Money and Finance: Vocabulary, Idioms, and Concepts

MONEY

Budgeting and Expenses

• Budget: A plan for how to spend money.
• Grant: Money given by the government for a particular purpose, often education.
• Loan: Money borrowed from a bank or other lender, usually with interest.
• Fee: Money paid for a professional service (e.g., lawyer, consultant).
• Fare: Money paid to travel by bus, train, taxi, etc.

Savings and Investments

• Savings: Money set aside for future use.
• Donation: Money given to a charity or other organization.
• Deposit: A portion of a larger payment made upfront.
• Will: A legal document that specifies how a person's assets will be distributed after their death.
• Lump sum: A single payment of a large amount of money.

Financial Terms

• Fine: Money paid as a penalty for breaking a rule or law.
• Installment: A series of payments made over time to pay for something.
• White lie: A harmless or trivial lie, often told to avoid hurting someone's feelings.
• White elephant: A possession that is useless or troublesome, especially one that is expensive to maintain or dispose of.

IDIOMS

• Out of the blue: Unexpectedly.
• Black market: An illegal market where goods or services are traded.
• Red tape: Excessive bureaucracy or regulations that hinder progress.
• In black and white: Thinking in a very rigid and inflexible way, without considering nuances or complexities.
• Grey area: A situation that is unclear or ambiguous, where the rules are not easily defined.
• Read between the lines: To understand something that is not stated directly, by inferring meaning from the context.

DESCRIBING WEALTH

• Wealthy: Having a lot of money and possessions.
• Affluent: Having a high standard of living.
• Well-off: Wealthy (often used in a negative or envious way).
• Loaded: Very rich.
• Poor: Lacking sufficient money to meet basic needs.
• Penniless: Extremely poor, having no money at all.
• Hard up: Experiencing a temporary shortage of money.
• Broke: Having no money.

MONEY AMOUNTS

• Five grand/quid: £5,000 (British English).
• Five bucks: $5 (American English).
• 50K: £50,000.

MONEY IN TODAY'S SOCIETY

Consumer Society

• Consumer society: A society that is characterized by a high level of consumption of goods and services.
• Standard of living: The level of material comfort and wealth experienced by an individual or group.
• Income: Money earned from employment or investments.
• Inflation: A general increase in prices and a fall in the purchasing value of money.
• Cost of living: The amount of money needed to cover basic expenses such as housing, food, and transportation.

Managing Money

• Can't afford: Not having enough money to pay for something.
• Manage their accounts: To keep track of income, expenses, and savings.
• Make transfers/payments: To move money between accounts or to pay for goods and services.
• Interest rates: The cost of borrowing money or the return on savings.
• In debt: Owing money to a lender.
• Mortgage: A loan taken out to buy a property.
• Shares on the stock market: Units of ownership in a company.
• Currency: A system of money in use in a particular country.
• Exchange rates: The value of one currency in relation to another.
• Went bankrupt: To be unable to pay debts and be declared insolvent.
• Recession: A period of economic decline.

ADDITIONAL VOCABULARY

• Authentic: Genuine, real.
• Striking: Impressive, noticeable.
• Estate: Property, especially a large area of land.
• Seized: Confiscated, taken away by authority.
• Austere: Plain, simple, without decoration.
• Genuine: Authentic, sincere (referring to a person).
• Onwards: From this point forward in time.
• Marry down: To marry someone of a lower social status (often used in a disapproving way).
• Trophy wife: A young and attractive wife, often regarded as a status symbol for the husband.
• Shattered: Broken, devastated.
• Dropout: A person who has left school or university without completing their studies.
• Oil rig: A structure used for extracting oil from beneath the sea.
• Child-rearing: The process of raising children.
• Beeped: To make a short, high-pitched electronic sound.
• Doomed: Destined to fail or suffer an unfortunate fate.
• Grimacing: Making a facial expression that indicates pain, disgust, or disapproval.
• Stroke: A sudden illness caused by a disturbance in the blood supply to the brain.
• Lump: To walk with difficulty, typically due to an injury.
• Juggling: Managing multiple tasks or responsibilities at the same time.
• Banned: Prohibited, forbidden.
• Collide: To crash into something.
• Reinforcing: Making an idea or belief stronger.
• High-flying: Very successful.
• Littered with: Filled with an untidy collection of something.
• Sourest: Unhappiest, most bitter.
• Shoulder: To carry a burden or responsibility.
• Calm: To make a situation or person less agitated or distressed.