Words and Their Stories
Words and Their Stories: Money, Part 1
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Now, the VOA Special English program WORDS AND THEIR STORIES.
I think people everywhere dream about having lots of money. I know I do. I would give anything to make money hand over fist. I would like to earn large amounts of money. You could win a large amount of money in the United States through lotteries. People pay money for tickets with numbers. If your combination of numbers is chosen, you win a huge amount of money – often in the millions. Winning the lottery is a windfall.
A few years ago, my friend Al won the lottery. It changed his life. He did not have a rich family. He was not born with a silver spoon in his mouth. Instead, my friend was always hard up for cash. He did not have much money. And the money he did earn was chicken feed – very little.
Sometimes Al even had to accept hand-outs, gifts from his family and friends. But do not get me wrong. My friend was not a deadbeat. He was not the kind of person who never paid the money he owed. He simply pinched pennies. He was always very careful with the money he spent. In fact, he was often a cheapskate. He did not like to spend money. The worst times were when he was flat broke and had no money at all.
One day, Al scraped together a few dollars for a lottery ticket. He thought he would never strike it rich or gain lots of money unexpectedly. But his combination of numbers was chosen and he won the lottery. He hit the jackpot. He won a great deal of money.
Al was so excited. The first thing he did was buy a costly new car. He splurged on the one thing that he normally would not buy. Then he started spending money on unnecessary things. He started to waste it. It was like he had money to burn. He had more money than he needed and it was burning a hole in his pocket so he spent it quickly.
When we got together for a meal at a restaurant, Al paid every time. He would always foot the bill, and pick up the tab. He told me the money made him feel like a million dollars. He was very happy.
But, Al spent too much money. Soon my friend was down and out again. He had no money left. He was back to being strapped for cash. He had spent his bottom dollar, his very last amount. He did not even build up a nest egg. He had not saved any of the money.
I admit I do feel sorry for my friend. He had enough money to live like a king. Instead, he is back to living on a shoestring -- a very low budget. Some might say he is penny wise and pound foolish. He was wise about small things, but not about important things.
(MUSIC)
WORDS AND THEIR STORIES, in VOA Special English, was written by Jill Moss. I’m Faith Lapidus.
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scrape together :
To amass or produce with difficulty: scrape together some cash.
strapped for cash :lacking money
nest egg : An artificial or natural egg placed in a nest to induce a bird to continue to lay eggs in that place.
2. A sum of money put by as a reserve
splurged :To spend extravagantly or wastefully.
windfall : an unexpected amount of money that you get as a gift, prize, etc. ▪ They received a windfall because of the tax cuts.
cheapskate : a miserly person
strike it rich Informal
To have sudden financial success.
informel
adj. informel, informelle
Qui n'obéit pas à des règles déterminées; qui n'a pas un caractère officiel: Une rencontre informelle entre deux chefs d'État.
hard up Informal
In need; poor.
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flat broke : to have absolutely no money
I can't come with you. I'm flat broke.
He won't be able to participate because he's flat broke.
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chiken feed :
noncount] informal : an amount of money that is too small to be considered important ▪ The project cost almost a million dollars, which isn't exactly chicken feed. ▪ Ten bucks? That's chicken feed!
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hand-outs
1. clothing, food, or money given to a needy person
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owe :
devoir.
être redevable.
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pinch pennies informal :
to be very careful about spending money : to spend as little money as possible ▪ He pinched pennies to live on his small paycheck
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down and out :
Meaning:
[more down–and–out; most down–and–out] informal : very poor and without hope : having no money, job, etc. ▪ No one would help him when he was down-and-out. ▪ a movie about a down-and-out musician living on the streets
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Make money hand over fist - make money very quickly
