Money & The Financial Crisis - 12 Phrasal Verbs

This blog post is about money and the economic crisis. It is full of useful financial vocabulary and expressions. Also, there are 12 phrasal verbs connected to money in the text. Can you find the 12 phrasal verbs? Definitions are provided below.

These days, many of us are living in tough times. The economic crisis is making life difficult for lots of people in this country. We're all having to economise and cut back on our spending. There is less credit available in the money markets at the moment and this is having a knock-on effect in our lives.

Unemployment is going up and house prices have gone down over the last few years. The Bank of England recently used tax payers' money to bail out many of the banks which were facing insolvency due to their poor investments in so-called 'toxic assets' (many of them originating in the American sub-prime real estate markets). The government lowered interest rates to help people pay off their bank loans and mortgages. VAT was lowered to 15% in order to encourage us to splash out in shops up and down the country, and inject more money into the economy.

Some people are not being affected so seriously; particularly the wise individuals who have saved up their money in secure savings accounts. When they need to, they can just dip into their savings in order to pay for an unexpected household repair or a much needed holiday. But for many of us, we just have to get by every month on our monthly salaries. It's not easy though, particularly in London when everything is so expensive. We try to pay off our loans and mortgages while trying to avoid taking too much cash out of the many cash machines which are available to us all over the city.

The energy companies in particular seem to be ripping everyone off with the price of oil and electricity. It's almost as though they're using global warming as an excuse for charging us extortionate amounts for our energy, even though wholesale market prices have dropped in recent months.

Big companies and banks seem to get protection from the state, while the average tax payer has to pick up the pieces by working harder, cutting back on our spending, moving into more modest accommodation, or accepting badly paid work because we have no choice. Perhaps it has to be that way - the big companies have to be protected in order to support the economy. It just seems a little unfair that's all, and I'm sure there are some CEOs and directors who are still doing very well while the rest of us struggle to get by.

Still, it's not all bad. The lower interest rates on bank loans and mortgages mean we don't have to pay back so much money each month, and there is now so much freely available entertainment on the internet that it's quite easy to have a good time without reaching too deep into our pockets. So, take advantage of free internet content like this, and use it to help you improve your English wherever you are in the world.

Did you find the phrasal verbs? Here they are:

1. to cut back on spending - this means to spend less than before. To try and reduce your spending. E.g. "I'm going to have to cut back on my spending in order to save up some money"
2. to go up - this means to increase
3. to go down - this means to decrease
4. to bail someone out - this means to save someone by giving them money. It's usually used when the government gives money to a company or bank in order to save them from insolvency. E.g. "The government bailed out the banks by giving them £5billion of tax payers' money"
5. to splash out - this means to spend quite a lot of money in a care-free way when you go shopping. E.g. "I was feeling a bit depressed, so I went to the shopping centre and just splashed out on some new clothes"
6. to save up - this means to save money. E.g. "I'm saving up for a holiday in Italy next year"
7. to dip into savings - this means to go into your savings account, and take a bit of money out. E.g. "I can't afford to pay my electricity and telephone bills this month. I'm going to have to dip into my savings"
8. to get by - this means to survive, usually on a small amount of money. E.g. "Students in London find it difficult to get by on money they earn from part-time work"
9. to pay something off - this means to completely pay a loan or debt. E.g. "YEAH!!! I've finally paid off my student loan!"
10. to take some cash out - this means to withdraw money from a bank or cash machine
11. to rip someone off - to charge too much money for something. To give a bad price. E.g. "You always get completely ripped off in Harrods. You can by the same stuff in other shops for much less money. The prices are just high because it's Harrods."
12. to pay something back - to give money back. When you have borrowed money, you have to pay it back each month

Image courtesy of FreeFoto.com – an online resource for copyright free photo downloads. Click here to visit the site and read the free use rules.

http://www.freefoto.com/index.jsp