A. Notes and coins

In the UK the currency [type of money used] is sterling [pounds]; in America it is the dollar; in much of Europe it’s the euro.

Notes

e.g. ten pounds, twenty euros, a ten-pound note, a twenty-euro note

Coins (in the UK)

e.g. fifty pence (usually spoken as fifty p), a pound, a fifty-pence piece, but a one-pound coin

B. Managing your money

I’ve had a bank account for a few years now, and I make sure my account is always in credit¹. I go to the cashpoint once a week, so I always have some cash² with me, and I check³ my account online once a week to see how much money I’ve got.

¹ having money in the account
² money in the form of notes and coins
³ look at the details of it

C. Money problems

When I went to university, I had to get a student loan¹ to pay my fees². That meant I had to be careful and make sure I didn’t waste money³, but by the time I finished my degree I owed⁴ a lot. One good thing is that I don’t have to pay it back until I get a job and I’m earning⁵ a reasonable amount⁶ of money. At the moment I’m saving up⁷ for a new laptop; the one I have is very slow and keeps going wrong. I’d love to have a car as well, but I can’t afford⁸ it.

¹ money you borrow to pay for your studies
² money you pay to use something, or for a service, e.g. a lawyer’s fee
³ use it badly
⁴ had to pay back a lot of money to the bank

⁵ receiving money for the work I do
⁶ quite a lot; $ 1 million is a large amount
⁷ keeping money to buy something in the future
⁸ don’t have enough money to buy one

D. Accommodation*

This year I’m renting a flat with three friends of mine. We had to pay one month’s rent as a deposit¹, but it’s a nice place, quite good value for money², and the landlord isn’t charging³ us to use his garage.

^* places where you live or stay
¹ money you pay for something you are going to use, which is then returned to you when you have finished using it
² good for the amount of money you pay
³ asking someone to pay an amount of money

Language help

We use rent when we pay to use something for a long period of time, e.g. rent a flat.
The noun rent is the amount you pay, e.g. The rent is £400 per month. We use hire when we pay to use something for a short period of time, e.g. I hired a bike for the day. Both verbs are used with cars, e.g. We rented/hired a car when we were on holiday.