English: Money & Banking

Level: B1. Money talk in English rests on a small set of verbs and nouns plus one real skill: reading numbers aloud. This lesson teaches the banking words you need, the polite phrases for a counter or a call, and how to say big amounts clearly. It is about the language — not about which account or product to choose.

By the end of this page you can…

…use the core banking words, ask for a service politely at a bank, understand a short bank dialogue, and read prices and large numbers aloud with confidence.

The core verbs: in, out, across

Most banking language turns on three verbs that describe where money goes:

• deposit — to put money into an account. (I’d like to deposit some cash.)
• withdraw — to take money out. (I need to withdraw fifty pounds.)
• transfer — to move money between accounts. (Could I transfer money to my savings?)

Two everyday extras complete the set: pay in (an informal version of deposit) and take out (informal for withdraw).

The core nouns

Polite phrases at the bank

A bank counter works like any service situation: open with a soft request, not a command.

• I’d like to open an account.
• Could I withdraw some cash, please?
• I’d like to transfer money to another account.
• Could you check my balance, please?
• Is there a fee for this?

If you do not understand an amount or an instruction, ask the clerk to repeat it: Sorry, could you say that again? or Could you write that down for me?

Reading numbers aloud

This is the part learners find hardest, because prices and amounts come fast. Three rules cover most cases.

1. Group large numbers: read them in thousands and hundreds. 1,250 is one thousand, two hundred and fifty.
2. Hundred and thousand stay singular after a number: two hundred, not two hundreds; three thousand, not three thousands.
3. Say the currency naturally: £20 is twenty pounds; $5.50 is five dollars fifty or five fifty; €99 is ninety-nine euros.

A short conversation

Clerk: Good morning. How can I help you? Customer: Hi, I’d like to withdraw some cash, please. Clerk: Of course. How much would you like to take out? Customer: A hundred and fifty, please. And could you check my balance too? Clerk: Certainly. Your balance is just over two thousand. Anything else? Customer: No, that’s all. Thank you very much.

Example sentences

Press play and copy the rhythm. Read every number out loud — that is the real practice here.

Quick recap before you practise.

Usage notes

• cash vs card: cash means physical notes and coins; by card means paying with a bank card. Contactless is tapping the card or phone.
• cheque / check: the paper payment is spelled cheque in British English and check in American English — same word, same meaning.
• ATM / cashpoint: the machine that gives out cash is an ATM (international) or a cashpoint (British); both are understood.
• pence and cents: small coins are pence in the UK (fifty pence, often fifty p) and cents in the US; prices are usually read without the word, as in twelve fifty.

Practice

How to say it

A few money words trip up English learners — copy the sounds, not the spelling.

• withdraw has the stress on the second part: with-DRAW, and the th is the soft one as in this.
• balance stresses the first part: BAL-uhns, two beats.
• receipt has a silent p: say ri-SEET.
• euro is two beats: YOO-roh, not eh-oo-roh.

Quiz

Recap cheat-sheet

Next

• Previous lesson: English: Formal Writing & Emails
• Next lesson: English: Restaurant & Dining Out
• Brush up first: English: Numbers 0 to 100