How to talk about Money in English ⬇️

Let’s learn to talk about money in English.

Money is important in our daily lives. It is also a popular topic that may come up in your IELTS or FCE exam.

English Money Related Vocabulary - Podcast Episode 50

Harry

Harry is a native English teacher with over 10 years of experience both online and in face-to-face lessons. With his extensive experience in business, he specialises in Business English lessons but happily teaches ESL students with any English learning needs.

I have a podcast episode for you from my podcast Speak Better English with Harry. It is available to listen on both iTunes, Spotify and other podcast apps. Check it out and make sure to subscribe.

In this episode, I use upper intermediate English vocabulary. I recommend you to listen to the episode first in order to practice your English listening comprehension. You don’t need to understand every single word.

Then have a look at the vocabulary words ‘how to talk about money in English’ below and listen to it again.

Let me know if you have any issues.

Talk about Money in English

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Short extract of podcast episode

Money, saving money makes the world go round. And I think it is a really true saying because without it, what would we have?

We’ll have no trade between nations. We’ll have no investment by companies. We’ll have no money to spend. In the supermarkets, no way to feed and clothe ourselves. And generally, people will just struggle.

Of course, we could go back to the old days when we used to barter.

That’s barter. Meaning exchange something for something else.

So if I did something for you and fix the door or put in a window, then you would do something for me like fix my bathroom or cook me a meal or give me some of your vegetables. So this would be a barter where we would exchange one service for another service or some products for a particular service.

But that, I’m sure, still goes on. It does in different parts of the world where the money is not so easy to get.

Intermediate to Advanced English Marathon

INSANITY: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.

Albert Einstein

What you'll learn:
better understanding of more complex grammar structures
advanced English vocabulary words
British & American slang
perfect your listening skills through practing different accents

This marathon is for you if you're:
stuck at an intermediate English level
tired of confusing explanations
a mature student
shy & introverted

But in the Western world and the first, second world economies, then money is King as they say. And without it we can do very little sometimes and we have money.

We’re not quite sure what to do with it, but certainly if we don’t have it, then we definitely have a problem. The different words we can use to to describe money, we can call it cash. I like to have cash in my pocket. We have cash in the bank. The ATM is, or where we withdraw money from these machines in the wall. We call them cash machines. So cash is a very common word for it. People say, do you have any money? Can you lend something? Do you have any cash? Could you give me something?

How to talk about Money in English - Vocabulary

to barter – to exchange something for something else

ATM – cash machine

to withdraw money – to take money from a bank account

cheque – a printed piece of paper that you can use instead of money

to rob / to get robbed – to take money from someone or somewhere illegally, usually using threats and violence

moola(h) (American English, slang) – money

lolly (British English, slang) – money

denomination – the value of a banknote or coin

wealth – a large amount of money and/or other valuable things

purse – a small bag or case in which women carry money and credit cards

wallet – a small case in which men carry money and credit cards

cashless – without cash

How to talk about Money in English - Vocabulary

transaction cost – an amount that bank or credit company charges for using a bank card

to handle cash – to receive and give money in business

cryptocurrency – a digital currency

salary – a fixed amount of money that your employer pays you every month for the work you do

to borrow the money – to receive money from someone

to lend the money – to give money to somebody

to inherit – to receive money and/or other valuable things from someone who has died

assets – something valuable that a person or company owns

to charge – to ask someone to pay money for services or goods

to overcharge – to ask someone to pay too much money for something

to put some money aside for a rainy day – to save money weekly or monthly for a day when you need it

to splash out money – to spend a lot of money

to fritter away – to spend money without really knowing where you spend it

to be broke – to have no money

to be ripped off – to be charged too much money for something, to be overcharged

to tighten your belt – to spend less money

economic – related to the economy or business

economical – not spending or costing a lot of money

8 Phrasal Verbs related to Money

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1️⃣ to bank on – to depend on something happening

Example:

I’m really banking on getting that job in the insurance company.

2️⃣ to come across – to find something or meet somebody by chance

Example:

I came across my school photographs while I was clearing out the attic.

3️⃣ to do without – to live without having something that you cannot afford

Example:

Sam doesn’t have much money these days so he has to do without expensive holidays.

4️⃣ to get by – to manage to survive on a small amount of money

Example:

They don’t have much money but they get by.

5️⃣ to save up – to avoid spending money, often for a specific purpose

Example:

I am saving up to get a new phone.

6️⃣ to come into – to inherit money

Example:

Sarah was shocked to find out that she had come into a large amount of money.

7️⃣ to close down – to stop doing business completely

Example:

Lots of small businesses have closed down recently.

8️⃣ to take back – to return something to the shop you bought it from

Example:

If your watch doesn’t work, you need to take it back.

That’s all for today. Hope these vocabulary words and phrasal verbs will help you talk about money in English.

Why not start using them in your English right now? Go ahead and write a few sentences in the comments below, I will check them and get back to you as soon as possible.