(ADV) U.
11 MONEY AND BUSINESS – PART 1: USEFUL, EVERYDAY EXPRESSIONS & IDIOMS
USEFUL EXPRESSIONS
Let’s see the colour of your money (pay first!)
Put your money where your mouth is and… (prove you’re serious)
… is selling above par (above average)
to ante up the bill, to ante up to get sth done (pay) = to foot the bill
… is as sound as a dollar (reliable, dependable)
… is as phony as a three-dollar bill! (not genuine, fake)
to attain your goal at all costs = at any expense of money, effort or time
to be/get back on your feet
to balance your books/accounts (to keep a proper record of the money
you make and spend)
to be born with a silver spoon in your mouth
the bottom line is that… (the main point/the result)
… is my bread and butter (my living, my livelihood)
to (make /) earn a living
… is my livelihood. (income)
to bring home the bacon (to support/provide for your family)
to break even (to have income that equals your expenses)
to buy off sb / to buy sb off (to relieve sb financially, spłacić kogoś)
to cash in on sth (to make money, capitalize on sth)
to cash in your chips (to sell sth when you need money)
to chip in (to contribute financially, zrzucić/dorzucić się)
to clean up (to make a fortune)
to control the purse strings (to be in control of the finances)
to have deep pockets = to have money to burn (to be loaded)
to cut sb a check to sb/for doing sth (to write sb a check)
sth is a dime a dozen (cheap and easily available)
= dirt cheap (ridiculously cheap)
a fast buck = easy money (quick profit)
to feel like a million bucks/dollars (to feel wonderful)
to buy sth for a song (very cheaply)
to get your money’s worth = to get good value for money (to get
exactly what you expected)
to go to the expense of doing sth (to pay the cost of sth)
to hit pay dirt (to discover sth valuable
= to hit the jackpot (with that…)
to keep the wolf from the door (to make just enough to have a decent
life)
to lay away money = to put money aside = to salt money away / salt
away money
to live high off / on the hog (very comfortably, with loads of money)
to look like a million dollars (to look very good)
to make an honest buck (to work & earn honestly, decently)
to make money hands over fist = to make loads & quickly
Money talks. (money can get you or fix anything, any problem)
Sb’s nest egg (sb’s important savings)
I would never do it, not for all the money in the world = not for all the tea
in China = not for love nor money (never, no matter what)
These drinks are on me / on the house
You’re right on the money! / our estimates were right on the money
(totally correct)
to pass the buck (to avoid the responsibility and let another person
decide)
to pay the piper = to face the music
Penny for your thoughts! (tell me what you think!)
to take a rain check (to postpone sth, a meeting / an invitation)
to rake in the money (to make loads of money)
Time is money!
Money doesn’t grow on trees.
sb/sth is worth its weight in gold (is very valuable)
PROBLEMS WITH MONEY
to burn through money
= to blow a lot out on sth
= to spend money like water
to live beyond your means (to show off with money you don’t really
have)
to be in the black  / red 
to get along on a shoestring / on a shoestring budget (to survive on
very little money)
= to live from hand to mouth = to be hardly able to make ends meet
to be as poor as a church mouse
to bet on the wrong horse (to base your judgment or expectations on a
wrong guess)
to spend/bet your bottom (=last) dollar on sth
to be short / to get caught short (when you realize you don’t have
enough cash)
I am short 10 pounds short
to chisel sb out of money (to cheat sb on money)
to cook the books (to illegally change the information concerning your
income and expenses)
a down-and-out (a complete loser)
to suffer hardships = to encounter obstacles & pitfalls
to move the goalposts
a cheapskate (a cheap, stingy person)
to be closefisted / tightfisted with money
to pick sb’s pocket (to steal, pickpocket)
… costs a pretty penny = is not easy on the pocket
… costs an arm and a leg! (was extremely expensive)
to splash out on sth (to spend a lot on sth)
to be a deadbeat / a deadbeat person/debtor (useless, never paying
back or supporting anyone financially, also: a disgrace, leser)
to work for peanuts, to be paid peanuts (ver little money)
to go broke = to go bankrupt, to declare bankruptcy, be stone broke
to go from rags to riches (become successful after being poor)
to grease sb’s palm = to bribe sb
to have an itchy/itching palm = to ask for a handout (jałmużna), tip or
a loan
to have sticky fingers (to be a thief)
to be head over heels in debt (to owe loads of money to people)
to try to live within your means (to spend spend reasonably)
to lose money hand over fist (to lose money quickly)
to be on the take (to be accepting bribes)
to pay through the nose (to pay an awful lot)
to shake sb down for money (to blackmail sb, to force sb to give you
money)
to tighten your belt (to spend less, spend more sparingly)