Learn the word 'Afford': Practical B1 Verb for Everyday Financial Conversations

Word Info

Word: Afford

Level: B1

Pronunciation: ə'foʊrd

Meaning: To be able to pay for or do something

Video Script

Hello everyone, and welcome back to "Hello Word!" I'm Alex, and I’m thrilled to be here with you today to explore a new word that can be super useful in all kinds of conversations. Our word of the day is afford. Afford is a B1-level verb, meaning it's common for intermediate English learners, and it means "to be able to pay for or do something." When we talk about being able to afford something, we're often thinking about whether we have the money or resources to pay for it. You might hear it a lot when talking about finances, purchases, or even just managing your time and energy. For example, if I say, “I can’t afford to buy a new phone right now", it means I don’t have the money to make that purchase. Or, if someone says, “I can’t afford to miss this meeting", they mean that skipping the meeting might have negative consequences they don’t want to risk. Now let’s talk about some synonyms for afford. A good synonym might be manage, especially when we're talking about having enough money for something. So instead of saying, “I can’t afford a vacation", you could say, “I can’t manage a vacation right now.” Another synonym could be finance, which means you’re able to pay for something, often with help from a loan or credit. You might hear, “I’ll finance my new car", meaning they can afford it with some extra support. On the flip side, let’s look at a few antonyms for afford. One of the most common is unable. If someone says, “I’m unable to buy a car", it’s clear that they cannot afford it. Another useful antonym is forfeit, which means to give up something, often because you don’t have the resources to pursue it. For instance, if a friend says, “I had to forfeit my spot in the class because I couldn’t afford it", they’re saying they had to let it go due to a lack of funds. In everyday life, you’ll hear afford in all kinds of situations. Imagine you’re planning a night out with friends. Someone might say, “I can’t afford a fancy dinner tonight", meaning they need to stick to a budget. Or, in the workplace, a colleague might say, “I can’t afford to miss this deadline", which is more about not risking the negative consequences of missing it. Let’s practice a few sentences together to get comfortable with this word. “She saved enough to afford a new laptop.” “Can you afford to take a week off work?” “They couldn’t afford the high cost of rent in the city.” So, to wrap things up, afford is a really versatile verb for talking about whether you have enough money, time, or resources for something. It’s a useful word in many situations, from budgeting to planning. Thanks for tuning in today! I hope you found this episode helpful and are ready to start using afford in your own conversations. If you enjoyed today’s episode, please subscribe to the podcast and consider leaving a review. Your support helps others find the show. And before we go, I’d love to hear from you: Try creating your own sentence using afford and share it in the comments below. I can’t wait to see what you come up with! Thanks again for listening, and I’ll catch you in the next episode of "Hello Word!"

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