Meaning & use
debit card
Last updated
Meanings
nouncountable
A plastic bank card that takes money straight out of your own account when you pay.
Grammar: Countable: you can say a debit card, two debit cards, my debit card.
Patterns
- pay by debit card
- pay with a debit card
- use a debit card to do something
I left my debit card at home, so I had to pay in cash.
The shop takes debit cards, but not credit cards.
She checked her balance after using her debit card.
nouncountable
Payment made with such a card rather than with cash or credit.
Grammar: Often used in the fixed phrase 'by debit card' to describe a method of paying.
Patterns
- by debit card
Can I pay by debit card?
The tickets were paid for by debit card.
Word forms
| plural | debit cards |
|---|
Common combinations
- pay by debit card
- Most customers here pay by debit card.
- debit card payment
- Your debit card payment will show on your statement tomorrow.
- debit card details
- Never give your debit card details to a stranger online.
- use a debit card
- I usually use a debit card for small purchases.
- contactless debit card
- This contactless debit card works for payments under thirty dollars.
Synonyms and how they differ
- bank card
- A general word for any card from a bank; it may be a debit or a credit card, so it is less exact.
- check card
- Mainly American and older; it means much the same as a debit card.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: debit card or credit card?
debit card vs credit card
A credit card lets you borrow money and pay the bank later; a debit card takes money you already have in your account right away.
Practice
Which sentence uses 'debit card' correctly?
Choose one answer.
'By debit card' is the fixed phrase for the payment method. The other options either add a noun wrongly, split the verb, or scramble the word order.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “debit card”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.