Daily English 1240 Giving Correct Change

Dialogue/Story

Slow Speed begins at: 1"28
Explanation begins at: 4:20
Normal Speed begins at: 20:19

Complete Transcript

Welcome to English as a Second Language Podcast number 1,240 – Giving Correct Change.

This is English as a Second Language Podcast episode 1,240. I’m your host, Dr. Jeff McQuillan, coming to you from the Center for Educational Development in beautiful Los Angeles, California.

This episode is a dialogue between Evelyn and Hank about giving someone the correct amount of money back when he pays you in cash. Let’s get started.

[start of dialogue]

Evelyn: If you want a job here as a cashier, you’ll need to be able to give correct change.

Hank: Don’t you use a cash register here?

Evelyn: We do, but when it’s not working, we have to be able to calculate change in our heads in a pinch.

Hank: Oh, I didn’t realize that.

Evelyn: Okay, let’s see how you do with a simple sale. Let’s say I’m purchasing these two items and I’m paying with a $20 bill.

Hank: All right, give me a minute . . . the total is $9.36.

Evelyn: Make sure you count back the change.

Hank: I’ve never done that before. I’m not sure I know how.

Evelyn: Count up starting with the coins and working your way up to the paper money. Count out loud so the customer gets a running total.

Hank: Okay, but first I have to do the math. The change should be . . . Can I have a piece of paper to check my work? I don’t want to short the customer or give them too much change.

Evelyn: You won’t have time to do that with each customer. Math wasn’t your favorite subject in school, was it?

Hank: You’re right about that. Maybe I need to work on my math skills. In the meantime, I’m handy with a mop.

Evelyn: Good to hear. There’s a cleanup on aisle three that’s got your name all over it.

[end of dialogue]

Evelyn begins our dialogue by saying to Hank, “If you want a job here as a cashier, you’ll need to be able to give correct change.” A “cashier” (cashier) is a person whose job it is to take your money at a store where you are buying something. Now, you can pay for things in most American stores using a credit card, but many people buy things, especially things that don’t cost very much money, in cash – that is, they pay for their items, the things they are buying, with paper money and coins.

“To give correct change” means to, as a cashier, give the correct amount of money back to someone who pays you with more money than what the item is worth. An example will make this clear. If you are buying a large coffee cup, like the ones that I use, and the cup costs $5.50, you may give the cashier $10 to pay for this coffee cup. The cashier then gives you back money. The correct change in this case would be $4.50, because $10 minus $5.50 (the cost of the cup) is $4.50. We call that amount of money you get back “change” (change).

So, Evelyn is telling Hank that he has to learn how to give correct change. Hank asks, “Don’t you use a cash register here?” A “cash register” (register) is a machine, nowadays usually a computer, that adds up the cost of everything a customer or a person buying something is buying and tells you what the total amount is. A cash register will often usually tell you how much change to give back to a customer if the customer is paying with cash. Notice that we call it a “cash register,” but it is used for people paying with credit cards as well as with cash.

Evelyn says, “We do,” meaning we do use a cash register here, “but when it’s not working” – when it is not functioning properly – “we have to be able to calculate change in our heads in a pinch.” “To calculate” (calculate) means to perform a mathematical function with numbers, such as adding, subtracting, multiplying, or dividing. “To do something in your head” means to do it without writing anything down on a piece of paper or using a computer or other machine.

Most of us can add five plus five in our heads. We don’t need a piece of paper to calculate the answer, or at least I hope we don’t. “To do something in a pinch” (pinch) means to do something if it’s necessary in a difficult or challenging situation, meaning you wouldn’t normally have to do it that way, but if it were required, you could do it that way. Hank responds, “Oh, I didn’t realize that,” meaning, I guess, he didn’t realize that sometimes the cash register doesn’t work.

Evelyn says, “Okay, let’s see how you do,” meaning let’s see how you perform, how you are able to give change back, “with a simple sale. Let’s say,” meaning let’s imagine, “I’m purchasing,” or buying, “these two items” – these two things – “and I’m paying with a $20 bill.” Hanks says, “All right, give me a minute,” meaning give me some time, a short amount of time to think about it. Hank then says, “The total is $9.36.” “The total” means that’s how much the two items that Evelyn has there cost together. Evelyn says, “Make sure you count back the change.” “To count back the change” means to say out loud, as you are giving the money back to the customer, how much that change is.

So, if a customer buys something for $9.36 and gives you a $20 bill, you count back the change by starting with the amount that the customer purchased, and each coin or each piece of currency – cash – you give the customer, you say it out loud. So, if the customer buys something worth $9.36, you would first give the customer four pennies. You would go “Nine thirty-six, thirty-seven, thirty-eight, thirty-nine, forty,” then you would give the customer a dime, worth 10 cents: “$9.50.”

Then you would give the customer two quarters, worth 50 cents, and then you would say “Ten,” and then you would give the customer a $10 bill and you would say “Twenty.” So, the total is $9.36, and you would say, “Nine thirty-seven, thirty-eight, thirty-nine, forty, fifty, ten, and twenty.” You are counting back the change to the customer. I worked in a store as a cashier for seven years when I was in high school and college, so I got used to counting back change to the customer.

Hank says, “I’ve never done that before. I’m not sure I know how.” Evelyn says, “Count up starting with the coins and working your way up to the paper money. “To count up” means to start with the smallest number and gradually or slowly add to it. That’s what I did in my example. I “counted up” beginning with the total of the sale, $9.36. First I gave the customer back the coins. A “coin” (coin) is a small, in the United States, round piece of metal that represents a certain amount of money.

In the U.S., we have the smallest coin, which is a penny. That’s worth 1 cent out of the 100 cents in a dollar. We also have a “nickel” (nickel), worth 5 cents, a “dime” (dime), worth 10 cents, a “quarter” (quarter), worth 25 cents. We do have a “50-cent coin,” but it’s not used very often. We also have a dollar coin, but again, it’s not used very often. In fact, I don’t think they make dollar coins anymore.

So, Evelyn tells Hank to “count up starting with the coins” and to work his way up, meaning to get up to a higher amount – in this case to the paper money, what are called “paper bills” (bills). In the U.S., the most common paper bills you will see are $1 bills, $5 bills, $10 bills, and $20 bills, although you will also see $50 bills and $100 bills.

Evelyn says, “Count out loud,” meaning so the person can hear you, “so the customer gets a running total.” A “running total” is a total amount each time you add a new amount to what you are giving the customer, just as I did when I gave my example of $9.37, thirty-eight, thirty-nine, forty. That’s a running total. Hank says, “Okay, but first I have to do the math.” “To do the math” means the same as to calculate.

Hank says, “The change should be,” and then he stops and says, “Can I have a piece of paper to check my work?” Hank wants a piece of paper and a pencil or a pen to calculate on the piece of paper rather than doing it in his head. He says, “I don’t want to short the customer or give them” – him or her – “too much change.” “To short” (short) means to give the customer less money than you are supposed to give him. Of course you don’t want to short the customer. The customer might get very angry.

Evelyn says, “You won’t have time to do that with each customer,” meaning you’re not going to have time to take out a piece of paper and calculate the change every time you have a customer. “Math wasn’t your favorite subject in school, was it?” Evelyn asks. She’s making a joke. She’s saying that Hank isn’t very good at math, at mathematics. In British English they would say “maths” with an “s” on the end, but in U.S. English, we just say “math” without the “s.” Hank says, “You’re right about that,” meaning no, math wasn’t my favorite subject in school.

He says, “Maybe I need to work on” – or to practice, to get better – “on my math skills. In the meantime, I’m handy with a mop.” “To be handy” (handy) means to be able to do something well, especially some physical task. A “mop” (mop) is something you use to wash the floor. It has a long stick, and on the end of the stick there is either a sponge or a group of thick ropes that are used to clean the floor with water and some kind of soap. Hank is making a little joke here. He’s saying that because he isn’t very good at math, maybe he can do something else at that store. Maybe he can clean the floors.

Evelyn says, “Good to hear,” meaning that’s good to know, that information is good for me to know. Then she says, “There’s a cleanup on aisle three that’s got your name all over it.” A “cleanup” (cleanup) – one word – is a noun referring to something that needs to be cleaned up, that needs to be picked up, usually because someone dropped it. If you go into a grocery store, a place that sells food, sometimes people drop the containers of food on the floor and someone has to clean that up. That’s a “cleanup.”

An “aisle” (aisle) in this case refers to the area between the rows of food in a grocery store. Most grocery stores put cans and packages of food that don’t need to be in a refrigerator or freezer on shelves, and these shelves are placed in the store. In between the shelves is what is called an “aisle.” That’s where you can walk up and down in order to see the food on the shelves. Evelyn says that there’s a “cleanup in aisle three,” meaning the third aisle in the grocery store.

She says the cleanup has Hank’s name “all over it.” To have your name “all over” something or “written all over” something means that it is something that is a good match for you, something that is intended for you. Evelyn is saying, in other words, that Hank would be a good person to clean up the mess in aisle three, especially since he isn’t very good at math and therefore will not be a very good cashier.

Now let’s listen to the dialogue, this time at a normal speed.

[start of dialogue]

Evelyn: If you want a job here as a cashier, you’ll need to be able to give correct change.

Hank: Don’t you use a cash register here?

Evelyn: We do, but when it’s not working, we have to be able to calculate change in our heads in a pinch.

Hank: Oh, I didn’t realize that.

Evelyn: Okay, let’s see how you do with a simple sale. Let’s say I’m purchasing these two items and I’m paying with a $20 bill.

Hank: All right, give me a minute . . . the total is $9.36.

Evelyn: Make sure you count back the change.

Hank: I’ve never done that before. I’m not sure I know how.

Evelyn: Count up starting with the coins and working your way up to the paper money. Count out loud so the customer gets a running total.

Hank: Okay, but first I have to do the math. The change should be . . . Can I have a piece of paper to check my work? I don’t want to short the customer or give them too much change.

Evelyn: You won’t have time to do that with each customer. Math wasn’t your favorite subject in school, was it?

Hank: You’re right about that. Maybe I need to work on my math skills. In the meantime, I’m handy with a mop.

Evelyn: Good to hear. There’s a cleanup on aisle three that’s got your name all over it.

[end of dialogue]

It’s impossible to calculate the amount of English you will learn by listening to the wonderful scripts by our wonderful scriptwriter, Dr. Lucy Tse.

From Los Angeles, California, I’m Jeff McQuillan. Thanks for listening. Come back and listen to us again right here on ESL Podcast.

Glossary

cashier – a person whose job is to process financial transactions in a store, accepting payments from customers for the items they want to buy

* The cashier asked if we wanted to pay with cash, a check, or a credit card.

change – the total amount of cash that one has given to a cashier minus the amount of money that one needs to pay

* The food cost $79.63 and I paid with a $100 bill, so my change should have been $20.37.

cash register – a machine that adds up the total cost of everything a customer is buying and in which cash is kept used to make payments and provide change

* The cash register has compartments for each type of coin and paper bill.

to calculate – to perform a mathematical function with numbers; to add, subtract, multiply, or divide

* Could you calculate how many cups are in 2.3 gallons?

in (one’s) head – using mental abilities, without writing anything down

* How were you able to figure out that the square root of 2,304 is 48 in your head? I would have needed a calculator.

in a pinch – if necessary in a difficult or challenging situation

* This recipe calls for buttermilk, but if you don’t have any we can use regular milk with lemon juice in a pinch.

to count back the change – to provide the money that one owes to a customer by placing the bills in his or her hand one at a time while counting from the total cost of the purchases up to the amount of money that he or she originally paid

* If a customer gives you a $20 bill for a $3 purchase, count back the change like this: “There’s four, five, and $5 is ten, and $10 is twenty” while you give them two $1 bills, a $5 bill, and a $10 bill.”

to count up – to start at the smallest number and gradually add to it

* Count up all the money in your cash register to determine whether all your transactions have been processed correctly.

coin – a small, circular, metal piece of money, typically representing cents within the dollar

* The jar is full of hundreds of coins, but most of them are pennies, so there isn’t much money in total.

paper money – bills; flat, rectangular pieces of paper printed with special images, used as cash

* Paper money needs to have a lot of security features that make it difficult for people to print fake bills.

running total – a sum that changes as additional items are added to it

* Do you keep a running total in your checkbook as you make deposits and withdrawals?

to do the math – to perform mathematical calculations; to add, subtract, multiply, or divide

* If you do the math, you’ll realize how difficult it is to raise a family when you’re earning minimum wage.

to short – to provide less money than one is supposed to; to pay less than one is supposed to; to not pay the full amount of something

* The bank teller was embarrassed when he realized that he had accidentally shorted an important customer.

handy – able to do something well, especially when describing physical labor

* Henri is very handy around the house. He’s able to paint walls, change doorknobs, and fix leaking toilets without any trouble.

mop – a sponge, a group of thick ropes, or another soft object at the end of a long handle, used to spread soapy water or a cleaning liquid over a hard floor in order to clean it

* First sweep the floor to get rid of dust and dirt. Then use this mop to get rid of any sticky spots.

cleanup – something that needs to be cleaned, especially referring to something that has spilled

* Look at those kids running through the store! They’re going to cause quite a few cleanups before they leave.

aisle – a hallway or passageway between rows of shelves in a store

* Ketchup is in aisle 7, next to the mustard.

to have got (one’s) name all over (something) – to be the ideal match for oneself; to be claimed for oneself

* Blake has significantly more experience than any of the other candidates, so he’s got his name all over that job.

Comprehension Questions

1. Why does Evelyn talk about calculating change “in a pinch”?
a) Because they have to calculate change very quickly.
b) Because they have to calculate change with extreme accuracy.
c) Because they have to calculate change when the cash register doesn’t work.
2. What does Evelyn mean when she says, “There’s a cleanup on aisle three that’s got your name all over it”?
a) Aisle three is named after him.
b) He is the one who will clean up aisle three.
c) He is going to be punished by having to clean aisle three.

Answers at bottom.

What Else Does It Mean?

in a pinch

The phrase “in a pinch,” in this podcast, means if necessary in a difficult or challenging situation: “We should have installed a new part in the engine, but we were able to fix it with duct tape in a pinch.” When talking about cooking, a “pinch” is a very small amount of something, specifically the amount that one can pick up between one’s thumb and index (pointing) finger: “Stir together one cup of flour, a teaspoon of baking soda, and a pinch of salt.” The phrase “to penny-pinch” means to spend very little money: “They’re always penny-pinching and trying to negotiate lower prices at the outdoor market.” Finally, if you “feel the pinch,” you are having financially troubles, not having enough money to pay for or buy what you need: “Families feel the pinch when jobs are cut.”

coin

In this podcast, the word “coin” means a small, circular, metal piece of money, typically representing cents within the dollar: “At the end of the day, they put their coins in this jar, and at the end of each year, they use the money to buy Christmas presents for each other.” The phrase “to toss/flip a coin” means to throw a coin in the air and see which side lands facing upward as a way to make a decision: “Whenever the kids argue about who gets to go first, their parents make them flip a coin as an easy way to end the argument.” Finally, the phrase “two sides of the same coin” emphasizes the similarity or close connection between two problems or situations: “High investment risk and high potential financial gains are really two sides of the same coin.”

Culture Note

Bank Promotions

Many U.S. banks offer “promotional items” (things that are given away to customers or “potential customers” (people who might become customers in the future) as a way to attract new customers and improve “brand recognition” (how familiar people are with a particular brand) and “brand loyalty” (how often people do business repeatedly with a particular company or product)). Usually—but not always—these items are related to financial transactions or “savings” (money put aside for use in the future).

Today, some of the most common bank “giveaways” (promotional items; things that are given to people for free) are “piggy banks,” which are small plastic or “ceramic” (the material used to make plates and bowls) containers in the shape of a pig with a “slot” (small, narrow rectangular opening) in the top. Piggy banks are used to store coins, especially so that they can be “cashed in” (exchanged for paper money of the same value) when one is ready to spend the money. Modern piggy banks often have the name of the bank printed on the side of the pig, along with a phone number or “URL” (website address) of the bank.

In the past, some piggy banks were more “elaborate” (fancy and detailed). Known as “mechanical banks,” they had simple “mechanisms” (tools; ways of doing things) that caused parts to move when a coin was “deposited” (dropped into the bank). For example, a mechanical bank could have small “figurines” (small shapes that look like little people) of baseball players who “swing the bat” (move a stick in the air to hit a ball) whenever a coin is “inserted” (put into the mechanical bank). These banks from the past are now “highly” (very much) “collectable” (wanted by many people who want many or specific examples of a particular item, usually as a hobby or as an investment).

Comprehension Answers

1 - c

2 - b