Are you a saver(1) or a spender(2)? “A penny(3) saved(4) is a penny earned(5).” This old saying(6) calls attention to the wisdom(7) of saving money. “Putting money away(8) for a rainy day(9)” is another way(10) to talk about saving for the future.
People who hate(11) to spend money are known as(12) “tightwads”(13), while those who(14) like to get the most value for their money are called “thrifty”(15). A thrifty person is different from a “spendthrift”(16). A spendthrift is someone who spends wastefully(17). People like that(18) are often said(19) to spend money “like a drunken sailor(19)” or “like there’s no tomorrow(20).”
In the United States, people who want to start a savings account(22) have different choices(23) of where to put(24) their money. These include banks and credit unions.
Credit unions are cooperatives for people who have some kind of connection. For example, the members might(25) work for a university or a government agency. Most credit unions are nonprofit(26) organizations. Credit unions, banks and other financial institutions pay interest(27) on savings accounts. But the interest rates(28) are low(29).
Certificates of deposit pay higher(30) returns. With a certificate of deposit, or CD, a person agrees(31) not to withdraw(32) the money for a certain period of time. This term(33) could be(34) anywhere from a few(35) months to several(36) years.
Longer terms, and larger amounts(37), pay higher interest. People can withdraw their money early(38) but they have to pay a penalty(39). Another way to save is through(40) a money market fund.
This is a kind of(41) mutual fund. Mutual funds invest money from many people. The money is sometimes(42) placed(43) in short-term(44) government securities(45). Money market funds, however(46), may not be(47) federally guaranteed(48) like other kinds of savings.
The Federal Deposit Insurance(49) Corporation guarantees savings up to(50) two hundred fifty thousand dollars. In a number of countries, people have been saving less(51) over the years(52).
The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development(53) is a group of thirty-four countries. The OECD says in nineteen ninety, Americans had a household savings(54) rate of seven percent.
This year, that rate is expected to be(55)
a little more than four percent. Many European countries have higher
rates, but Americans save more than families in countries like Japan and
South Korea. For VOA Special English, I’m Mario Ritter. To read, listen
and learn English, go to voaspecialenglish.com. You can also find our
captioned videos at the VOA Learning English channel on YouTube.
(Adapted from a radio program broadcast 29Jun2012)
VOCABULARY
1. Saver = poupador 2. Spender = gastador 3. Penny = moeda de 1 centavo 4. Saved = economizado 5. Earned = ganho 6. old saying = velho deitado 7. wisdom = sabedoria 8. Putting money away = guardar dinheiro 9. rainy day = dia chuvoso 10. another way = uma outra forma 11. hate = odiar 12. known as = conhecidas como 13. "tightwads" = pães duros 14. while those who = enquanto aqueles que 15. "thrifty" = econômico 16. "spendthrift." = esbanjador 17. Wastefully = com desperdicio 18. People like that = pessoas assim 19. often said = dizem frequentemente que 20. drunken sailor = marinheiro bêbado 21. like there's no tomorrow = como se não houvesse amanhã 22. savings account = conta de poupança 23. choices = escolhas 24. put = colocar 25. might = podem (possibilidade) 26. nonprofit = sem fins lucrativos 27. pay interest = pagam juros 28. rates = taxas, indices 29. low = baixo(a) 30. higher = mais alto 31. agrees = concorda 32. withdraw = retirar 33. term = period de tempo 34. could be = poderia ser 35. a few = alguns 36. several = diversos 37. larger amounts = quantias maiores 38. early = cedo 39. penalty = penalidade, punição 40. through = através 41. kind of = tipo de 42. sometimes = às vezes 43. placed = colocado 44. short-term = prazo curto 45. securities = valores mobiliarios (ações,debentures e fundos de investimento) 46. however = contudo 47. may not be = podem não ser 48. guaranteed = garantidos 49. Insurance = seguro 50. up to = até 51. up to = menos 52. over the years = ao longo dos anos 53. Development = desenvolvimento 54. household savings = economias domésticas 55. is expected to be = espera-se que seja