'A bank' and 'to bank'

Apart from that, it is also the slope bordering the side of a river; as in a river bank. In another context, a bank is a pile of earth or a mass of clouds, etc.

From a distance you can see a line of red flowers along the left bank of the river.

A huge bank of rain clouds had built up very fast so we hurried back home before the rain started.

And from this connotation, the verb "to bank" is extended to a phrasal verb to "bank up" which means to form into a mass.

Huge clouds banked up on the eastern sky and moved directly towards the city.

Look at the next sentence;

A young boy was observing quietly how the man banked up the fire in the fire hole of the steam engine.

In this sentence, "to bank up" means to put more coal on the fire.

There is still another phrasal verb with the word "bank"; to bank on someone or something. This phrasal verb gives a much different meaning from the ones I have previously explained.

"Do you think we will get six-month bonus like last year?" - "I wouldn't bank on it."

When you bank on someone or something you expect or depend on something to happen.

 To see if you really understand this phrasal verb, I will ask you what the headline, "Golden Cream banks on its loyal customers" means.

The answer is Golden Cream (a coffee shop chain store) has depended on their loyal customers (to continue their support to the business)

In terms of "a bank" as an organization, I would like to mention one expression, "to break the bank".

If you break the bank when you are gambling, you win all the money that belongs to the dealer.

Grandma threw a party because she went to the casino and broke the bank last night.

But if you are talking about the cost of something that will not break the bank, it is not a very large sum of money.

It's late and we are all tired; let's stop at a restaurant somewhere; it won't break the bank, will it?

Complete the sentences using the words explained

1. You will need to rely on yourself to get through this training; don't ......anybody to help you.

2. See that you ...... the fireplace before going to bed so we will stay warm until sunrise.

3. It is healthier not to wear the same shoes every day. It ...... if you got yourself an extra pair, would it?

4. Ms Wendy has gone to the ......to exchange some foreign currency left from her overseas trip.

5. A desert storm caused the sand to ...... and cover our caravan.

Answers: 1. bank on, 2. bank up, 3. wouldn't break the bank, 4. bank, 5. bank up

By Parnsap Yomanage