Topic: Money - part 1

Vocabulary

Liên quan đến chi tiền - Spend

Synonym with ‘cheap’

Reasonable/ Reasonably

• ABC is reasonably priced.
• The price of ABC is reasonable.

Synonym with ‘expensive’

Prohibitively expensive/ prohibitive

• Hotel prices in the major cities are high but not prohibitive.
• Property in Vietnam tends to be prohibitively expensive.

It’s not really affordable for most people

To cost an arm and a leg: To cost a lot of money

Các thói quen chi tiền

• Spend money like water: spend money like there was no tomorrow
• To go on a spending spree: to buy many things (often without thinking too much about the cost)
• To shop until you drop: to go shopping until you are so tired you can’t carry on

Liên quan đến kiếm tiền - Earn

Earn a little money

Earn a lot of money

Live on a (tight) budget/ the breadline My grandmother grew up in a family that was on the breadline and lived in public housing. Enough to get by on My job isn’t bad but I don’t earn enough to save much or buy any expensive things. I’m basically enough to get by on. Can (can’t) make ends meet Being out of work and having two young children, they found it impossible to make ends meet Live from hand to mouth My father earned very little and there were four kids, so we lived from hand to mouth. To run out of money I’m not made of money: To not have lots of money      Beyond one’s means: More than one can afford

Earn/have/receive/generate/ provide lucrative income Make a killing (infml) John has got a job selling insurance. He's not exactly making a killing. Bill made a killing at the racetrack yesterday. Lucrative (adj) /ˈluː.krə.t̬ɪv/ There are some hobbies that could become a part-time way of earning a lucrative income. Well off (adj) = rich, wealthy Her family was very well off. I have a well-off neighbourhood Loaded He’s loaded.

Liên quan đến mua - Buy

A bargain (noun) or bargain (verb) /ˈbɑːr.ɡɪn/

• This coat was half-price - a real bargain.
• The airline regularly offers last-minute bookings at bargain prices.
• The sales had started and the bargain hunters (= people looking for things at a low price) were out in force.
• Unions bargain with employers for better rates of pay each year.

An eye for a bargain: nói về người chuyên trả giá khi mua hàng, hoặc người hay săn hàng giảm giá

• She has a sharp eye for a bargain.

To rip someone off: bị 'chặt chém', bị mua hớ

• The consumer is definitely being ripped off with regard to food prices.

To save money for something: để dành tiền cho cái gì đó

To pay off my debts: trả hết nợ

To pay cash/ to use credit cards: Trả bằng tiền mặt/ thẻ tín dụng

To buy a lemon: To buy something that proves to be worthless

Money doesn’t grow on trees: Money doesn’t come easily

To shop around: to look for the best price

Cách thành ngữ liên quan đến tiền

Money makes the world go round: đồng tiền làm thế giới xoay chuyển (có tiền mua tiên cũng được)

• “Money makes the world go round.” I wonder if this famous English expression is very true. If you have money, the world goes round very gently and you are happy. If you don’t have money, the world might not go round so smoothly.

The love of money is the root of all evil: Đam mê tiền tài là nguồn gốc của tội lỗi

• They also say that “money is the root of all evil”. I think this is so true. Money makes people kill and steal. Greed means there are things in the world like blackmail, corruption, slave labour and a lot more terrible things.

Money can’t buy happiness: Tiền không mua được hạnh phúc

• Another common saying in English is “money can’t buy happiness”. I’m not so sure about this one. I know if I had loads of money I’d be pretty happy. I think if all the world’s money was shared out, the world would go round more happily, and there would be less evil and more happiness.

To put paid to: đánh đổi

• His dedication to his work put paid to his wife’s career as a nurse as soon as their first child came along.

To pay the price for: trả giá cho hành động/ quyết định

• He is paying the price for his ambitiousness now as his wife has left him and taken their son.

Sample answer

Well, it’s hard to answer this question as there is no exact measurement to say whether money is enough or not. It’s up to perspective and goal of different people.  Some people want to earn more money, so they can save up, but some just need enough amount of money to get by on.

Sample answer

I think it is because money would bring about power over others and self-independence. It means that the more money you have, the more things you can decide yourself, and the more influence you have over people. Being able to do as one's wishes is desirable so that’s why many people give priority to money.

Sample answer

Absolutely. I can buy things with money and give presents for my family by my own money. It makes my life more meaningful. It’s like a motivation to push me forward and work harder to enhance my life. For me, money is just never enough and if I’m satisfied with what I earn, I’ll fall behind with fellows.

Sample answer

I suppose it’s up to different purposes. While the young save money for travelling or paying tuition fees, the elderly tend to keep their money for health service and their kids. However, young people have more desires than the seniors, so they often spend more than their savings.