📙 Part 2: Describe a time when you received money as a gift

This episode's vocabulary

Habit (noun) – something you do regularly, often without thinking. → I have a habit of checking my phone before bed.

Bank account (noun) – a record of money kept with a bank. → I transferred money to my savings account.

Teenager (noun) – a young person between 13 and 19 years old. → Teenagers often want more independence.

Stand on one’s own two feet (idiom) – to be independent, especially financially. → After graduation, she had to stand on her own two feet.

Financially speaking (phrase) – considering money and financial matters. → Financially speaking, the company is doing well.

Groceries (noun) – food and other products bought in a shop. → We spent €50 on groceries this week.

Subscription fee (noun) – a payment made regularly for a service. → Netflix charges a monthly subscription fee.

Sentiment (noun) – a feeling or thought about something. → His gift carried a kind sentiment.

Weekly shop (noun) – buying food and household goods once a week. → We do the weekly shop on Saturdays.

Spendthrift (noun) – someone who spends money carelessly. → He used to be a spendthrift, but now he saves more.

Splash out (phrasal verb) – to spend a lot of money on something. → They splashed out on a luxury holiday.

Par for the course (idiom) – something normal or expected in a situation. → Delays are par for the course when flying.

Creature of habit (idiom) – someone who always does the same things. → She always wakes up at 6 a.m. — she’s a creature of habit.

Sign (noun) – an indication that something exists or is happening. → His absence was a sign that he wasn’t well.

Independent (adjective) – not depending on others. → She became independent after moving to another city

Pocket money (noun) – small amounts of money given regularly, often to children. → Parents often give kids pocket money for chores.

Savings (noun) – money kept aside instead of being spent. → He used his savings to buy a new car.

Bonus (noun) – extra money received as a reward, usually at work. → The company gave employees a Christmas bonus.

Borrow (verb) – to take money from someone with the intention of returning it. → She had to borrow money from a friend.

Donation (noun) – money given to help a cause or charity. → They made a donation to support the hospital

Questions and Answers

Maria: You should say when it happened, who gave you money, why he or she gave you money, and explain how you used the money.

Rory: Well, even at the age of 35, this happens to me on a regular basis, actually. Every month, my dad has this habit of putting 50 pounds in my bank account, and he has been doing so ever since I was a teenager.

The last time, I suppose, would have been at the end of May this year. To tell you a bit more about who gave it to me, well, it's my dad, so obviously, I've known him my whole life. I'm not exactly sure why on earth he does it, since, like I said, I'm in my mid-thirties now and I can stand on my own two feet, financially speaking. Moreover, I don't even buy that much to begin with, aside from groceries, and pay the occasional subscription fee that's got to be paid. If I were to guess, I'd say it's probably to show that he still loves and supports me, even if it's no longer necessary, like in this physical way. And that's a nice sentiment, so I won't and don't complain about it too much.

When it comes to how I spent the last time, I honestly couldn't tell you, since it was that long ago. I think it went on the weekly shop, so there was plenty left over, because like I said, I'm a bit of a spendthrift, and don't like to splash out on huge purchases much these days. So it's not terribly exciting, unfortunately, and it never has been, at least not in the past ten years. If I hadn't been given it, well, it would have been a little bit weird, since this is something that's just sort of par for the course with my dad. As I mentioned, he's done it for years on end now. And he's a creature of habit, so it would probably have been a sign that something was off if he didn't do it, or if he hadn't done it. That's from a social point of view, of course. Financially, I wouldn't have been much worse off either, because, like I say, I'm quite independent, so it's not a big deal for me.