write and write down - check and check out ?

[nora2000]

write and write down

check and check out

Are they same or different in meaning ?

[Anglika]

No:

Write a letter to your mother.
Write down what I dictate to you.

Please check your bank account before buying anything else.
You need to check out if you have enough money in your account before buying anything else.

[konungursvia]

I agree with Anglika's first example pair, but I don't feel we'd see it the same way in American English regarding the second pair.

Check means verify, for us, while "check out" has 2 meanings: one is colloquial for take a look with a view to make an esthtetic judgment: "Check out Sandra's new shoes; now check out her legs." The other means to borrow a book from a library, to check out a book.

We wouldn't say "Check out if..." anything here, especially not for a factual matter, where we'd just go with "check."