--- title: When money is tight: "we can't afford it" — a lesson of Mova's school · trees and pragmatics description: «When money is tight: "we can't afford it"», a lesson of the money course of Mova's primary school, sentence by sentence with dependency trees and pragmatics. It begins: "We can't afford it" means there is not enough money left after the important things, like rent, food and bills; it is not a punis --- [Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) · [this page in HTML](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/money/23-when-money-is-tight/) [home](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) / [corpora](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/) / [school](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/) / [Money](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/money/) / When money is tight: "we can't afford… # When money is tight: "we can't afford it" Lesson 23 of the money course of Mova's primary school: 17 sentences, each with its syntax tree and pragmatics. The lessons are written for Mova, and their agreed trees are part of Mova corpus 0.4 (CC BY-SA 4.0). How Mova does on its tests: [the lesson at school](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/school-run/money/23-when-money-is-tight/). - [0](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/money/23-when-money-is-tight/0/) — "We can't afford it" means there is not enough money left after the important things, like rent, food and bills; it is not a punishment, and it has nothing to do with how much a child is loved. - [1](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/money/23-when-money-is-tight/1/) — Picture Leo asking for a £200 bike when his family has £50 spare this month: they are £150 short, so the answer is "not now", even though Mum would love to say yes. - [2](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/money/23-when-money-is-tight/2/) — Lots of good, hard-working families go through tight months: a job ends, a bill jumps, someone gets ill; food banks, free school meals and second-hand shops exist exactly for times like that, and there is no shame in using them. - [3](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/money/23-when-money-is-tight/3/) — Children are never to blame for money worries; a hug, a bit of help and not asking for extras can mean a lot, and a trusted adult is there to talk to if worry gets heavy. - [4](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/money/23-when-money-is-tight/4/) — Making fun of someone's cheap trainers or free lunch is unkind and wrong; what matters is who a person is, not what they wear. - [5](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/money/23-when-money-is-tight/5/) — To afford something means to have enough money for it after the important things are paid. - [6](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/money/23-when-money-is-tight/6/) — A £200 bike with only £50 spare leaves the family £200 − £50 = £150 short. - [7](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/money/23-when-money-is-tight/7/) — Money worries are stress about paying for things; they are grown-ups' job to sort, and children are never to blame. - [8](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/money/23-when-money-is-tight/8/) — Laughing at someone for having less money is unkind; trainers at £20 keep feet dry just like trainers at £80. - [9](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/money/23-when-money-is-tight/9/) — A food bank is a place that gives free food to people who need it; many families use one when money runs short, and it is nothing to be ashamed of. - [10](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/money/23-when-money-is-tight/10/) — Free school meals are lunches paid for by the government for families who need them; at about £2.50 a day, they save a family £12.50 every five-day school week. - [11](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/money/23-when-money-is-tight/11/) — "Skint" is everyday British slang for having very little money. - [12](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/money/23-when-money-is-tight/12/) — Free fun like the park, the library and a picnic costs £0, while the cinema for 4 at £8 each costs £32. - [13](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/money/23-when-money-is-tight/13/) — A trade-off is giving up one thing to pay for another, like skipping a £15 takeaway for 2 weeks to save £30 for a school trip. - [15](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/money/23-when-money-is-tight/15/) — A charity shop sells donated things and gives the money to a good cause. - [16](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/money/23-when-money-is-tight/16/) — Communities help each other: a family that receives a £40 hamper one year may give one the next. - [17](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/money/23-when-money-is-tight/17/) — When grown-ups are stressed about money they may be snappy, but they still love their children; talking to a trusted adult helps a worried child. - ← previous: [The weekly shop and a family budget](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/money/22-the-weekly-shop-and-a-family-budget/) - next →: [Debt, loans, credit cards and interest](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/money/24-debt-loans-credit-cards-and-interest/) - ↑ back to [Money](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/money/)