Dollars and Sense: Idioms About Money and Finances
Episode notes
Dollars and Sense
Idioms About Money and Finances
TARGET IDIOM
"bring home the bacon"
Meaning: To earn money for a family or household; to be the main financial provider.
Where it comes from: The phrase likely comes from country fairs, where a greased pig was a prize for winners of certain games — bringing the bacon home meant you had won something valuable. It became a common expression for earning a living in the early 20th century.
Example: Both parents work full-time to bring home the bacon and support their three children.
Dialogue
Planning the Family Budget
Lin: I've been thinking — now that I have the night shift too, I'm really bringing home the bacon this month.
Robert: I noticed! But are you sure it's worth it? You look exhausted.
Lin: It's temporary. We need to make ends meet until the car is paid off.
Robert: Fair enough. Maybe we should tighten our belts on other things instead, so you can cut back on hours.
Lin: That's a good idea. We could stop eating out so much.
Robert: Exactly. Between both of us bringing home the bacon and spending less, we'll be fine.
Idiom Bank — Related Expressions
Idiom
Meaning
tighten your belt
to spend less money; to live more frugally
cost an arm and a leg
to be very expensive
make ends meet
to have just enough money to cover basic expenses
save for a rainy day
to save money for a time when it might be needed unexpectedly
Practice Exercise
Fill in each blank with the best idiom from this unit (the target idiom or one from the Idiom Bank). Use each idiom only once. The answer follows each sentence.
1. That new laptop must have ___________ — it has every feature imaginable.
Answer: cost an arm and a leg
2. Since he lost his second job, the family has had to ___________.
Answer: tighten your belt
3. My grandmother always told me to ___________ instead of spending everything right away.
Answer: save for a rainy day
4. With rent this high, it's hard to ___________ every month.
Answer: make ends meet
5. Ever since she got promoted, she's really ___________ for her family.
Answer: bring home the bacon
6. We decided to ___________ and cancel our streaming subscriptions this year.
Answer: tighten your belt