UNIT 11 : MONEY MATTERS

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1. PERSONAL FINANCE
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VOCABULARY PRACTICE
1. Read and explain the following words:
bank
salary
interest

current account savings account

deposit bank statement
loan
mortgage
borrow lend
credit
withdraw
bill
tip
receipt dole
inheritance tax
refund
profit
debt
fare
bargain
credit card
building society
tax rebate
in the red
fee
cash
in credit/in the black
income
expenses
discount
2. Complete the sentences with words from the box above:

Money which has to be paid on what you inherit is known as .......

If the bank lends you money, you have a bank

If you have some money in your account you are in the

I paid too much tax last year so I should get a soon.

If its no good, take it back to the shop and ask for a

3. Find pairs of opposites in this list:

cash

generous

worthless

mean

income

credit

valuable

expenses

hard up

increase

well off

reduction

4. Make a connection between words from A with places from B, and explain what the connection
is.
Example: You pay a fare when you get on the bus. Its the money you give for the ticket.
A

fare

bus

fees

shop

admission

bank

bill

restaurant

loan

hotel

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sale

school

stamp

post office

interest

museum

bargain

building society

credit card
5. Is the ordinary person-in-the-street pleased to see these newspaper headlines or not?
Mortgage rate goes up

Wages to be frozen

Pension age raised

Interest rates down

VAT to be reduced

Number on Dole Rises

6. Divide into three groups, A, B and C. Each group should check that they know the meaning and
pronunciation of the words in the appropriate box. Use a dictionary where necessary.
A
a cheque (book)

a cashpoint machine

to withdraw

a current account.

a deposit account

interest

to be overdrawn

economical

a bank statement

an exchange rate

the economy

B
cash

a coin

to earn

a 10 note

a wage

change

a salary

a mortgage

overtime

commission

a tip

to gamble

a casino

a charity

to afford

well-off

hard up

C
to be in debt
the stock market
tax
a sale

inflation

to owe

to lend

to invest

shares

insurance

a bargain

to inherit

a fine

to borrow
profit

loss

a pension
an heir

7. Discuss the following questions.

1 What do you enjoy spending money on?

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2 How do you feel about borrowing money? Would you worry about being in debt?
3 Do you think pocket money is a good idea? Why?/Why not?
4 What do you think about people who deliberately avoid paying tax?
5 Do you have a bank account? Do you get interest? Do you get a monthly statement?
6 When do you tip and how much?
7 Are you cautious with money or do you tend to spend it when you have it?
8 Have you ever gambled? When? What happened?
9 Do you ever give money to charity?
10 Do you like looking for bargains in the sales?

READING AND SPEAKING PRACTICE

1. PERSONAL FINANCE

Sometimes in a shop they ask you: How do you want to pay? You can answer: Cash / By cheque
/ By credit card.
In a bank you usually have a current account, which is one where you pay in your salary and then
withdraw money to pay your everyday bills. The bank sends you a regular bank statement telling you
how much money is in your account. You may also have a savings account where you deposit any
extra money that you have and only take money out when you want to spend it on something special.
You usually try to avoid having an overdraft or you end up paying a lot of interest. If your account is
overdrawn, you can be said to be in the red (as opposed to in the black or in credit).
Sometimes the bank may lend you money this is called a bank loan. If the bank (or building
society) lends you money to buy a house, that money is called a mortgage.
When you buy (or, more formally, purchase) something in a shop, you usually pay for it outright
but sometimes you buy on credit. Sometimes you may be offered a discount or a reduction on
something you buy at a shop. This means that you get, say, 10 off perhaps because you are a student.
You are often offered a discount if you buy in bulk. It is not usual to haggle about prices in a British
shop, as it is in, say, a Turkish market. If you want to return something which you have bought to a
shop, you may be given a refund, i.e. your money will be returned, provided you have a receipt.
The money that you pay for services, e.g. to a school or a lawyer, is usually called a fee or fees; the
money paid for a journey is a fare.

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If you buy something that you feel was very good value, its a bargain. If you feel that it is
definitely not worth what you paid for it, then you can call it a rip-off (very colloquial).

8.Match the words on the left with their definitions on the right as presented in the text above:
interest

a bank account with minus money in it

mortgage

an account that is used mainly for keeping money

an overdrawn account

money paid to people after a certain age

savings account

money chargeable on a loan

current account

a loan to purchase property

pension

an account that cheques are drawn on for day-to-day use

9. Ask and answer the questions in the questionnaire below and discuss the answers (pair work):
1. What will you do if you earn 50% more?
a. save the money for a rainy day
b. buy more of what you usually buy
c. spend the money on expensive luxuries
d. move to a better house or district.

2. If you have to borrow money, who will you borrow it from?

a. your best friend
b. a member of your family
c. your bank
d. a business partner or your employer.

3. If you stay for several months with a friend, what will you do?
a. offer to pay half the bills
b. buy and cook your own food
c. thank them and invite them to your house
d. buy some flowers when you leave.
4. What will you do if a friend borrows 5 EURO and doesnt give it back?
a. say nothing, but not lend them any more money
b. tell them you need the money and insist on getting it
c. decide that you have lost a friend

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d. talk to them about their money problems.

10.Write three more questions for the questionnaire. Other members of the class will answer them.

2. PUBLIC FINANCE

The government collects money from citizens through taxes. Income tax is the tax collected on
wages and salaries. Inheritance tax is collected on what people inherit from others. Customs or excise
duties have to be paid on goods imported from other countries. VAT or value added tax is a tax paid on
most goods and services when they are bought or purchased. Companies pay corporation tax on their
profits. If you pay too much tax, you should be given some money back, a tax rebate.
The government also sometimes pays out money to people in need, e.g. unemployment benefit
(also known informally as the dole), disability allowances and student grants (to help pay for studying).
Recipients draw a pension / unemployment benefit or are on the dole or on social security.
Every country has its own special currency. Every day the rates of exchange are published and you
can discover, for example, how many dollars there are currently to the pound sterling.
A company may sell shares to members of the public who are then said to have invested in that
company. They should be paid a regular dividend on their investment, depending on the profit or loss
made by the company.

LISTENING PRACTICE:
Using a Bank
Dan is in a bank and wants to get some money. Listen to his conversation with the bank teller and
fill in the blank check.

DANIEL KIRKLAND
4091 Deenvood Lane
Minneapolis, MN 55441
_____________________19___________

PAY TO THE
ORDER OF _____________________________________________________$

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100

_____________________________________________________________DOLLARS

Metro North Savings Bank

54 North Avenue
Minneapolis, Minnesota 55436

MEMO___________________________________________
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