of regular gas was selling for $3.79.

From Seattle Times

The family have to fill their tank up three times a year, which cost £750 in 2020 but now costs £3,325.

From BBC

Like Larry, most of the people who stopped by the station didn’t fill their tank up all the way, instead putting $10 on pump 5, $20 on pump 3 or $13 on pump 1.

From Los Angeles Times

Gas cars can tank up in seconds and return to the track for another couple of hours.

From New York Times