Personal finance: making ends meet CAMBRIDGE ENGLISH VOCABULARY IN USE ADVANCED

CAMBRIDGE ENGLISH VOCABULARY IN USE ADVANCED

UNIT 46

Personal finance: making ends meet

A

Cash, cheques and cards I was broke/ skint at the end of last month. [had no money left ] (broke = informal; skint = very informal) I’m rolling in it this month; I got a payment of £3,000 for some work I did. [have a lot of money; informal] It’s sometimes difficult to make ends meet with three children and only one parent working. [to survive financially]  Things are a bit tight at the moment. [my finances are not good; informal] I was strapped for cash and had to borrow money from my parents. [needed cash and had very little; informal] She gave me a cheque for what she owed me but it bounced. [the bank refused to pay it] Who shall I make this cheque out to / payable to? [What name shall I put on it?] (payable to = slightly more formal) The easiest way to pay your household bills is by direct debit or by electronic transfer. [a regular automatic payment, e.g. every month] [movement of money online between two bank accounts] Shall we put/stick this meal on my credit card? Then we can forget it. (informal) Could you charge it to my credit card, please? (formal) The APR for this credit card is 23%, which is 2% lower than my other card. [annual percentage rate of interest] My card expires in 05/19. The expiry date is 05/19. [is not valid aft er] Credit card fraud has increased in recent years. [illegal use of someone’s card or account] A: Is this a credit card or a debit card? [card where the money is taken directly from your bank account] B: Actually, it’s a store card. [credit card issued by a store/shop for that store] I went to withdraw some money / get some money out but I forgot my PIN and the ATM swallowed my card after three wrong attempts. [take money from my account; get money out = informal] [personal identification number] [automated teller machine, oft en just called a ‘cash machine’ or ‘cashpoint’] A lot of people don't like using contactless cards because they think they are more vulnerable to fraud. They prefer to use their phones to make contactless payments.

B

Savings, pensions, etc. 1 single, large payment 2 large payment to someone on leaving a job 3 combination of investments of different kinds 4 organisation which controls the buying or selling of parts of the ownership of companies 5 parts of the ownership of companies which people buy as investments in the hope of making a profit 6 money saved over many years 7 official statement of what a person has decided should be done with their money and property after their death 8 be enough money to pay for it 9 borrow money, e.g. from a bank (used without an object)

EXERCISES

46.1	Complete these sentences using words from the opposite page. 1 This is a credit card. If you want one that takes the money directly from your bank account, then you need a____________________. 2 She never used her card on 9 April, but someone did and bought hundreds of pounds’ worth of goods. It was a case of ____________________. 3 I haven’t got enough cash to pay for this meal; shall I just ____________________on my card? (Give two answers.) 4 I pay my rent by ____________________every month, so I don’t have to do anything. 5 When I ran out of money in Thailand, my parents made an ____________________from their bank account to mine. 6 I’m sorry, I can’t lend you anything at all. I’m absolutely ____________________. (Give two answers.) 7 I couldn’t pay for it last month as I was a bit ____________________for cash. 8 I have to be very careful how I spend my money because things are a bit ____________________right now. 9 You can now use your phone to make ____________________payments on the bus and underground system in the city.
46.2	Correct the mistakes in these sentences using vocabulary from the opposite page. 1 She got a huge golden hand when she left the company. 2 My old aunt Jessie is rich in it. Every time I go to see her she gives me £100. 3 My father got a bump sum when he retired, so he bought a weekend cottage. 4 She put her living savings into an online company and lost everything when it collapsed. 5 The bank tried to persuade me to put my money into a share folio, with stocks and shares in different companies. 6 If you need a very large sum of money, it’s not a good idea to lend from friends or neighbours.
46.3	Match the beginnings and endings of the sentences. 1 Students often find it difficult to make a in her will. 2 She invested a lot of money on the b PIN, as that’s when I was born. 3 If you need cash, there’s a c to cover the cost of the holiday. 4 I use 1-9-8-7 as my d ends meet. 5 She left a million euros e cashpoint in the supermarket. 6 The money was not enough f stock market and lost it all.
46.4	Over to you • Look in your wallet or purse. What different types of card do you have? • Give the date on which one of your cards expires. • Approximately what is the current APR on your credit card? • What can you do to prevent credit card fraud?

ANSWER KEY

46.1 1 debit card 2 credit card fraud (you can also say identity theft) 3 put it / stick it 4 direct debit 5 electronic transfer 6 broke / skint 7 strapped 8 tight 9 contactless 46.2 1 She got a huge golden handshake when she left the company. 2 My old aunt Jessie is rolling in it. Every time I go to see her, she gives me £100. 3 My father got a lump sum when he retired, so he bought a weekend cottage. 4 She put her life savings into an online company and lost everything when it collapsed. 5 The bank tried to persuade me to put my money into a share portfolio, with stocks and shares in different companies. 6 If you need a very large sum of money, it’s not a good idea to borrow from friends or neighbours. 46.3 1 d 2 f 3 e 4 b 5 a 6 c