ESL Podcast 297 - Being Rich and Poor
affordable - able to be paid for; not too expensive; not so expensive that one can't pay for something
Do you know where I can buy affordable business clothes?
budget - a plan for how one will spend one's money; a plan for what one should buy, and how much it should cost
Sampson's monthly budget includes $760 for rent, $250 for food, $130 for transportation, and $100 for entertainment.
commute - the daily drive to and from work
Elia usually listens to the radio during her long commute from Baltimore to Washington, DC.
income gap - the difference in the amount of money made by two people or by two groups of people
There is a big income gap between people who finish only high school and people who have graduate degrees.
poverty - poorness; the state of many people not having enough money
Poverty in Detroit became a big problem when the major car factories closed.
affluence - richness; wealth; the state of many people having a lot of money, often more money than they need
Owning very large houses and having servants are signs of affluence.
to poor-mouth - to say you are poor when you is not; to say bad things about something; to complain about something
Damian thinks it's a good idea to poor-mouth in front of his relatives because he doesn't want to lend them money.
to afford - to be able to pay for something; to have enough money to pay for something
If I save $200 each month, by the end of the year, I'll be able to afford that vacation to Hawaii.
basic necessities - the things that one really needs, like housing, food, and warm clothing; not luxuries
Our mayor said in his speech that everyone should have enough money for the basic necessities so that they don't have to go hungry.
hypocrite - a person who says one thing but does something else; a person whose actions are different from his or her words
Quincy is such a hypocrite! He tells his patients that it's important exercise everyday, but he doesn't exercise at all.
food stamps - small pieces of paper that are given to poor people by the government so that they can buy food without money
Food stamps can be used to buy food, but not cigarettes or alcohol.
to put things into perspective - to help one understand what is truly important, and what isn't
Living in Sub-Saharan Africa for four months helped Bernice put things into perspective as she began to understand how many opportunities she has in her life.
inequity - something that is unequal; something that isn't fair
In many companies, there is an inequity in how much money men and women get paid for doing the same job.