VOA词汇掌故2024--Be Careful What You 'Bank On'

And now, Words and Their Stories from VOA Learning English.

On today's show, we take you to the bank.

Banks help us manage our money. When we make deposits, we put money in; when we make withdrawals², we take money out. Banks help us reach important life goals. We can borrow money from a bank to buy a house. A bank can loan us money to start a business.

So, we need to trust our banks. And that need for trust gives us some idiomatic³ expressions in American English that are connected to banks.

The first is simply to bank on something. If you bank on something, you trust it will happen. In fact, you count on it happening. Sometimes we use this expression to mean our strategy depends on something to happen.

Here are some examples:

When a city hosts the Olympics, they bank on drawing large crowds to see the games.

To win the election, the politician is banking⁴ on voters finding out about his opponent's scandals.

We often use this expression in a set phrase: to bank on the fact that something will happen.

For example, you can bank on the fact that a famous person caught doing something wrong will soon give a public apology. It is certain to happen.

You can bank on the fact that if I see chocolate cake, I will eat it. It is a given. It will happen.

If you are very sure something will happen, it's like money in the bank.

When we have money in the bank, we count on it to be there when we need it. Banks offer guarantees that they will protect our money. So, if something is like money in the bank, it is a guarantee. It is a certainty.

When we say "you can take that to the bank," we mean something is a sure thing. It is true or certain to happen.

We finish today's show with one more expression, which sounds like a funny situation.

If you laugh all the way to the bank, you make a lot of money with very little effort.

This expression also can mean that you are happy about making money from something that others think is unfair or even bad.

In other situations, it means that you make money from something that others think is a waste of time.

For example, when a woman started a organic homemade dog food business, her friends thought it was a silly idea. They even laughed at her idea. But it ended up being very successful and made her very rich. So, now she is the one laughing - laughing all the way to the bank!

And that's all the time we have for this Words and Their Stories.

If you want to learn English, the stories and programs at VOA Learning English can help you out. You can take that to the bank!

Words in This Story

deposit - n. money deposited in a bank

withdrawal¹ - n. an act or instance of withdrawing

especially : a removal of money from a bank account

depend - v. to place reliance or trust : to rely for support

scandal - n. a situation or event that is thought to be shocking and immoral⁵ and that everyone knows about : reports about actions or events that cause shock and disapproval⁶:

organic - adj. relating to, producing, dealing⁷ in, or involving foods produced with the use of feed or fertilizer obtained from plants or animals and without the use of laboratory-made fertilizers, growth substances, antibiotics⁸, or pesticides⁹

silly - adj. not showing common sense or good judgment

1 withdrawal   

n.取回，提款；撤退，撤军；收回，撤销

参考例句：

• The police were forced to make a tactical withdrawal.警方被迫进行战术撤退。
• They insisted upon a withdrawal of the statement and a public apology.他们坚持要收回那些话并公开道歉。

2 withdrawals   

n.收回，取回，撤回( withdrawal的名词复数 )；撤退，撤走；收回[取回，撤回，撤退，撤走]的实例；推出（组织），提走（存款），戒除毒瘾，对说过的话收回，孤僻

参考例句：

• He has made several withdrawals from his bank account. 他从银行账户上提了几次款。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• It is not the bank's policy to deduct interest on withdrawals. 提款需扣除利息这并非是本银行的政策。 来自辞典例句

3 idiomatic   

adj.成语的，符合语言习惯的

参考例句：

• In our reading we should always be alert for idiomatic expressions.我们在阅读过程中应经常注意惯用法。
• In his lecture,he bore down on the importance of idiomatic usage in a language.他在演讲中着重强调了语言中习惯用法的重要性。

4 banking   

n.银行业，银行学，金融业

参考例句：

• John is launching his son on a career in banking.约翰打算让儿子在银行界谋一个新职位。
• He possesses an extensive knowledge of banking.他具有广博的银行业务知识。

5 immoral   

adj.不道德的，淫荡的，荒淫的，有伤风化的

参考例句：

• She was questioned about his immoral conduct toward her.她被询问过有关他对她的不道德行为的情况。
• It is my belief that nuclear weapons are immoral.我相信使核武器是不邪恶的。

6 disapproval   

n.反对，不赞成

参考例句：

• The teacher made an outward show of disapproval.老师表面上表示不同意。
• They shouted their disapproval.他们喊叫表示反对。

7 dealing   

n.经商方法，待人态度

参考例句：

• This store has an excellent reputation for fair dealing.该商店因买卖公道而享有极高的声誉。
• His fair dealing earned our confidence.他的诚实的行为获得我们的信任。

8 antibiotics   

n.（用作复数）抗生素；（用作单数）抗生物质的研究；抗生素，抗菌素( antibiotic的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• the discovery of antibiotics in the 20th century 20世纪抗生素的发现
• The doctor gave me a prescription for antibiotics. 医生给我开了抗生素。

9 pesticides   

n.杀虫剂( pesticide的名词复数 )；除害药物

参考例句：

• vegetables grown without the use of pesticides 未用杀虫剂种植的蔬菜
• There is a lot of concern over the amount of herbicides and pesticides used in farming. 人们对农业上灭草剂和杀虫剂的用量非常担忧。 来自《简明英汉词典》