prepay
/'pri:'pei/
Học thuậtThân thiện
Definition
- Verb:
- To pay for a good, service, or expense in advance, before it is received, used, or incurred.
Usage
- The verb "prepay" is used to describe the action of making a payment ahead of time. It is commonly used in contexts involving bills, fees, subscriptions, travel, and services.
- It is a regular verb in its base form but has an irregular past tense and past participle: prepaid.
- It is often used in the passive voice (e.g., "The fee must be prepaid") or as a past participle adjective (e.g., "a prepaid card").
Examples
- Verb:
- You must prepay the shipping costs before we can dispatch your order.
- Many hotels require guests to prepay for their stay during peak season.
- The annual membership fee was prepaid last month.
- She bought a prepaid phone card.
Advanced Usage
- "to prepay a loan/interest": In finance, to pay part of a loan's principal or future interest payments before the scheduled due date.
- Some mortgages allow you to prepay a portion of the principal without penalty.
- "prepaid expense": An accounting term for a payment made for a future expense, recorded as a current asset on the balance sheet.
- The insurance premium is recorded as a prepaid expense.
Variants and Related Words
- Prepaid (adj): Describing something paid for in advance.
- a prepaid envelope; a prepaid SIM card
- Prepayment (n): The act of prepaying or an amount that is prepaid.
- Early checkout may result in a refund of your prepayment.
Synonyms
- Pay in advance: To pay before receiving goods or services.
- Advance payment: A payment made ahead of time (noun form).
Phrasal Verbs
(This word does not commonly form phrasal verbs.)
Related Idioms
(There are no common idioms specifically using the word "prepay".)
Verb
- pay for something before receiving it