ENGLISH AND AMERICAN MONEY, MEASURES AND WEIGHTS · 9 She will have worked in this office for forty...

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CAMELIA FIRICĂ

CURS DE LIMBA ENGLEZĂ

PARTEA A - II A

CRAIOVA

2006

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ENGLISH AND AMERICAN MONEY, MEASURES

AND WEIGHTS

Brain storming activity:

What is the Romanian for currency?

What is the currency in use in your country?

What foreign currencies are you familiar with?

Are you familiar with the English way of giving a

person weight or height?

Do you know the principal English measurements for

length?

Money is an efficient mechanism for allowing exchange to

take place on large scale in a society where individuals are allowed

some discretion over what goods they consume.

English money can cause some difficulty to a foreign visitor in the

United Kingdom so let’s say just a few words about English

currency.

We’ll begin with the pound sterling (which in writing is

shortened to £ from the Latin libra and which is always written

before the number, e.g.: £ 5 ‘five pounds’). This is generally met in

the form of the pound-note, and one can change this in two ten-

shilling notes. So, a pound can be divided into twenty shillings or

into 100 new pennies (100 p). In writing a shilling is shortened s,

from the Latin solidus, or /-, e.g.: 5s. or 5/-. There are 12 pennies or

pence (in writing shortened d, from the Latin denarius) in a shilling.

Pennies and pence are the plural of penny.

There are the silver coins (not made of silver any more, but of

copper), the shilling, the two-shilling piece, the half-crown (worth

two shillings and sixpence), and the sixpence. There is also a ‘three

penny bit’. A penny is made up of four farthings or two halfpennies.

The singular form of halfpennies is halfpenny (pronounced

[`heipni]). The penny, the halfpenny and the farthing used to be

silver coins but now they are called copper coins. They all show the

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portrait of the Queen and Australia, Canada and New Zealand also

use this portrait.

Here is all this information again in a table:

4 farthings or two halfpennies = l penny (1 d.)

12 pence = l shilling (1 s, or 1/-)

2o shillings = l pound (£1)

a half-crown (half a crown) = two shillings and sixpence

The American Colonial period saw a wide variety of media of

exchange, with the British Pound serving as money of account. Metal

money also was in circulation. Among the variety of coins there were

the Spanish silver pieces, which came to be known as dollars. The

dollar sign, $, is connected with the peso, contrary to the popular

belief which considers it an abbreviation of ‘U.S.’ The two parallel

lines represented one of the many abbreviations of ’p’ and the ‘S’

indicated the plural. The act of 2 April l792 authorised the following

coins: gold-eagles (each of the value of ten dollars), half-eagles, and

quarter-eagles; silver - dollars, half - dollars, quarter - dollars,

dimes and half - dimes; copper cents and half cents. Many changes in

the laws governing coinage, and in the coins themselves, have been

made since the original act.

The weights in the English system are also different and a

little difficult for the foreigners. The most frequent one is the pound

(written lb.). A pound is as much as 453 grams, so two pounds is

almost a kilogram. A pound is divided into 16 ounces (short form

written oz.). One ounce is about 28 grams, so four ounces is a little

more than 100 grams. Fourteen pounds is one stone. The English

always give a person’s weight in stones and pounds, not in pounds

alone. We say about a person of about 70 kilograms that he weighs l2

stone 4 lbs. When a person gets fatter we say he put on weight and

when he gets thinner we say he lost weight. English buy sweets by

the ounce and groceries by the pound, half- pound and quarter-

pound.

The most important measures for liquids are the pint, the

quart and the gallon. One pint is about 570 millilitres; there are two

pints in a quart and four quarts in a gallon. Milk is sold in half- pint,

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pint or quart bottles, beer in half- pint or pint glasses and in pint and

quart bottles and petrol in gallons.

For length the principal measurements are inches, feet, yards

and miles. One foot is about 30 centimetres- about as long as a man’s

foot- and one inch is about 2.5 (two point five) centimetres. There

are 12 inches in a foot and three feet in a yard. A yard is a little

shorter than a meter. To be more exact, an inch is 2.54 cm, a foot is

30.48 cm, and a yard is 91.44 cm. One mile is about 1,609 m so a car

going at 70 miles an hour is a very fast car as it goes in fact at more

than 100 kilometres an hour. Remember that: 30 miles is almost 50 kilometres

50 miles is almost 80 kilometres 60 miles is almost 100 kilometres.

WORDS AND WORD COMBINATIONS

account – cont; socoteală, dare de seamă, raport; current account-

cont curent bill – factură, notă de plată, cambie; (am.) bancnotă; attendance bill - scrisoare de trăsură; foaie de încărcare coignage – sistem monetar; baterea monedei copper – cupru, aramă currency ['kΛr∂nsi] – valută; etalon monetar eagle ['i :gl] – vultur lb. – livră – forma prescurtată a substantivului libra (pound) lbs. – livre – forma prescurtată a substantivului librae (pounds) lose, lost, lost weight – a slăbi medium – ( pl.) media of exchange – mijloc de schimb money of account – unitate monetară de decontări on demand – la cerere ounce [auns] – uncie oz. – forma prescurtată a substantivului ounce(s) pint [ paint ] – pintă ( 0,57 l în Anglia şi 0,47l în SUA); halbă put on weight – a se îngrăşa

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quart [kwo:t] – măsură de capacitate de un sfert de galon (= 1,136 l, în SUA 0,946) reckon – a socoti, a număra, a evalua, a crede, a considera; reckon without one’s host – socoteala de acasă nu se potriveşte cu cea din târg save – a economisi (bani, timp); a salva scale – scale, scară; on a large-scale – pe scară largă stone – piatră weigh [ wei ] – a cântări weight [ weit ] – greutate

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G R A M M A R VIITORUL PERFECT. ASPECTUL COMUN

(THE FUTURE PERFECT. COMMON ASPECT) Viitorul perfect sau anterior se formează în limba engleză cu

verbele auxiliare shall (pentru persoanele I singular şi plural) şi will (pentru celelalte persoane) urmate de infinitivul perfect (have + verb la participiul trecut) al verbului de conjugat după următoarea schemă: Afirmativ: Subiect + shall/will + have + vb. de conjugat (la

participiul trecul) Interogativul se formează prin inversiunea verbului modal (shall,

will) cu subiectul, iar negativul prin adăugarea negaţiei not după verbul auxiliar conform schemelor:

Interogativ: Shall/will + subiect + have + vb. de conjugat (la

participiul trecut) Negativ: Subiect + shall/will + not + have + verb de cunjugat (la

participiul trecut)

Acest timp desemnează un eveniment anterior unui moment sau eveniment care este la rândul său posterior momentului vorbirii.

Viitorul perfect exprimă:

O acţiune viitoare care se va petrece înaintea unei alte acţiuni

viitoare sau a unui anumit moment din viitor determinat printr-un

complement circumstanţial de timp:

e.g. I shall have written the report by then/ in a few hours. Voi fi

scris raportul până atunci/în câteva ore.

I shall have written the report by the time the manager asks

it.Voi fi scris raportul până când directorul mi-l va cere .

O acţiune care va avea loc până la un anumit moment din viitor

ajungând până la acesta:

e.g. We shall have lived here for two years by the end of this

season. Vom fi locuit aici timp de doi ani până la sfârşitul acestui

anotimp.

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She will have worked in this office for forty years when she

retires. Va fi lucrat în acest birou timp de 40 de ani când se va

pensiona. Conjugarea verbului to write, wrote, written la Future Perfect.

Common Aspect este redată în tabelul următor după cum urmează:

NUMERALUL

(THE NUMERAL)

Gramaticile tradiţionale disting următoarele categorii de

numerale: numeralul cardinal, ordinal, fracţional, colectiv,

multiplicativ, distributiv şi adverbial.

Primele două categorii au fost deja studiate totuşi se impun

câteva specificări legate de numeralul cardinal.

Cifra 0 (zero) ocupă un loc special în cadrul numeralelor

cardinale, putând fi citită: zero [`zi∂r∂u], oh [∂u], nil, nothing, love.

Zero este folosit pentru 0 în matematică şi pentru indicarea

temperaturii:

e.g. It is two degrees below zero. Sunt 2 grade sub zero.

La numerele de telefon, 0 se pronunţă [∂u]:

e.g. Extension 107, please ['wΛn'∂u'sevn]. Interior 107, vă

rog.

Numerele de telefon se citesc cifră cu cifră:

e.g. 163607 one six three six oh seven.

Dacă primele sau ultimele două cifre sunt identice, se

foloseşte cuvântul double:

e.g. 4476 double four seven six.

1111 double one double one.

Nu se foloseşte cuvântul double dacă cifrele din mijloc sunt

similare:

e.g. 1008 one oh oh eight [wΛn ∂u ∂u eit]

Numere ca 1000, 2000, se citesc simplu one thousand, two

thousand.

Nil [nil] sau nothing sunt folosite în exprimarea scorului în

limbajul sportiv:

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e.g. Our team won 2.0 (two nil / two to nothing). Echipa

noastră a câştigat cu 2-0.

Love este folosit în tenis:

e.g. She leads by 30 - love. Conduce cu 30 la 0.

Numele zecilor la plural: twenties, thirties, forties, fifties

precedate de articolul hotărât the sau de un alt determinant sunt

folosite pentru a exprima o perioadă sau o vârstă.

e.g. I met her in her twenties. Am cunoscut-o când avea între

20 şi 30 de ani.

The period of the seventies was the most

prosperous. Perioada anilor ’70 a fost cea mai prosperă.

In limba engleză scrisă, se folosesc litere pentru redarea

numeralelor scurte, şi cifre pentru redarea celor lungi.

e.g. We used to pay only ten lei for two loaves of bread

several years ago. Plăteam doar zece lei pentru două pâini acum

câţiva ani.

There are 300 students in the auditorium. Sunt 300 de

studenţi în aulă.

Our country's capital has a population of two million inhabitants,

but the country’s population is about 22, 000 000. Capitala ţării noastre

are 2 milioane de locuitori dar populaţia ţării este de aproximativ 22 de

milioane.

In exprimarea curentă, miile se transformă în sute:

e.g. We had spent eighteen hundred lei on food. Cheltuisem

1800 de lei pe mâncare.

NUMERALUL COLECTIV

(THE COLLECTIVE NUMERAL)

Arată că obiectele sunt considerate în grup.

Numeralele colective sunt: couple, pair, team (pereche de

vite înjugate), dozen (doisprezece, duzină), score (douăzeci), yoke

(pereche de boi înjugaţi).

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Numeralele couple, pair, team, yoke denumesc grupe de doi:

a couple of minutes- două minute, a pair of gloves- o pereche de

mănuşi, three team of cattle- trei perechi de vite, two yoke of oxen-

două perechi de boi.

Numeralele dozen, score denumesc grupe mai mari de doi:

five dozen of bottles-cinci duzini de sticle, four score- optzeci, four

score and seven- optzeci şi şapte, half a score- zece, a score of

people- douăzeci de oameni.

Forma de plural a numeralului score are înţelesul de zeci:

scores of people- zeci de oameni; scores of students- zeci de

studenţi; scores of men and women- zeci de bărbaţi şi femei.

Numeralele colective se folosesc la singular când sunt

precedate de un numeral cardinal sau articolul nehotărât. Când nu

sunt precedate de un numeral, indiferent, dacă sunt folosite singure

sau urmate de prepoziţia of, ele primesc desinenţa de plural.

e.g. They entered in couples.

We talked about this, dozens of times.

EXERCISES:

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TALKING WITH A BANK MANAGER ABOUT

BANK SERVICES


As far as you know from every day life experience,

what services does the banking system provide for

people?

Considering the tasks banks perform can you

enumerate some types of banks?

Are you familiar with the term current account? Who

can open a current account? Why is such a type of

account very convenient for most people?

How many meanings of the word interest do you

know? What does it mean in economic language? Who

can get interest and in what conditions?

What term would you use to define the monthly

amounts of money people have to pay back to a bank

in case they previously took a loan?

What do you think electronic banking is?

Numerous banks and their branches, open all over the country

in the nineties of the last century, play a prominent part in the

national economic development and offer several services to their

customers who are either individuals or companies.

A reporter, who wants to keep her newspaper’s readers well

informed, is interviewing a bank manager:

Reporter: Sir, you are the manager of one of the largest and

best-known banks in the country. I consider it is important that

people should know more about the services a bank, particularly

yours, can offer.

Manager: First of all people should know that our bank is a

universal bank, that is, it carries out all types of banking operations

(commercial and investment banking) and that’s the reason why so

many people bank with us.

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R: - Would you please be more specific?

M: - For instance we can open current accounts or deposit

accounts for our customers. Most of them are already familiar with

the former one, which is that type of bank account that aims to serve

and satisfy people’s needs for their day-today expenses. It enables

one to use a check for payment instead of hard cash. People can ask

their bank to pay recurring expenses for them such as rent, phone,

gas, electricity bills or subscriptions. The latter type of account is a

savings one and it brings a certain amount of interest. We also have

overdraft facilities or, as the Americans say, credit lines.

R: Please explain for our reader what an overdraft means, as

I'm sure not everybody is familiar with it.

M: An overdraft is a bank account from which money has

been overdrawn, that is, an account, which owes money to the bank.

Most banks have overdraft facilities allowing a customer to spend

more money than is deposited in the account simply by writing a

check.

Not to say a word about the loans, people can get from us,

and pay in monthly instalments, or electronic banking that moves

money from one account to another by the touch of a computer key.

Anyone who pays a certain charge can have his or her valuables,

documents, stock certificates deposited in a safe in our bank.

R. We have recently found out about traveller’s checks.

Would you give us some more details?

M: Traveller’s checks are issued by banks, have different

values and they are meant to customers who travel abroad. They are

sold by the issuing bank to anyone, who is willing to use this means

of payment for accommodation and travelling expenses. They may

be used to pay hotel and restaurant bills, may also be exchanged for

the local currency and, as they replace cash, they are a wise choice.

The user is protected against contingencies.

As to the other services, we can operate transactions on the

stock exchange, or give you advice on investments, we can act as a

trustee and executor. Not to speak about the services we offer to

companies…

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R: Sir, I think it’s enough for the present and on behalf of our

readers I thank you for your kindness, and complete information.

M: You are welcome. Good-bye.

CHANGING MONEY IN A BANK

Customer: - Good afternoon. This is the currency exchange counter,

isn’t it? I have some money in foreign currency and I’d like to

change it please. Can you help me?

Clerk: - Certainly, sir. What currency do you want to change?

Customer: - I have one hundred pounds and one hundred dollars.

Here it is. Please count the money and tell me how many lei I can get

for all this foreign currency.

Clerk: - Just a moment, sir; I’ll reckon the equivalent value

considering the today’s rate of exchange but first I have to see what

is today’s exchange rate for pounds and U.S. dollars to lei. Let me

see - that’ll make 5.7 million lei. How would you like it?

Customer: - Could you let me have ten five hundred notes and the

rest in one hundred thousand lei notes?

Clerk: - Here you are sir. Will that do?

Customer: - Yes, you are very kind. By the way, could I open an

account here?

Clerk: You’ll have to see the Manager about that. If you kindly go

through that door marked “Manager“he’ll attend you.

Customer: - Thank you and good-bye.

OPENING A BANK ACCOUNT

Customer: -Good morning sir, would you be as kind as to tell me

where I can deposit some money, please?

Clerk: - Certainly. At the third window or counter on the right, sir.

Customer: - Good morning. Can I have a saving/ deposit account

opened at this bank? I’ve saved some money and, whenever I get a

larger sum of money, I place it in a sound savings bank. I feel more

comfortable about it. As I want to deposit my money at interest can

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you tell me on what terms can I become a depositor with your bank

and how much is the interest your bank pays?

Clerk: - It depends on the term of deposit, sir. We pay 38 per cent a

year for a longterm deposit. What sum do you want to deposit?

Customer: - I should like to deposit a sum of 10 million lei. I

suppose I can draw/ withdraw any sum of money on demand.

Clerk: - Of course. Our depositors can withdraw any sum of money

any time they want to do it.

Customer: - I see. And what if I want to pay for the things I buy or

for my rent, gas, electricity and telephone bills by cheque/ check?

Clerk: - In this case, sir, you must fill in a form and have a current

account opened with our bank. You may even have your salary paid

into your account and you won’t have to give notice before you

withdraw money for personal necessities. After you place a certain

amount to your credit, you’ll get a cheque book/ check book and

once a month you’ll get your statement of account or, if the client

wants so, we can send statements of account after each transaction.

When you send a cheque by post you’ll have to take care to cross it,

otherwise, you have to let it open if you wish to cash the cheque

yourself. And now, if everything is all right, and you have decided

for a deposit account, can I have your identity card, if you please,

sir?

Customer: Yes, here you are.

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WORDS AND WORD COMBINATION attend – a avea grijă, a servi; a participa la bank – a depune bani la bancă bill – notă de plată, factură charge [t ∫a:dЗ ] – taxă, preţ, plată; a cere un preţ ;

what is the charge for… care este preţul pentru… ; there is no charge – nu costă nimic ; it is free of charge – este gratuit ; how much do you charge for this ? cât ceri pentru asta ?

charge account – (ec.am.) cont curent contingency [k∂ n'tindЗ∂ nsi] – situaţie neprevăzută counter – ghişeu do, did, done – a se descurca, a ajunge, a fi destul expense – cheltuială; preţ, cost, socoteală; recurring expenses [ri'k∂:riη iks'pensiz] – cheltuieli repetate, periodice, recurente; free of expense – fără cheltuieli; (ec.) franco hard cash – bani gheaţă instalment [ins'to:lm∂nt] (am.) installment – rată, tranşă, vărsământ parţial interest ['intrist] – dobândă issue – a emite (bancnote, un cec, un act, etc.) loan [loun] – împrumut; to take a loan – a lua un împrumut on behalf of – în numele open an account with a bank – a deschide un cont la o bancă overdraft – cont descoperit; overdraft facilities – facilităţi de cont

descoperit reckon – a socoti, a evalua, a calcula; a considera rent – chirie statement of account – extras de cont subscription – abonament trustee – curator; tutore; mandatar, administrator withdraw, withdrew, withdrawn – a retrage

Atenţie la cele două feluri de a scrie cuvântul cec: pronunţia celor două cuvinte este identică dar ortografia este - cheque în engleza britanică şi - check în engleza americană

De asemenea: traveller’s cheque (engl. britanică) traveller’s check (engl. am.)

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G R A M M A R VIITOR PERFECT. ASPECTUL CONTINUU

(THE FUTURE PERFECT. CONTINUOUS ASPECT)

Viitorul perfect/anterior aspectul continuu se formează cu

ajutorul verbelor shall şi will urmate de have been şi particpiul

nedefinit (forma în ing) al verbului de conjugat conform schemei:

Afirmativ: Subiect+ shall/will + have been+ verb de conjugat (la

participiul nedefinit)

Negativ: Subiect + shall/will + not + have been + verb de conjugat

(la participiul nedefinit

Interogativ: Shall/will + subiect + have been + verb de conjugat

(la part. nedefinit)

AFFIRMATIVE NEGATIVE INTERROGATIVE

I shall have been

writing

I shall not have been

writing

Shall I have been

writing ?

You will have been

writing

You will not have

been writing

Will you have been

writing?

He/she/it will have

been writing

He/she/it will not

have been writing

Will he/she/it have

been writing?

We shall have been

writing

We shall not have

been writing

Shall we have been

writing?

You will have been

writing

You will not have

been writing

Will you have been

witting ?

They will have

been writing

They will not have

been writing

Will they have been

writing ?

Viitorul perfect/anterior aspectul continuu exprimă o acţiune

care va fi în curs de desfăşurare pentru o anumită perioadă de timp

înaintea unui moment viitor şi care va continua şi în momentul

vorbirii.

e.g. By the end of this year I shall have been teaching for 22

years. Până la sfârşitul acestui an voi fi predat timp de 22 de ani.

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When the lesson is over, the teacher will have been

teaching for fifty minutes. Când lecţia se va termina, profesorul va fi

predat timp de 50 de minute.

Notă: Acţiunea săvârşită în această perioadă de timp viitoare,

anterioară unui moment sau unei acţiuni de asemenea viitoare, se

traduce cu viitorul perfect continuu dacă se specifică durata perioadei

de timp sau începutul ei:

e.g. By five o’clock p.m. she will have been interviewing job

applicants for eight hours. Până la ora 17 ea va fi intervievat pe cei

care au depus cerere pentru a obţine postul timp de opt ore.

Vom folosi timpul viitor perfect simplu dacă este prezentă

o precizare numerică în legătură cu acţiunea:

e.g. By five o’clock p.m. she will have interviewed 20 job

applicants. Până la ora 17 ea va fi intervievat 20 de persoane care

au făcut cerere pentru ocuparea slujbei.

NUMERALUL FRACŢIONAL

(THE FRACTIONAL NUMERAL)

Acest numeral arată una sau mai multe părţi ale întregului. Este

redat sub forma unei fracţii.

Numărătorul fracţiei este exprimat printr-un numeral

cardinal iar numitorul printr-un numeral ordinal:

1/2 a/ one half; 1/3 a / one third, 1/10 a/ one tenth; 1/100 a/

one hundredth.

Dacă numărătorul exprimă o unitate mai mare decât 1 atunci

numitorul se citeşte la plural:

4/3 four thirds, 2/40 two fortieths, 5/10 five/ tenths.

Substantivul determinat de o fracţie ordinară este la numărul

singular:

1/2 kilo – half a kilo, 2/4 ton - two quarters ton.

Substantivul determinat de numeralul 1 (one) împreună cu o

fracţie ordinară, de ex. 1 2/3 miles, este folosit la plural în scris,

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dar se citeşte la singular dacă este citit imediat după întreg: one

mile and two thirds, şi la plural dacă este citit după fracţie: one

and two thirds miles.

Substantivul determinat de un numeral mai mare de 1, împreună

cu o fracţie ordinară, se află întotdeauna la plural:

2 1/3 tons two and one third tons sau two and a third tons.

In cazul fracţiilor zecimale, întregul se desparte de zecimale

prin punct urmând ca numeralele care se află înaintea

punctului să fie citite ca un întreg iar cele de după punct cifră

cu cifră:

4. 25 four point two five; 6. 15 six point one five; 19. 35

nineteen point three five; 13.75 thirteen point seven five.

In cazul fracţiilor zecimale, zero se citeşte nought [no: t] în

engleza britanică şi zero în cea americană.

Astfel 2.07 va fi citit:

two point naught seven ( pronunţie britanică) şi

two point zero seven ( pronunţie americană).

NUMERALUL MULTIPLICATIV

(THE MULTIPLICATIVE NUMERAL)

Numeralul multiplicativ arată măsura în care creşte o cantitate.

Formele numeralului multiplicativ diferă în funcţie de stilul

adoptat în exprimare.

In vorbirea curentă, numeralele multiplicative de la 1 la 3 au

formele once [wΛns]- o dată, twice [twais]- de două ori, thrice

[θrais]- de trei ori.

De la numărul 4 în continuare numeralele multiplicative se

formează cu numeralul cardinal urmat de substantivul times (ori,

dăţi): four times, five times, six times etc. Deoarece forma thrice

este învechită, se foloseşte în locul său forma three times.

Stilul literar, tehnic sau oficial impun folosirea numeralului

multiplicativ format din numeralul cardinal şi sufixul – fold:

twofold (dublu, îndoit, de două ori pe atât), threefold (triplu,

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întreit), a hundredfold (însutit), a threefold amount (o sumă

întreită), a tenfold quantity (o cantitate înzecită).

Pentru unitatea 1 numeralul multiplicativ are forma single, iar

pentru 2 se foloseşte şi double.

NUMERALUL DISTRIBUTIV

( THE DISTRIBUTIVE NUMERAL)

Exprimă gruparea numerică a obiectelor, iar modalităţile de

exprimare a acestuia sunt: three by three, three and three, three

at a time, by threes, in threes.

e.g. They worked three by three / in threes. Lucrau trei câte

trei.

He used to borrow from the library three books at a time.

Împrumuta de la bibliotecă câte trei cărţi o dată

Schoolboys and schoolgirls enter the classrooms two by

two/ in twos. Şcolari şi şcolăriţe intre în clasă doi câte doi.

EXERCISES:

21

MONEY AND BANKING (I)


How would you define money? What is it good for?

What do you think it would happen if money didn't

exist? Think how people used to make commerce in

former times.

Describe a situation when you were out of cash and

realised the importance of every coin.

Do you think money is the most important wealth man

possesses?

Money in itself is a rather mysterious affair- we are daily

concerned with it, and it plays an important part in our lives, but

most of us have only a faint notion of where it comes from, how the

monetary system is regulated, what forces act on it.

Money is above all a medium of exchange, i.e. it has the

function of facilitating the exchange of goods. If there were no

money, the producers of goods would have to search for a partner

who needed their product at that very moment. Money is also a

measure of value. Money is not only a unit of account and a medium

of exchange; it also represents one of the many forms in which a rich

man can keep his wealth. It is a ‘store of value’.

The value of money can best be understood by remembering

that it is measured by what one can buy for a given quantity of

money. If the collection of goods that you can buy for one hundred

dollars is a large one, money has a large value, and vice versa.

Consequently, the purchasing power of money is determined by

prices, and we must find out what factors govern the average price

level.

So, although the crucial feature of money is its acceptance as

the means of payment or medium of exchange, money has three

other functions. It serves as a unit of account, as a store of value, and

as a standard of deferred payment. Let’s discuss each of the four

functions of money in turn.

22

The Medium of Exchange

Money, the medium of exchange, is used in one-half of almost all

exchanges. Workers exchange labour services for money. People buy

or sell goods in exchange for money. We accept money not to

consume it directly but because it can subsequently be used to buy

things we do wish to consume.

Money is the medium through which people exchange

goods and services.

In order to better understand the way that society benefits

from a medium of exchange, imagine a barter economy. A barter

economy has no medium of exchange. Goods are traded directly or

swapped for other goods. In a barter economy, the seller and the

buyer each must want something the other has to offer. Each person

is simultaneously a seller and a buyer. In order to see a film, you

must hand over in exchange a good or service that the cinema

manager wants. There has to be a double coincidence of wants. You

have to find a cinema where the manager wants what you have to

offer in exchange.

Trading is very expensive in a barter economy. People must spend a

lot of time and effort finding others with whom they can make

mutually satisfactory swaps. Since time and effort are scarce

resources, a barter economy is wasteful.

The use of money makes the trading process simpler and more

efficient.

Other Functions of money

Money performs four important functions in an economy. It

acts as a unit of account, a medium of exchange, and a store of value

and as a standard for deferred payments.

The unit of account is the unit in which prices are quoted and

accounts are kept.

In Britain prices are quoted in pounds sterling, in France in

French francs. It’s usually convenient to use the units in which the

medium of exchange is measured as the unit of account as well.

During the rapid German inflation of 1922-1923 when prices

in marks were changing very quickly, German shopkeepers found it

more convenient to use dollars as the unit of account. Prices were

23

quoted in dollars even though payment was made in marks, the

German medium of exchange.

When an intermediate good acts as a medium of exchange it also

acts as a store of value. An intermediate good is held for the period

of time between the sale of one good and the purchase of another.

People are willing to hold the good because it has value in exchange,

or because it keeps its value over time. Money is a store of value

because it can be used to make purchases in the future.

To be accepted in exchange, money has to be a store of value.

Nobody would accept money as payment for goods supplied today if

the money was going to be worthless when they tried to buy goods

with it tomorrow. But money is neither the only not necessarily the

best store of value. Houses, stamp collections, and interest-bearing

bank accounts all serve as stores of value. Since money pays no

interest and its real purchasing power is eroded by inflation, there are

almost certainly better ways to store value.

Finally, money serves as a standard of deferred payment or a

unit of account over time. Money acts as a unit of account, meaning

that all prices are expressed in terms of money. This role is extended

to include future prices. When a debtor borrows £ l for a year at a

rate of interest r he agrees to pay £ 1 (1+ r) at the end of the year.

When the future payment of £ 1 (1+r) is recorded by the creditor

money is said to act as a standard of deferred payments.

Thus the key function of money is its use as a medium of

exchange. For this, it must act as a store of value as well. And it is

usually, though not invariably, convenient to make money the unit of

account and standard of deferred payment as well.

Check your comprehension:

What are the functions of money? Explain each of them.

How are goods exchanged in a barter economy?

What is the unit of account in your country?

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24

WORDS AND WORD COMBINATION

above all – mai presus de toate, în primul rând

be concerned with – a fi preocupat de

defer, ed, ed [dif∂r] – a amâna, a întârzia să, a suspenda până la

facilitate – a uşura, a facilita, a înlesni

faint [ feint] – (adj.) vag, estompat; fricos; slab, neputincios

find out – a afla, a descoperi

loan – împrumut

play an important part – a juca un rol important

purchase [p∂:t∫∂s] – (s.) cumpărătură, cumpărare, achiziţionare, (vb.)

a cumpăra, a achiziţiona

purchaser [p∂ : t∫∂s∂r] – cumpărător, achizitor, client

purchasing power – putere de cumpărare

quotation [ kwou’tei∫∂n] – (subst.) citat, moto, citare, (ec.) cotă, curs

( la bursă) ; quotation marks – ghilimele, semnele citării

quote [ kwout] – a fixa, a stabili (un preţ), a cita/ pune între

ghilimele, a cita

quote sheet – (ec.) cota bursei, lista cursurilor

scarce – [skε∂s] (care se găseşte) rar, puţin

e.g. a scarce book – o carte rară

water is scarce in some regions – apa este rară în unele regiuni

store – (s.) stoc, rezerve, rezerve, provizie, provizii; depozit;

merinde, alimente; magazin; (vb.) a aduna, a strânge, a păstra în

depozit, a aprovoziona

in store – în rezervă, pus de o parte

e.g. Come to my place tonight, I have something in store for you =

Vino pe la mine astă seară, am o surpriză pentru tine.

subsequently [sΛbsikw∂ntli] – ulterior, după aceea, mai târziu

swap [ swop ] – schimb, troc, schimb în natură; a face schimb / troc

waste [weist] – irosire, pierdere; deşeuri, rebuturi, maculatură;

moloz, dărâmături; it’s a waste of time – este o pierdere de

timp; a pierde, a irosi ( timp, bani, hârtie)

wasteful – (adj.) risipitor, cheltuitor

waster – ( subst.) risipitor

wealth – bogăţie, avere, belşug, îndestulare

25

wealthy – (adj.) bogat; the wealthy – cei bogaţi, bogătaşii

worth [ w∂:θ] – valoare, preţ, cantitate care costă un anumit preţ,

care merită, vrednic de ( amintit, cumpărat etc.)

e.g. a book of little worth – o carte de valoare mică

of no worth – fară nici o valoare

give me 30 thousand’s lei worth of apples – daţi-mi mere de

30de mii de lei

this book is worth reading – cartea asta merită să fie citită

it is worth the money – îşi merită banii

it isn’t worth the trouble – nu merită osteneala

worthless [ w∂:θlis] – fără valoare/ preţ, de nimic, nefolositor

26

G R A M M A R VIITORUL IN TRECUT. ASPECUL COMUN

(THE FUTURE IN THE PAST. THE COMMON /

SIMPLE ASPECT )

Viitorul în trecut este un timp inexistent în limba română. În

limba engleză acest timp este folosit în concordanţa timpurilor pentru

redarea noţiunii de viitor atunci când în propoziţia principală verbul

este la un timp trecut.

Regula concordanţei timpurilor impune ca un timp trecut din

regentă să fie urmat în secundată tot de un timp trecut şi din acest

considerent într-o propoziţie secundară care exprimă o noţiune de

viitor, dar care nu permite folosirea timpului viitor în interiorul ei,

trebuie folosit viitorul în trecut.

Acest timp se traduce în limba română cu viitorul şi se

formează cu verbele auxiliarele should (pentru persoanele I singular

şi plural) şi would (pentru celelalte persoane) urmate de infinitivul

scurt al verbului de conjugat.

Afirmativ: Subiect + should/would + verb de conjugat (la inf.

scurt)

Negativ: Subiect + should/would + not + verb de conjugat (la inf.

scurt)

Interogativ: Should/would + subiect + verb de conjugat (la inf.

scurt)

În vorbirea curentă auxiliarul ’would’ se foloseşte pentru toate

persoanele.

27


I should write I should not/shouldn’t

write

Should I write?

You would write You would not/

wouldn’t write

Would you write?

He/She/it would

write

He/she/it would not/

wouldn’t write

Would he/she/it

write?

We should write We should not/

shouldn’t write

Should we write?

You would write You would not/

wouldn’t write

Would you write?

They would write They would not/

wouldn’t write

Would they write?

e.g. He promised he would do his best. El a promis că va face

tot ce-i stă în putinţă.

I said I should write him soon. Am spus că îi voi scrie

curând.

Folosim timpul viitor în trecut - aspectul comun sau simplu în

următoarele situaţii:

Când facem transformarea din vorbirea directă în vorbirea

indirectă şi în concordanţa timpurilor, în locul timpului viitor

simplu :

e.g. ‘ I shall be busy ‘ father said.

Father said he would be busy.

The operator said she would put me through on the spot.

Centralista a spus că-mi va face legătura imediat.

După verbul wish pentru a reda o acţiune viitoare cu puţine şanse

de realizare:

e. g. I wish he would come in time. – Aş vrea să vină la timp.

28

In cerinţe politicoase, ca formă politicoasă a verbului want şi pentru a denumi acţiuni ce se desfăşurau în mod repetat în trecut :

e. g. Would you give me further details? Vreţi să-mi daţi detalii suplimentare?

I would like to invite you to my place. Aş vrea să te invit pe la mine.

He would come with his pockets full with sweets. Obişnuia să vină cu buzunarele pline de dulciuri.

Acest timp are formă identică cu modul condiţional prezent,

aspectul comun (Present Conditional. Common Aspect) în limba engleză.

Ca şi în cazul celorlalte timpuri formate cu auxiliare, în vorbirea obişnuită auxiliarele should şi would se folosersc ca forme contrase, ambele reducându-se la ’d.

Astfel I should, we should devin I’d, We’d, you/he/she/it/ they/would devin you’d, he’d, she’d, it’d, they’d.

VIITOR IN TRECUL. ASPECTUL CONTINUU (THE FUTURE IN THE PAST. CONTINUOUS ASPECT)

Acest timp serveşte pentru redarea timpului viitor aspectul

continuu, in concordanţa timpurilor şi în vorbirea directă şi indirectă ca echivalent al timpului Future Continuous, atunci când în propoziţia regentă este un timp trecut.

Se formează după următoarea schemă cu should/would urmat de infinitivul scurt al verbului to be şi participiul nedefinit sau prezent al verbului de conjugat:

Afirmativ: subiect + should/would + be + verbul de bază la

participiul nedefinit (forma ing).

Negativ: subiect + should/would + not + be + verbul de bază la

participiul nedefinit Interogativ: should/would + subiect + be + verb de bază la

participiul nedefinit

29


I should be

writing

I should not/

shouldn’t be writing

Should I be writing ?

You would be

writing

You would not/

wouldn’t be writing

Would you be

writing?

He/she/it would

be writing

He/she/it would not/


Would he/she/it be

writing?

We should be

writing

We should not/

shouldn’t be writing

Should we be writing?

You would be

writing

You would not/


Would you be

writing?

They would be

writing

They would not/


Would they be

writing?

e. g. ‘You’ll be hearing from me soon ‘he said and left.

‘O să aveţi veşti de la mine curând’ a zis el şi a plecat.

He said we would/we’d be hearing from him soon. El a zis că

o să avem veşti de la el curând şi a plecat.

Acest timp are forma identică cu timpul condiţional prezent

aspectul continuu (Present Conditional, Continuous Aspect) în

limba engleză.

30

CONDIŢIONAL TRECUT. ASPECTUL COMUN

(PAST CONDITIONAL.COMMON ASPECT)

Se formează cu auxiliarele should şi would urmate de have şi

participiul trecut al verbului de conjugat, conform schemei:

Afirmativ: subiect + should/would + have + verb de bază la

participiul trecut

Interogativ: should/would + subiect + have+ verb

de bază la particiul trecut

Negativ: subiect + should/would + not+ have + verb de bază la

participiul trecut


I I should have

written

I I should not have

written

S Should I have

written?

You would have

written

You woud not have

written

Would you have

written?

He/she/it would

have written

He/she/it would not

have written

Would he/she/it have

written?

We should have

written

We should not have

written

SShould we have

written?

You would have

written

You wouldn’t have

written

Would you have

written?

They would have

written

They would not have

written

Would they have

written?

Timpul condiţional trecut se foloseşte:

în propoziţii condiţionale ( de tip III ).

e.g. I wouldn’t have done this if I had been you. N-aş fi făcut asta

dacă aş fi fost în locul tău.

31

ca echivalent trecut al timpului Future Perfect în concordanţa

timpurilor :

e.g. I hope you will have finished by noon. Sper că vei fi terminat

până la prânz.

I hoped you would have finished by noon. Am sperat că vei

fi terminat până la prânz.

CONDIŢIONAL TRECUT. ASPECUL CONTINUU

(PAST CONDITIONAL. CONTINUOUS APPECT)

Arată acţiunea în desfăşurare.

Se formează cu ajutorul auxiliarelor shoul / would urmate de

have been şi verbul de conjugat la participiul prezent:

Afirmativ: subiect + should/would + have been+ verb de

conjugat la participiul prezent

Negativ: subiect + should/would + not + have been+ verb de


Interogativ: should/would + subiect + have been + verb de


Acest timp se foloseşte:

în propoziţii condiţionale:

e. g. If you had told me you needed the report so soon I should have

been writing all night. Dacă mi-ai fi spus că aveai nevoie de raport

aşa de curând aş fi scris toată noaptea.

EXERCISES:

43

32

HOW I HONESTLY EARNED THREE DOLLARS

(by Mark Twain) ‘Never ask for money which you did not earn, “I always said“. Now I shall tell you a story, which will show you how honest I was all my life. A few days ago I met General Miles at my friend’s house. General Miles was a nice man and we became great friends very quickly.

‘Did you live in Washington in 1887?’ asked me the general? ‘Yes, I did’ I answered. ‘Why didn’t we meet then?’ said General Miles.

‘General,’ I said, ‘you forget that you were already a great general then, and I was a poor young writer nobody knew and whose books nobody read’.

‘You do not remember me,’ I thought, ‘but we met once in Washington at that time’.

I remember it very well. I was poor at that time and very often I did not have money even for my bread. I had a friend, who was a poor writer too. We lived together. We did everything together: worked, read books went for our walks. And when we were hungry, we were both hungry.

Once we needed three dollars. I don’t remember why we needed these dollars, but I remember well that we needed the money by the evening.

‘We must get these three dollars‘said my friend. ‘I shall try to get the money but you must also try to do it’.

I went out of our house, but I didn’t know where to go and how to get these three dollars. For an hour I was walking along the streets of Washington and was very tired. At last I came to a big hotel. ‘I shall go in and have a rest, ‘I thought.

I went into the hall of the hotel and sat down on a sofa. I was sitting there when a beautiful small dog ran into the hall. It was looking for somebody. The dog was very nice and I began to play with it.

I was playing with the dog when a man came into the hall. He wore a beautiful uniform and I thought: ’That is General Miles’. I knew him by his pictures in the newspapers.

52

33

‘What a beautiful dog!’ he said. ‘Is it your dog?’ I did not have time to answer him when he said: ‘Do you want

to sell it?’ When I heard these words I thought about my friend and the

three dollars, which I wanted to get. ‘Well, I…I think…’ ‘That is good,’ said the general, ‘how much do you want for it ?’ ‘Three dollars’ I answered at once. ‘Three dollars?’ he asked, ‘but this is very little. I can give you

fifty dollars for it.’ ‘No, no, I want only three dollars.’ ‘Well, it is your dog. If you want three dollars for it, I shall be

glad to buy your dog.’ General Miles paid me three dollars, took the dog and went to his room. Ten minutes later an old man came into the hall. He looked round the hall. I saw he was looking for something.

‘Are you looking for a dog, sir?’ I asked. ‘Oh, yes! Did you see it?’ said the man. ‘Your dog was here a few minutes ago and I saw how he went

away with a man, ’ I said. ‘If you want, I shall find it for you.’ The man was very happy and asked me to help him. ‘I shall be very glad to help you, but that will take some of my

time and ’… ‘I am ready to pay you for your time,’ cried the man ‘How

much do you want for it? ’ ‘Three dollars,’ I answered.

‘Three dollars?’ said the man. ‘But it is a very good dog. I shall pay you ten dollars if you find it for me.’

‘Three dollars,’ said I. Then I went up to General Miles’s room. The general was

playing with his new dog. ‘I came here to take the dog back,’ I said. ‘But it is not your dog now, I bought it. I paid you three dollars

for it,’ said the general. ‘I shall give you back your three dollars, but I must take the

dog back,’ I answered. ‘But you sold it to me, it is my dog now’. ‘I could not sell it to you, sir, because it was not my dog.’

34

‘Do you want to tell me that you took three dollars for a dog that was not yours?’ cried the general.

‘I took the money, but I never said: ‘It is my dog.’ ‘But you sold it to me for three dollars.’ ‘How could I sell it to you when it was not my dog? You asked

me: ‘How much do you want for the dog? ‘and I said ‘I want three dollars.’ But I never told you that it was my dog.’

General Miles was very angry. ‘Give me back my three dollars and take the dog away, ’ he

shouted. When I brought the dog back to its master, he was very happy

and paid me three dollars with joy. I was happy too because I had the money and I felt I had earned it.

Now you can see why I say that honesty is the best policy and that a man must never take anything that he did not earn.

WORDS AND WORD COMBINATION bring – a aduce cry = shou – a ţipa earn – a câştiga (bani, existenţa) forget, forgot, forgotten – a uita honest ['onist] – cinstit, onest honestly – în mod cinstit, în mod onest honesty – cinste, onestitate honesty is the best policy – cinstea este cea mai bună politică look for – a căuta policy – politică, tactică, diplomaţie, înţelepciune; poliţă de asigurare

35

G R A M M A R INTREBUINŢAREA VERBELOR SHALL ŞI WILL CU

VALOARE MODALĂ

Verbele auxiliare shall şi will, pe lângă idea de viitor au şi o valoare

modală, exprimând dependenţa aciunii verbului de voinţa

vorbitorului sau a interlocutorului său.

Verbul shall are 2 timpuri: present: shall

past: should

Shall (should) cu valoare modală exprimă:

o necesitate, constrângere sau obligativitate (născute din voinţa

vorbitorului). Se foloseşte la persoana a II-a şi a III-a :

e.g. We have decided that he shall not do that. Am hotărât ca el să nu

facă asta.

He shall return the book. Va înapoia cartea

cererea unui sfat sau a unei sugestii (în propoziţii interogative, la

toate persoanele):

e.g. Shall we help you? Să vă ajutăm?

What shall I do now? Ce să fac acum?

When shall he call? Când să sune?

o promisiune:

e.g. The headmaster shall settle the complaint. Directorul va rezolva

plângerea.

o recomandare, o admonestare, o formă politicoasă de

constrângere:

e.g. You should do more exercises. Ar trebui să faci mai multe

exerciţii.

They should pay out the bill. Ar trebui să achite nota.

o datorie, o obligaţie morală:

e.g. She should take care of the child. Ar trebui să aibă grijă de

copil.

o posibilitate, probabilitate:

e.g. They should be here. Ar trebui să fie aici.

It should be about five now. Trebuie să fie ora trei acum.

ceva posibil dar nesigur (în astfel de cazuri should este precedat

de if):

55

36

e.g. If he should call I’ll let you know. Dacă se întâmplă să vină o

să te anunţ.

mirare:

e.g. How should I know? De unde să stiu?

Should urmat de infinitivul perfect se referă la un moment trecut şi

arată că:

acţiunea considerată ca dorită n-a fost îndeplinită (în propoziţii

afirmative):

e.g. You should have done this at once. Ar fi trebuit să faci asta

imediat.

acţiunea săvârşită este considerată ca nedorită (în propoziţii

negative):

e.g. He shouldn’t have said that. N-ar fi trebuit să spună asta.

o supoziţie, o probabilitate:

e.g. It should be about five now. Trebuie să fie ora cinci acum.

Verbul will are două timpuri: present: will

past : would

Will (would) ca verb modal exprimă:

o dorinţă, o intenţie, o promisiune sau o hotărâre (folosit la toate

persoanele singular şi plural):

e.g. I will do it for his sake. Am să fac asta de dragul lui.

He won’t make this mistake again. Nu va mai face greşala asta

din nou.

o rugăminte, o invitaţie (în propoziţii interogative la persoana a

II-a):

e.g. Will you repeat, please? Vreţi să repetaţi?

Would you repeat, please? Vreţi să repetaţi? (mai politicos).

Won’t you come again? N-aţi vrea să reveniţi?

Won’t you draw nearer? N-aţi vrea să veniţi mai aproape?

o acţiune obişnuită, repetată:

e.g. They will watch television for fours. Obişnuiesc să privească

la televizor ore în şir.

37

The children would shout with joy when it snowed for the

first time. Copiii obişnuiau să strige de bucurie când ningea

prima dată.

o supoziţie:

e.g. That will be the accountant. Acela trebuie să fie contabilul.

That will be the building we are looking for. Asta trebuie să

fie clădirea pe care o căutăm.

He would not be very old. Perhaps fifty. Nu poate fi foarte

bătrân. Poate are 50 de ani.

It would not be very far. Nu poate fi departe.

ceva inevitabil:

e.g. Children will be children. Copii sunt tot copii.

It will be a bad year for crops. Va fi un an prost pentru

recolte.

It would happen. Trebuia să se întâmple.

EXERCISES:

38

MONEY AND BANKING (II)


Besides other banks, of different types, every country

has a central bank whose main functions cannot be

achieved by any other bank. What is Romania’s

central bank?

What are, in your opinion, the functions Romania’s

National Bank perform?

Where can people who start a business take a loan

from?

With what purpose in view do building societies lend

money?

Ever since ancient times people used to lend their assets to those

who needed them, in exchange for the promise that the respective

assets- especially perishable goods- will be returned along with a

surplus for the loan. Those days can be considered the early days of

banks’ emergence/ coming into being. Later on, the goldsmiths acted

as financial intermediaries. A financial intermediary is an institution

that specialises in bringing lenders and borrowers together.

Banks are not only financial intermediaries but they also

play an important role in economic activity.

Banks perform two major functions:

they are the safe place where depositors can keep their assets

either in a saving account, which pays interest, or in a checking

account which provides convenience;

they accumulate money, which can subsequently be loaned to

individuals or companies; the loans can be of short-term duration

for family and business use, and of long-term duration as

mortgage loans.

There are several types of banks according to the services

they offer and the customers they cater for:

39

Central banks

Their main function is to implement the country’s monetary

policy; they are the only ones allowed to issue banknote. A central

bank is the Government’s banker: when short of money, the

government may borrow from the Bank. It is in a Central Bank that

the country’s gold reserves are kept and it is also here that all the

other banks have large sums deposited. A Central Bank regulates the

flow of capital into and out of the country and it also regulates the

amount of credit available in the country.

One of the instruments used is the bank rate, which is the rate

of interest the Central Bank will apply to depositors and borrowers.

This will obviously influence the lending rate used by all the other

financial and commercial institutions and organisations.

Commercial banks or retail banks

A commercial bank borrows money from the public, crediting

them with a deposit. The deposit is a liability of the bank. It is money

owed to depositors. In turn the bank lands money at interest to firms,

households, or governments wishing to borrow. Banks are not the

only financial intermediaries. Insurance companies, pension funds,

and building societies also take in money in order to re-lend it. The

crucial feature of banks is that some of their liabilities are used as a

means of payment, and are therefore part of the money stock.

Commercial banks are financial intermediaries with a

government license to make loans and issue deposits, including

deposits against which cheques can be written. They provide small

business with loans, instalment credit, and mortgage loans.

Commercial banks are meant to make profit for their

shareholders. Profit is primarily made from interest but also from

other investments as banks don’t keep all the cash they accumulate.

Modern banks keep a percentage of their money in cash so as to be

able to pay on the spot those customers who withdraw their money.

In accordance to the law, banks must deposit their resources in no

earning funds with the National Reserve Bank.

40

Investment banks

As their name shows, these banks’ concerns are complicated

investment transactions, which sometimes amount to hundreds of

millions of dollars, and their customers are mainly large corporations

for whom they provide services like: mergers and acquisitions, take

over bids, floatation’s on the Stock Exchange, medium-term loans,

export finance, leasing.

Savings banks

They receive saving accounts and pay interest to the

depositors. The rate of interest is in relation to the length of

depositing period. The longer the notice of withdrawal, the higher the

rates of interest.

Building Societies

Building societies lend money for house purchase or the

purchase of commercial premises. Their funds are obtained from

private investors and deposits. The loan is secured by mortgage.

Savings and Loan Associations

Saving and loan associations are co-operative associations

formed or founded under state law that solicit savings in the form of

shares, invest there funds in mortgages, and allow deposits in and

withdrawals from shareholders’ accounts similar to those allowed for

saving accounts in banks.

41


What are the functions a bank performs?

What is it meant by a financial intermediary?

Who are banknotes issued by?

What does a central bank regulate?

What is a deposit?

What is a commercial bank’s profit primarily made from?

Name some services that investment banks provide.


amount – cantitate, sumă, volum; a se ridica la (valoarea de)

asset – (ec.) bunuri, avere, (jur.) moştenire, succesiune, valoarea

bunurilor ce se împart la moştenitori

building society – societate de credit imobiliar

cater for – a satisface, a mulţumi gustul publicului, a căuta să placă,

a se îngriji de aprovizionare

cater [ keit∂] – a furniza provizii

caterer [ keit∂r∂ ] – furnizor

convenience – (pl.) înlesniri; oportunitate, avantaj, profit

e.g. at your convenience – când vă convine / aranjează;

at your earliest convenience – când vă convine cel mai

devreme, la prima ocazie;

it is a great convenience – este foarte avantajos

emerge – a se ivi, a apărea, a ieşi la iveală

emergence – ivire, apariţie,

floatation [flou’tei∫∂n] – lansare, emisiune de titluri, fondarea unei

întreprinderi

implement – a introduce, a aplica, a pune în funcţiune

lease – chirie, închiriere, arendă; a concesiona, a închiria; a da sau a

lua cu împrumut

leasable – care poate fi închiriat sau arendat

leasing – leasing

42

liability [lai∂‘biliti] – obligaţie, îndatorire, răspundere,

responsabilitate, (ec.) pasiv, datorii, garanţie

liable for – răspunzător pentru/de; to be liable for one’s facts – a fi

răspunzător pentru faptele proprii

liable to [‘lai∂bl t∂] – obligat să, care poate să; pasibil de, predispus

la, expus la; to be liable to be fined – a fi pasibil de amendă / de

a fi amendat

merge – a fuziona, a se uni, a contopi

merger – fuziune ; mergers and acquisitions – fuziuni şi achiziţii

mortgage [' mo:gidз] – ipotecă; a ipoteca

on the spot = immediately – imediat, pe loc

percentage [p∂ 'sentidз] – procentaj, procente

perishable – perisabil, alterabil, (pl.) mărfuri care se strică

premise – premisă, punct de plecare

premises – clădire cu acareturi, local, (jur.) puncte susmenţionate;

parte introductivă a unui document

savings and loans association – cooperativă de credit

43

G R A M M A R D I A T E Z A P A S I V Ă

(THE PASSIVE VOICE)

Diateza pasivă arată că acţiunea exprimată de verb este săvârşită

de complement, dar se răsfrânge asupra subiectului.

Diateza pasivă se construieşte cu timpul corespunzător al

verbului to be + participiul trecut al verbului de conjugat.

e.g. I am interviewed. Sunt intervievat.

I was interviewed. Am fost intervievat.

I had been interviewed. Fusesem intervievat.

I shall be interviewed. Voi fi intervievat.

Aspectul continuu se construieşte cu timpul corespunzător al

verbului to be la aspectul continuu + participiul trecut al

verbului de conjugat.

e.g. I am being interviewed. Sunt intervievat (acum)

I was being interviewed. Eram intervievat.

Folosirea aspectului continuu la diateza pasivă este limitată la

timpurile Present şi Past Tense.

In limba engleză toate verbele care au complement direct,

indirect sau prepoziţional pot avea diateză pasivă; fiecare

complement poate deveni subiect al verbului la diateza pasivă.

Iată câteva reguli de urmat:

Verbul activ se transformă în verb pasiv la acelaşi timp şi mod:

e.g. His son loves him. Fiul său îl iubeşte. (activ)

He is loved by his son. El este iubit de fiul său. (pasiv)

Complementul verbului activ devine subiectul verbului pasiv:

e.g. I have noticed some errors. Am descoperit nişte greşeli. (activ)

Some errors have been noticed by me. Nişte greşeli au fost

descoperite (de către mine). (pasiv)

Folosim diateza pasivă:

când intenţionăm să subliniem acţiunea, nu pe cel care a săvârşit-

o sau o săvârşeşte;

e.g. This book has been bought by millions of people. Cartea aceasta

a fost cumpătată de milioane de oameni.

44

Cu un verb tranzitiv urmat de unul sau două complemente

directe;

e.g. They finished the test in time. Ei au terminat testul la timp.

The test was finished in time. Testul a fost terminat la timp.

They had answered all our questions. Răspunseseră la toate

întrebările noastre.

All our questions had been answered. Se răspunsese la toate

întrebările noastre.

Cu un verb tranzitiv urmat de un complement direct şi unul

indirect: to give, to offer, to grant, to award, to promise, to

refuse, to tell, to pay, to hand, to ask to leave.

e.g. I told them the truth. Le-am spus adevărul

They were told the truth. Li s-a spus adevărul.

They gave the teacher flowers. Au dat flori profesoarei.

The teacher was given flowers. Profesoarei i s-au dat flori.

Cu un verb prepoziţional intranzitiv urmat de un complement

prepoziţional: to talk to, to send for, to agree upon, to rely on, to

look after, to arrive at, to account for, to laugh at.

e.g. They are sending for a doctor. Trimit după doctor.

A doctor is being sent for. Se trimite după doctor.

In engleză există construcţii pasive cu subiect impersonal,

folosite când nu se cunoaşte subiectul logic: it is said that, it is

believed that, it is understood that, it is reported that, it is

expected that etc. In aceste construcţii verbul exprimă o acţiune

viitoare.

e.g. It is said that this plant will be soon bought. Se zice că această

uzină va fi cumpărată curând.

It is believed that he will be appointed manager. Se crede că el

va fi numit director.

EXERCISES:

45

AN ADVICE TO A YOUNG TRADESMAN

(by Benjamin Franklin )

abridged version

TO MY FRIEND, A.B.

As you have desired, I write the following hints, which have been

of service to me, and may, if observed, be so to you.

Remember that time is money. He that can earn ten shillings a

day by his labour, and goes abroad, or sits idle, one half of that day,

though he spends but sixpence during his diversion or idleness, ought

not to reckon that the only expense; he has really spend, or rather

thrown away, five shillings besides.

Remember that credit is money. If a man lets his money lie in my

hands after it is due, he gives me the interest, or so much as I can

make of it during that time. This amounts to a considerable sum

where a man has good and large credit, and makes good use of it.

Remember that money is of the prolific, generating nature.

Money can beget money, and its offspring can beget more, and so on.

Five shillings turned in six, turned again it is seven and three pence,

and so on until it becomes one hundred pounds. The more there is of

it, the more it produces every turning, so that the profits rise quicker

and quicker.

Remember this saying “The good paymaster is lord of another

man’s purse“. He that is known to pay punctually and exactly to the

time he promises, may at any time, and on any occasion, raise all the

money his friends can spare. This is sometimes of great use. After

industry and frugality, nothing contributes more to the raising of a

young man in the world than punctuality and justice in all his

dealings; therefore never keep borrowed money an hour beyond the

time you promised, lest a disappointment shut up your friend’s purse

for ever.

The most trifling actions that affect a man’s credit are to be

regarded. The sound of your hammer at five in the morning, or nine

46

at night, heard by a creditor, makes him easy six months longer; but

if he sees you at billiard table, or hears your voice at a tavern, when

you should be at work, he sends for his money the next day; demands

it, before he can receive it, in a lump.

It shows, besides, that you are mindful of what you owe; it makes

you appear a careful as well as a honest man, and that still increases

your credit.

Beware of thinking all your own that you possess, and of living

accordingly. It is a mistake that many people who have credit fall

into. To prevent this, keep an exact account for some time, both of

your expenses and your income. If you take the pains at first to

mention particulars, it will have this good effect; you will discover

how wonderfully small, trifling expenses mount up to large sums,

and will discern what might have been, and may for the future be

saved, without occasioning any great inconvenience.

In short, the way to wealth, if you desire it, is as plain as the way

to market. It depends, chiefly on two words, industry and frugality

that is, waste neither time nor money, but make the best use of both.

Without industry and frugality nothing will do, and with them

everything.


abroad – în străinătate; plecat de acasă, dus

amount – sumă, cantitate, volum, importanţă

amount to – a se ridica la (o cifră), a echivala cu

e.g. his criticism amounts to nothing – critica lui este egală cu zero

be of service – a fi de ajutor

beget – a da naştere , a zămisli, a pricinui

dealing – (sg.) comportare, atitudine (pl.) legături comerciale,

tranzacţii; fair dealing = comportare cinstită

diversion – amuzament, distracţie; diversiune

47

due [dju:] – datorat, de plată, plătibil; cuvenit, corespunzător;

aşteptat, care trebuie să sosească

e.g. his wages are due – nu i s-a plătit salariul

with due attention – cu atenţia cuvenită

the train was due – trenul trebuia să sosească

expense – cheltuială; at somebody’s expense – pe cheltuiala cuiva

fall into a mistake = make a mistake – a greşi

frugal – (d. un preţ) modic, rezonabil; (d. o persoană) econom,

cumpătat; (d. o masă) frugal, simplu, economic(ă)

frugality – economie, cumpătare, austeritate

hint – sugestie; aluzie; a face o aluzie, a sugera, a insinua

idle ['aidl] – trândav, leneş, a trândăvi, a lenevi

idleness – trândăvie, lene

income – venit, câştig

increase – a creşte, a spori

industry – hărnicie; industrie

labour – muncă

lump [lΛm] – grămadă, masă; angros; to sell by the lump – a vinde

angro

mount to = amount to = rise to – a se ridica la

observe – a respecta (legea), a observa; a scruta, a păstra (datini )

offspring – produs, rezultat; urmaş, progenitură

particular – detaliu, amănunt, particularitate; (adj.) special

prevent – a împiedica, a preîntâmpina

purse – pungă de bani, geantă

save money/time – a economisi bani/timp

take the pains – a-şi da osteneala

trifling – (adj.) neînsemnat, mărunt, neglijabil; a trifling mistake – a

greşeală minoră; neserios; (s.) neseriozitate, comportare uşuratică

wealth – bogăţie, bună stare

48

G R A M M A R VERBELE MODALE

(THE MODAL VERBS)

Verbul can are două timpuri: prezent: can

past: could

La toate celelalte timpuri este înlocuit prin expresia: to be able to.

Could este şi condiţionalul prezent al verbului can.

e.g. I could do it. Aş putea face asta.

Verbul can exprimă:

posibilitatea (fizică sau mentală) de a săvârşi o acţiune şi se

traduce prin : a putea, a fi în stare, a şti:

e.g. We can do it. Putem face asta.

I cannot swim. Nu ştiu să înot.

She could not see without glasses. Nu a putut vedea fără

ochelari.

nesiguranţă, îndoială (la interogativ şi negativ) :

e.g. This can’t be true. Nu poate fi adevărat

Can this be your son? Să fie ăsta fiul tău?

Can + infinitivul perfect arată posibilitatea de a fi săvârşit

acţiunea în trecut; se foloseşte mai ales la negativ şi se traduce

prin “nu se poate ca“, “nu e posibil ca“.

e.g.: He cannot have said this. Nu se poate ca el să fi spus asta.

Could + infinitivul perfect se traduce prin condiţionalul trecut

(aş fi putut).

Verbul may are două timpuri: prezent: may

past: might

La toate celelalte timpuri may este înlocuit cu to be allowed to, to

be permitted.

Might este şi condiţionalul prezent al verbului may.

e.g. You might try. Ai putea să încerci.

Verbul may exprimă:

permisiunea, posibilitatea în prezent: a putea, a avea voie, a fi

posibil, a se putea.

49

e.g. You may come in. Puteţi intra.

May I take your pen? Pot lua stiloul tău?

In vorbirea curentă se poate folosi can în loc de may.

e.g. Can I see your parents? Pot să-i văd pe părinţii tăi?

interzicerea (în propoziţiile negative):

e.g. You may not leave. Nu ai voie să pleci.

nesiguranţă, presupunere (se foloseşte atât may cât şi might care

implică nesiguranţă mai mare şi este echivalent cu perhaps sau

may be). Pentru a exprima nesiguranţa în propoziţii negative se

foloseşte can.

e.g. It may rain. Se poate / s-ar putea să plouă.

He might come by car. S-ar putea să vină cu maşina.

That cannot be true. Nu poate fi adevărat

sfat, admonestare (în acest caz se foloseşte might):

e.g. She might help you. Ar putea să te ajute şi ea.

May + infinitivul perfect exprimă posibilitatea cu referire la

trecut:

e.g. They may have left. Se poate să fi plecat.

Verbul must are o singură formă cu valoare de indicativ prezent

iar în vorbirea indirectă această formă are şi valoare de past

tense.

Pentru formarea celorlalte timpuri se folosesc: to have to…, to be

obliged to…, to be compelled to…

e.g. I shall have to go there. Va trebui să merg acolo.

They were compelled to do so. Au fost constrânşi să facă aşa.

Între verbele must şi have to există următoarele diferenţe de sens:

must exprimă o obligaţie impusă de vorbitor, have to exprimă o

obligaţie impusă din exterior:

e.g. I must go. (It’s my decision).

We have to go. (The library is closing).

must exprimă o obligaţie urgentă, have to o obligaţie reperată:

e.g. I must be at the office. It’s urgent.

I have to be at the office at 8 o’clock every morning.

50

Forma interogativă şi negativă a verbului modal to have to se

formează cu ajutorului verbului auxiliar to do la indicativ prezent

şi past tense:

e.g. Do/Did they have to leave? Trebuie/ Au trebuit (ei) să plece?

They don’t/didn’t have to leave. Ei nu trebuie /nu au trebuit

să plece.

Verbul must exprimă:

datoria, obligaţia necesitatea:

e.g. Then you must find another solution. Atunci trebuie să găsiţi

o altă soluţie.

Absenţa necesităţii se redă prin needn’t - nu este nevoie

e.g. Must I learn all these words? Trebuie să învăţ toate cuvintele

acestea?

No, you needn’t. Nu, nu este nevoie.

proxibiţia (la negativ):

e.g. You must not speak loud here. Nu aveţi voie/este interzis să

vorbiţi tare aici.

posibilitatea (în acest caz este echivalent cu probably, evidently):

e.g. He must be at the bank. Trebuie să fie la bancă.

These shoes must be just your size. Pantofii ăştia trebuie să

fie chiar măsura ta.

Verbul modal ought to are o singură formă.

Forma contrasă a negativului ought not este oughtn’t ['o: tnt]

Verbul ought to exprimă:

obligaţie, o datorie morală, un sfat (cu referire la prezent, trecut

sau viitor):

e.g. You ought to be more careful. Ar trebui/s-ar cuveni/ar fi de

dorit să fii mai atent.

Children oughtn’t shout so loud. Copiii n-ar trebui să ţipe aşa

de tare.

You ought to have asked me first. Ar fi trebuit să mă întrebi

întâi pe mine.

presupunere, o probabilitate:

e.g. If they caught the plane they ought to be flying by now. Dacă

au prins avionul probabil că or zbura acum.

51

Verbul need poate fi folosit atât ca verb principal având sensul de

a avea nevoie, a-i trebui, cât şi ca verb modal cu sensul este

nevoie, este necesar, este cazul.

Ca verb principal are toate caracteristicile verbelor principale:

e.g. I don’t need the book any more. Nu mai am nevoie de carte.

Ca verb modal defectiv are toate caracteristicile acestor verbe.

e.g. Need I put on my hat? Trebuie să-mi pun pălăria?

No, you needn’t. Nu, nu trebuie.

Verbul need are o singură formă cu valoare de prezent şi past

tense.

Need + infinitivul prezent arată că acţiunea săvârşită în trecut

este considerată ca nedorită:

e.g. You needn’t have tidy my room. Nu ar fi trebuit să-mi faci

ordine în cameră.

Verbul dare poate fi:

verb principal având sensul a sfida, a provoca, a îndrăzni, a fi

destul de curajos să, a risca :

e.g. Nobody dares to interrupt him. Nimeni nu îndrăzneşte să-l

întrerupă.

verb modal, cu o singură formă dare (neg.dare not/daren’t) şi cu

sensul de a îndrăzni, a cuteza, a avea obrăznicia/ neruşinarea să.

e.g. I daren’t ask anything about him. Nu îndrăznesc să întreb

nimic despre el.

Forma I daresay înseamnă it is probable, perhaps.

EXERCISES:

52

BANKING SERVICES SIGHT DEPOSITS, CHECKING ACCOUNTS

Checking accounts or demand deposit accounts are bank accounts

in which both individuals and companies keep money that they plan

to use in the near future. Checking accounts serve two purposes; first,

they provide an efficient system of payment between buyers and

sellers, and second, they provide a safe place to keep excess cash.

Anyone may open a checking account by providing proof of identity

and a specimen signature (example of the account holder’s signature)

which the bank keeps in its files. In the case of companies, one or

more authorized signers sign all the checks. After making the initial

(first) deposit into the account, customers are expected to

permanently maintain sufficient funds in the account to pay any

checks they write. Checks are the negotiable instruments which an

account holder uses to give payment instructions to his bank. The

account holder is the drawer, the bank where the account is held is

the drawee bank (paying bank) and the check is made payable to the

order of the payee or beneficiary. In order to negotiate a check, the

payee must endorse (sign) it on the back, whether the check is to be

deposited in an account or exchanged for cash. Only the payee has

the right to endorse the check and may be also called the endorsee.

An exception is made to the endorsement rule if the check is a bearer

check. A bearer check may be cashed by whoever presents it to the

paying bank. Most checks, however, are order checks, meaning that

they are made payable to the order of a specific payee. The

checkbook contains checks printed in a numbered sequence, and a

check register where the account holder records the deposits made to

the account, and the checks issued (written) on the account. Once a

month, on the closing date the customer receives a bank statement

which details all the transactions affecting the account during the

previous month.

53

DEPOSITS ACCOUNTS: SAVINGS AND PASSBOOK ACCOUNTS

For customers that wish to save money (put money aside)

banks provide savings accounts which pay interest on the funds

deposited. The procedure for opening a savings account is the same

as for a checking account. Regular savings accounts pay interest at a

slightly lower rate than passbook accounts. Passbook accounts are so

named because each transaction affecting the account is recorded by

the bank teller (bank clerk, cashier) in a small account register or

passbook. Passbook accounts pay interest only on the quarter (every

three months), whereas regular savings accounts pay interest every

month.

Passbook accounts have a withdraw restriction: money may only be

withdrawn during a certain period of time at the end of each quarter.

At any other time of the year, withdraw will incur penalty charges

including loss of interest.

TIME DEPOSITS

Most banks offer certificates of deposits, as a form of short-term

investments. The interest is higher but must be left on deposit with

the bank for certain fixed periods of time (2 months, 3 months, 6

months).

CREDIT CARDS

Credit cards are a system of payment involving electronic

transfers of payment. There are two payment systems for credit

cards: the cardholder’s bank account may be automatically debited

for the amount of the purchase(s), and the merchant’s account

credited, or the customer is assigned a credit limit (the total amount

the cardholder is permitted to charge) and each month he pays a

percentage of the total purchases. The latter system is called a

revolving charge account. The card issuer determines the minimum

payment which must be made every month, and interest is charged

on any amounts over the minimum. The interest is added to the next

54

month’s bill. In either case, the merchant receives payment within

the month after the purchase.

LOAN DOCUMENTATION

Loan documents are signed by the borrower and the lender.

The documents serve to protect the financial institution and the

borrower and to define the responsibilities and obligations that each

party must observe.

SECURITY, GUARANTEES, PLEDGES AND LIENS

Depending upon the loan, financial institutions may require

some sort of tangible safeguard from their customers for the loans

they provide them. Secured loans are supported by transferable

securities (sticks, debentures) or other negotiable financial

instruments which become the possession of the lender if the

borrower defaults on the loan. For the duration of the loan the lender

keeps the securities in its vault and returns them once the loan has

been repaid. Collateral is another term for security. A guarantee may

be provided as a safeguard. The guarantor is answerable to the lender

in case the borrower defaults on the loan. The borrower and the

guarantor are different parties. A pledge is another loan safeguard

which involves chattel or other personal property. A pledge

agreement entitles the pledge (lender) to retain the object of property

until the plegor (borrower) satisfies the debt, and to sell said property

to recover the debt in case of default. A lien is the above- mentioned

right of one party to retain the property of another until the debt is

paid. The party having the lien, the lienor, may sell the property.

DISCOUNTING BILLS OF EXCHANGE

A bill of exchange may be discounted (purchased by a third

party for a sum lower than that the party will receive when the bill

matures). The amount of discount the banker deducts from the total

amount of the bill will vary according to the risks the purchaser

takes.

55

OTHER BANKING SERVICES

Banks issue traveller’s checks to customers travelling abroad,

to be used to pay hotels and restaurant bills .

Banks may also act as trustees (a party appointed to protect the

interests and property of another party unable to do so itself) and

executors (a party appointed to carry out the wishes of another,

deceased party) for both individual and corporate customers.

All banks have vaults (strong rooms) and most rent safety deposit

boxes to customers that wish to keep their important documents,

stock certificates, jewelry or other valuables in a guarded

environment.


Define a checking account

Who can open a checking account and how?

Define the notion of a check.

Define the drawer and the drawee.

Who has the right to endorse a check?

How do you call the person who can do this?

What happens if the money in a passbook account is

withdrawn before term?

Which are the parties involved in a bill of exchange?

56

WORDS AND WORDS COMBINARION

appoint – a numi (într-o funcţie etc.), a fixa, a stabili; a înzestra, a

dota, a mobila; a echipa; at the appointed time – la ora

stabilită;

appointment – numire (într-un post), post, funcţie; întâlnire,

întrevedere; (pl.) amenajări, mobilier

bear – a duce, a purta; a suferi, a răbda, a suporta

chattels [ t∫ǽtlz ] – avere mobilă, bunuri mobile, acareturi

default – absenţă, lipsă, vină, neîndeplinirea obligaţiilor; in default

of – în absenţa, din lipsă de; a nu-şi plăti datoriile, a fi în

restanţă cu plata, a nu-şi îndeplini obligaţiile; a nu se prezenta

la proces, a pierde procesul prin neprezentare

deposit account – cont de depozit

drawee – (s.) (ec.) tras

drawer – (s.) (ec.) trăgător

endorse [ in'do:s] – a andosa, a semna pe verso, a aproba

endorsee [endo: 'si:] – andosant al unei poliţe

endorsement [in'do:sm∂nt] – andosare, aprobare

environment – mediu, ambianţă, atmosferă ; împrejurimi

incur [in'k∂:r] – a-şi face, a-şi crea, a atrage asupra sa

e.g. incur debts – a se îngloda în datorii

incur great expense – a se băga la mare cheltuială

incur hatred – a-şi atrage ura

incur risks – a se expune la riscuri

issue [ isјu: ] – ediţie de ziar (de carte), număr; problemă, chestiune;

a emite, a elibera (un act, bilete etc.), a pune în circulaţie

issuer – emitent

lien [li∂n] – drept de sechestru; zălog, garanţie

payable – plătibil

payee – beneficiar al plăţii

penalty charges – penalităţi

pledge – gaj, zălog, garanţie

pledgeor – datornic, persoană care amanetează

proof – dovadă

property – bunuri, patrimoniu, proprietate

57

provide – a asigura, a furniza, a aproviziona

purpose – scop; on what purpose – cu ce scop

record ['reko:d] – registru, proces verbal, dare de seamă, act oficial;

disc, placă; on record – oficial; off the record – neoficial; to enter

on the record - a trece în procesul verbal

record [ri'ko:d] – a înregistra, a consemna, a nota

savings and passbook account – libret

secure a loan – a garanta un împrumut

sequence ['si:kw∂ns] – succesiune, şir, ordine; in sequence – la rând,

unul după altul

sequence of tenses – (gram.) corespondenţa/concordanţa timpurilor

sign – semn; a semna

signature – semnătură

trust deed – procură, mandat

trustee – curator, tutore mandatar

vault – seif, casă de bani; vistierie, trezorerie

58

G R A M M A R CONCORDANŢA TIMPURILOR

( SEQUENCE OF TENSES)

În limba engleză folosirea timpului verbului din propoziţia

subordonată depinde de timpul verbului din propoziţia principală.

Dacă în propoziţia principală verbul este la Present sau Present

Perfect, în propoziţia secundară se poate folosi orice timp cerut

de sens.

e.g. I think he arrived yesterday. Cred că a sosit ieri.

I think he has just arrived. Cred că tocmai a sosit.

I think he will arrive tomorrow. Cred că va sosi mâine.

I’ve just heard they arrived a few hours ago and they are

resting now. Am auzit că au sosit acum câteva ore şi se

odihnesc.

Dacă în propoziţia principală verbul este la timpul viitor, în

propoziţia temporală se foloseşte timpul prezent, dacă acţiunile

din aceste propoziţii sunt simultane şi Prezent Perfect dacă

acţiunea din propoziţia secundară este anterioară acţiunii din

principală.

e.g. I shall tell him the truth when I meet him. Îi voi spune

adevărul când îl voi întâlni.

He will take measures after he has found out about it. Va lua

măsuri după ce va afla despre asta.

Dacă în propoziţia principală verbul este la Past Tense, în

propoziţia secundară se foloseşte:

Past Tense când acţiunea din propoziţia principală este

simultană cu cea din secundară:

e.g. He said the meeting was at 9 o’clock. A spus că şedinţa este la

ora 9.

Past Perfect când acţiunea din propoziţia secundară este

anterioară acţiunii din propoziţia principală:

e.g. He said the meeting had been at 9 o’clock. A spus că şedinţa a

fost la ora 9.

Future in the past când acţiunea din propoziţia secundară este

viitoare faţă de acţiunea din propoziţia principală:

59

e.g. He said the meeting would be at 9 o’clock. A spus că şedinţa

va fi la ora 9.

În propoziţia comparativă de tipul cu cât…cu atât (care se

construieşte cu două adjective sau adverbe la gradul comparativ de

superioritate precedate de articolul hotărât the folosim viitorul în

propoziţia principală şi prezentul în propoziţia comparativă, sau Past

Tense în ambele:

e. g.. The more we are, the merrier it will be. Cu cât vom fi mai

mulţi, cu atât mai vesel va fi.

The harder they looked for, the more evidence they found. Cu

cât căutau mai mult cu atât mai multe dovezi găseau.

Cazurile în care regulile concordanţei timpurilor nu se aplică

sunt următoarele:

Dacă propoziţia secundară conţine o afirmaţie cu caracter

universal caz în care verbul va fi la timpul prezent sau viitor:

e.g. He said that the Earth goes round the Sun. A spus că

pământul se învârteşte în jurul soarelui.

Dacă propoziţia secundată este relativă, verbul din secundară

poate fi la orice timp cerut de sens:

e.g. She told me things which I shall never repeat. Mi-a spus lucruri

pe care nu le voi repeta niciodată.

Dacă propoziţia secundară este legată de principală prin than

(decât), as much as (tot atât cât), as well as:

e.g. I loved her more than I love or will ever love anyone. Am iubit-

o mai mult decât iubesc sau voi iubi vreodată pe cineva.

EXERCISES:

60

WHAT’S MONEY AFTER ALL!

After Dombey and Son by Charles Dickens

Paul grew to be nearly five years old. Sometimes he sat with his father after dinner by the fire. The two were the strangest pair at such a time, so much alike, and yet so different. One evening, Paul broke the silence thus: ‘Papa! What’s money?’ Mr. Dombey was surprised at the unexpected question. ‘What’s money, Paul?’ he repeated the question. ‘Yes,’ said the child turning his face up towards Mr. Dombey’s. ‘What is money?’ Mr. Dombey was in a difficult position. He wanted to give him some explanation but looking down at a little chair, he answered: ‘Gold, and silver, and copper, guineas, shillings, halfpenny. Do you know what they are? ‘ ‘I don’t mean that, papa. I mean, what’s money after all.’ ‘What is money after all!’ said Mr. Dombey, moving his chair aside a little, to have a better look at the boy, who asked such strange questions. ‘Money, Paul, can do anything.’ He took the little hand, and beat it softly against one of his own as he said this. ‘Anything, papa?’ ‘Yes. Anything – almost,’ said Mr. Dombey. ‘Anything, means everything, doesn’t it, papa? Asked his son. ‘Well, yes,’ said Mr. Dombey. ‘Why didn’t money save my mama for me?’ returned the child. ‘It isn’t cruel, is it?’ ‘If it’s a good thing and can do anything’ said the little fellow, ‘I wonder why it didn’t save my mamma.’ When Mr. Dombey recovered from his surprise, he began to explain to him that money, though very powerful, could not keep people alive when it was time for them to die. But that, money made other people honour us, fear, respect and admire us, and made us powerful and glorious in the eye of all man.

61

G R A M M A R VORBIREA DIRECTĂ SI INDIRECTĂ

(DIRECT AND INDIRECT SPEECH)

Prin vorbire directă înţelegem reproducerea exactă a

cuvintelor cuiva. Vorbirea indirectă reproduce conţinutul spuselor

cuiva. Frazele exprimate în vorbirea directă nu sunt în raport de

subordonare faţă de verbul din propoziţia principală; în vorbirea

indirectă însă, întreaga comunicare devine o propoziţie completivă

directă (ce va fi introdusă prin that) a verbului din propoziţia

principală.

Verbele care introduc vorbirea indirectă sunt:

în cazul propoziţiilor afirmative: to say, to tell, to state, to

declare etc;

în cazul propoziţiilor interogative: to ask, to inquire, to wonder,

to want, to know; aceste propoziţii se vor introduce prin if, sau

whether (dacă) acesta din urmă fiind folosit numai în cazul

propoziţiilor alternative:

e.g. He asks me: ‘Are you coming or not?’

He asks me whether I am coming or not.

în cazul propoziţiilor imperative: to tell, to order, to command, to

advise, to beg .

Dacă verbul to say din propoziţia principală nu este urmat de un

complement indirect, el se păstrează neschimbat dar dacă este

urmat de un complement indirect el se înlocuieşte cu verbul to

tell.

e.g. He says: ‘I’m all right.’ He says (that) he is all right.

He says to me: ‘I’m ill’. He tells me (that) he is ill.

Când spusele cuiva sunt trecute de la vorbirea directă la cea

indirectă, anumite modificări au loc atât în propoziţia principală

cât şi în cea secundară.

Aceste modificări sunt:

Pronumele personal reflexiv şi posesiv se schimbă după înţeles:

persoanele I şi a II-a devin de obicei persoana a III-a:

e.g. John said to Ann: ‘I asked your brother about you’.

John told Ann that he had asked her brother about her.

62

Pronumele rămâne neschimbat când vorbitorul îşi reproduce

propriile sale cuvinte:

e.g. I said ‘I thing we should go for a walk’.

I said I thought we should go for a walk.

Pronumele şi adjectivele demonstrative şi adverbele de loc şi de

timp se transformă astfel:

this

se t

ran

sform

ă î

n

that

these those

here there

now then

today that day

yesterday the day before

the day before yesterday two days before

tomorrow the next/following day

the day after tomorrow in two days’ time

next week the next/following week

last week the previous week/the week

before

a year ago a year before/the previous

year

Dacă comunicarea este reprodusă imediat schimbările adverbelor

de timp nu mai au loc deoarece raportul lor faţă de momentul

vorbirii este acelaşi. Se vor schimba însă, dacă raportul lor faţă de

momentul vorbirii se schimbă:

e.g. ‘I am busy tomorrow', father said.

Mother (the next day): Father said he is busy today’.

63

Folosirea timpurilor în vorbirea indirectă:

Dacă predicatul din propoziţia principală este la timpul prezent,

Present Perfect sau viitor, timpul din propoziţia redată în

vorbirea indirectă rămâne neschimbat.

e.g. The boy is saying/has said to mother ‘I shall go shopping as

soon as I have finished homework’.

The boy is telling/has told mother he will go shopping as soon

as he has finished homework’.

Pronumele si adjectivele demonstrative precum şi adverbele din

propoziţia completivă directă rămân de asemenea neschimbate.

e.g. The doctor has said: ‘I’ll come here tomorrow’.

The doctor has announced that he will come here tomorrow.

Dacă predicatul propoziţiei principale este la un timp trecut

Past Tense, Past Perfect, Future -in- the- Past timpurile verbale

din enunţul reprodus devin şi ele timpuri trecute.

Aceasă alunecare a timpurilor dinspre prezent spre trecut sau dinspre

trecut spre un timp şi mai trecut are loc numai în propoziţiile

enunţiative, exclamative şi interogative.

PREZENT devin

e PAST TENSE

PAST TENSE

PRESENT PERFECT

PAST PERFECT

devin

PAST PERFECT

FUTURE devin

e FUTURE–IN-THE-PAST

e.g. He said: ’I work much every day’.

He said that he worked much every day.

’I worked much yesterday’.

He said that he had worked much the day before

’I’ll work much tomorrow too‘.

He said he would work much the next day too.

64

In cazul exprimării unui adevăr general valabil timpul

rămâne neschimbat.

In propoziţiile imperative imperativul afirmativ devine

infinitiv lung în vorbirea indirectă, iar imperativul negativ

devine infinitiv lung precedat de negaţia not.

e.g. She said to her son: ’Be careful ! Don’t run in the street!’

She advised her son to be careful and not to run in the street.

Verbele modale se schimbă astfel:

can > could; may > might; will > would

Dacă verbele modale, exprimate în vorbirea directă, nu au forme

pentru timpul trecut, ca în cazul verbelor must, need, should,

ought to, sau dacă ele sunt deja la timpurile trecut sau

condiţional, ca în cazul verbelor would, could, might, used to

(care se foloseşte numai la Past Tense) verbele modale rămân

neschimbate în vorbirea indirectă.

Propoziţiile interogative din vorbirea directă devin propoziţii

enunţiative. Forma interogativă a verbului va deveni

afirmativă sau negativă:

e.g. She asked me: How old are you?

Aren’t you married?

She asked me how old I was.

She asked me if I was not married.

EXERCISES:

113

65

GETTING READY FOR AN INTERVIEW (I)


By what means can one person find out about a vacant

job?

What do companies or firms do whenever they want to

employ somebody?

What is the presumed employee supposed to do as soon

as he/she finds out about a vacant job?

What do you call the person who asks for the job and

what do you call the paper by which they solicitate the

job?

What do you consider to be the most important step in

the act of employment?

Have you ever had the opportunity to apply for a job, or

have you ever attended an interview?

According to your opinion, what qualities must an

applicant display?

As soon as a person comes to the end of his or her courses

at a college or university he/she starts to ask himself or herself what

is to be done after getting a university degree in the field he/she

trained for.

The best means of information, except from hearsay, or

television advertising, or lab our power office is perusing all columns

in all the newspapers that advertise for possible jobs. A young

graduate will consider himself/herself lucky and happy if he/she

comes upon with the opening of finding a job and he/she should

consider the idea of a modest start as a trainee in his/her domain,

following that after hard work and proof of his/her skills and

abilities, he might become a junior or even senior executive with the

company or firm he/she works for.

66

There are several steps to be followed after finding the

advertisement for what is considered to be a proper job so, here are

some pieces of advice for you as an applicant.

The first step is considered as the first contact with a

potential employer and it consists of a Letter of Application, a

Résumé or a Curriculum Vitae. If your application form will rouse

the employer’s interest in you then you may consider it a success and

start getting ready for the Interview – which plays a prominent part in

the act of employment. One should remember that the letter of

application, the résumé, the curriculum vitae and the interview are as

many opportunities to show one’s written and oral communication

skills.

The Letter of Application is your visiting card as it

represents you and introduces you to a future possible employer. If

you chose to write a comprehensive letter of application, and not a

letter of application with a résumé of your experience and

background enclosed, your letter must contain all the pieces of

information that can show you at your best. Your letter of application

must show a proper appreciation of your qualification - in case you

have the proper qualification which is necessary for the job, - and

your experience, -if any - in the field. You must draw up your letter

in a persuasive, convincing, attractive, especially truthful and

straightforward style and way of expression. You shouldn’t be

modest or humble in your estimation but self- conceited either. That

is why it is imperative to say I can, I am good in stead of I think I

can or I am quite good. Your firm, loyal personality, your attitude

towards work (readiness and willingness to shoulder responsibilities,

ability to stick to a task and see it solved, initiative), your outlook on

life (your determination to achieve your personal goals by honest,

sustained work) are key points of interest for an employer, are the

merchandise you want to sell for the best of prices and, that’s why,

you must stress and point them out. Stress and point out your

commitment to hard work, responsibility and professionalism and

don’t even mention in this letter of application about salary and

holidays as they may make an unfavourable impression.

67

Address your letter correctly, spell it properly and type it well and

clean (misspelling and a sloppy sheet of paper talk about your

carelessness) and give it a business like aspect. Look at the example

below:

Mr. Richard Lewis

Employment Manager

Lewis & Son Ltd.

24, Pine Avenue

Seattle

Dear Mr. Lewis,

Your Company’s advertisement, published in ‘The Journal’

newspaper, has drawn my attention to your need for a licensed

accountant and, as soon as I saw the advertisement, I felt that was

the kind of job I’ve trained myself for, and for which I have the

proper qualification.

I have a Licentiate’s degree in Accounting, which I got three

years ago when I graduated from the Faculty of Financial -

Accounting Management.

I have the necessary practical experience in the field of

accounting as I have been working for three years with the ‘Top way

Ltd’. During this period of time I majored in accounting as I passed

the examination for a doctor’s degree in this field.

I am positive that my qualification will meet your

requirements. I’m highly experienced in accountancy, I enjoy

teamwork and I have a taste for responsibility.

I intend to change my present place of work as I feel that I

must find one that offers me better opportunities to distinguish myself

and advance. I must also honestly admit that the firm I work for

doesn’t offer attractive promotion prospects. I am sure your

company and the job you advertise for can give me the very scope

I’m looking forward to meet.

My present wages is 600 dollars a month but I will accept any

salary your company is ready to pay me.

68

I enclose thereto my résumé with the details about my

education and experience as well as copies of testimonials and

letters of recommendation from my present employer and Head of

Department whom I have already informed about my decision.

In case you are interested in granting me an interview I

hope you’ll let me know in time.

Yours sincerely,

Jane Moore

The Résumé. Your résumé must provide the reader details on

your personal education and experience, summarised under concise

headings, so as to be easy to read.

You will have to include here data about education, training,

previous and present employment and also mention dates.

Date and place of birth, age, marital status (whether you are

married or single), number of children, state of health, interests,

hobbies all these are personal details you must include in your

résumé. Look at the résumé bellow!

I send you herewith my Résumé of qualification:

Jane Moore

12, Longfellow Street. Seattle

Telephone: l46329053

Personal details:

Age: 27

Date of birth: 12th

August l974

Place of birth: Seattle

Marital status: Single

Health: Excellent

Photo: Enclosed

Special interests: Mathematics, foreign languages

Activities: Computers, foreign languages, reading

Educational background:

High school: l989 - l993

69

University studies: 1993 – 1997 Faculty of Financial

Accounting Management

Subjects studied: Mathematics, Accounting, Law, Geography,

Informatics, Economy, Statistics, Pedagogy, French, and

German

1997 - 2001 Major in Accounting as a candidate for

Doctor’s degree

2001 - Doctor’s degree in Accounting

Practical training: 1997 - 1998 accountant with Top Way Ltd.

Business experience: 1998 - 2001 Chief accountant with Top Way

Ltd

References: Mrs. Marry Millet - Head of Accounting

Department; Mr. John Goodman - Managing Director,

Top Way Ltd.

A person’s Curriculum Vitae (or Data sheet, or Record Sheet) must

give details about:

Family name (or Surname; Last name)

First name (or Christian name);

Age:

Sex:

Address:

Phone number:

Nationality:

Date and place of birth:

Marital status:

Education and University background:

Secondary studies from: date:

University degree: date of graduation:

Other courses completed: (title of the course, grades obtained),

date:

Professional Record:

Training period with:

Present position: from …to … with…

Fields of interest and hobbies:

70

References:

Discussion topics:

By what means can one person find about a vacant job?

What is the most important step in the act of employment?

What qualities must an applicant display?

Write a Letter of Application/your Résumé/your Curriculum

Vitae.

WORDS AND WORDS COMBINATION

advertise for – a publica un anunţ în ziar în legătură cu

advertise – a face reclamă, a anunţa (în ziar, la radio, la televizor)

advertisement [∂d' v∂tism∂mt] – reclamă, anunţ (la ziar)

advertising ['ædv∂taiziη] – reclamă; publicitate

advertising campaign – campanie publicitară

applicant [ǽ plik∂nt ] – solicitant, petiţionar

application [æpli’kei∫∂n ] – cerere, solicitare

apply for [∂ 'plai] – a solicita, a cere

background – cunoştinţe, formaţie profesională; have a fine

background – a avea o pregătire serioasă

be positive – a fi convins, încredinţat

carelessness – neglijenţă, nepăsare

commit – a se obliga, a-şi asuma o obligaţie, a-şi asuma

angajamentul

commitment – angajament, obligaţie

comprehensive [kompri'hensiv] – cuprinzător

conceit [k∂n'si:t] – încredere în sine, vanitate, îngâmfare, trufie

conceited [k∂n'si:tid] – îngîmfat, încrezut, plin de sine, vanitos

datum [deit∂m] – (pl) data [deit∂] – dată, informaţie

determination – hotărâre, fermitate; his determination impressed

everybody – caracterul lui hotărât a impresionat pe toţi

71

determine – a se decide, a lua hotărârea; a determina; to be

determined – a fi hotărât să faci ceva

drawup – a redacta, a întocmi (un document)

field – domeniu de activitate

from hearsay – din auzite

goal [goul] – ţel, ţintă, scop, misiune, sarcină

have a taste for responsibility – a-i plăcea să- şi asume responsabilitatea

head of department – şef de serviciu

herewith – alăturat, în acelaşi loc; prin aceasta, în acest mod

letter of application – scrisoare de intenţie, cerere (de solicitare)

major – specialitate, materie principală

major in ['meidЗ∂ ] – a se specializa într-un domeniu

means – cale, mojloc, metodă; by means of – cu ajutorul; by no

means – în nici un caz, cu nici un chip; by all means – cu orice preţ,

neapărat; means of information – mijloc de informare

open – a dezvălui, a expune; a începe, a deschide; vacant, liber

the job is open – slujba este vacantă

to open the negociations/debate – a deschide negocierile/

dezbaterile;

to open an account – a deschide un cont;

open account – cont deschis;

open credit – credit deschis

opening – şansă, conjunctură favorabilă, ocazie fericită, posibilitate

outlook – perspectivă, punct de vedere

persuade [p∂'sweid ] – a convinge

persuasive [p∂'sweisiv] – convingător, elocvent, grăitor

play a prominent part – a juca un rol important

play a secondary part – a juca un rol secundar

prominent – remarcabil, proeminent

promotion prospects – şanse de promovare

prospects – posibilităţi, perspective, şanse

readiness ['redinis] – tragere de inimă, entuziasm, zel, promptitudine

rouse– a stârni; rouse the interest – a stârni interesul

scope – ocazie de afirmare

shoulder – a asuma, a lua pe umerii proprii (o sarcină)

sloppy – murdar, soios, neângrijit

72

stick to – a se ţine de , a nu se lăsa de; to stick to one’s task – a-şi

vedea de treabă; a-şi face treaba

straightforward [streit'fo:w∂d] – (adj.) deschis, cinstit, simplu

straightforwards – (adv.) direct, de-a dreptul, sincer, simplu

stress , ed, ed out = to point out – a scoate în evidenţă, a accentua

task – sarcină, obligaţie, îndatorire, treabă

testimonial – certificat, dovadă, scrisoare de recomandare

thereto – în plus, în afară de aceasta

to conceive [k∂n'si:v] – a concepe, a proiecta, a formula

trainee – stagiar

willingness – plăcere, bucurie, bunăvoinţă; with the utmost of

willingness – din toată inima, cu cea mai mare plăcere

73

G R A M M A R PLURALUL SUBSTANTIVELOR

(THE PLURAL OF NOUNS)

Există în limba engleză substantive de origine străină care au

forme diferite pentru singular şi plural.

Substantive de origine latină:

Singular: terminaţia - a Plural: terminaţia - ae:

antenna - antennae [æn'teni:] - antenă

formula - formulae ['fo:mjuli] - formulă

fauna ['fo:n∂] - faunae ['fo:ni:] – faună

Singular: terminaţia - um Plural: terminaţia - a:

datum - data ['deit∂] - dată, fapt

curriculum[k∂'rik∂l∂m]- curricula[k∂'rik∂l∂]- programă

medium - media ['midj∂ ]- mijloc, mediu

stratum - strata ['streit∂] - strat, pătură

emporium - emporia - centru comericial; magazin mare

erratum - errata - erată

stadium - stadia - stadion

bacterium - bacteria [bæk'ti∂ri∂]- bacterie

spectrum - spectra - spectru

optimum - optima - valoare maximă; condiţii favorabile

maximum ['mæksim∂m] - maxima ['mæksim∂] - maxim

bacterium - bacteria - bacterie

medium - media - medie, mijloc

Singular: terminaţia - us Plural: terminaţia - i

focus ['fouk ∂ s]- foci ['fousai] focar, centru

nucleus ['nju:kli∂s ]- nuclei ['nju:kliai]- nucleu

radius - radii ['reidiai]- rază (cerc)

terminus - termini ['t∂:minai]- terminus, capăt

74

stimulus - stimuli ['stimjulai]- stimul, şoc, impuls

bacillus - bacilli [b∂'silai] - bacil

fungus ['f'Ληg∂s] - fungi ['f'Ληgai] - ciupercă, fungus

syllabus - syllaby - programă analitică, plan de

învăţământ, orar

Substantive de origine greacă:

Singular:terminaţia- is Plural: terminaţia- es;

analysis [∂'næl∂si:s]- analyses [∂'næl∂si:z]- analiză

axis ['æksis]- axes ['æksi:z]- axă

basis ['beisis]- bases ['beisi:z]- bază

crisis ['kraisis] - crises ['kraisi:z]- criză

hypothesis [hai'poθsi:s] – hypotheses [hai'poθsi:z] - ipoteză

synthesis [sinθisi:s] – syntheses [sinθisi:z]- sinteză

parenthesis [p∂'renθisi:s] – parenthese [p∂'renθisi:z] - paranteză

Singular: terminaţia- on Plural:terminaţia – a

criterion - criteria - criteriu

phenomenon - phenomena - fenomen

Unele substantive au numai formă de plural şi se acordă cu

verbul la singular:

news - veşti, means- mijloace, summons - citaţie, mathematics,

phonetics, economics, optics, physics, cybernetics, linguistics,

measles - pojar, mumps - oreion, works - fabrică, uzină, billiards,

cards, dominoes, ninepins - popice, draughts -joc de dame;

Unele substantive care denotă articole de îmbrăcăminte,

unelte, instrumente constând din două părţi sau alte noţiuni sunt

întrebuinţate numai cu verbul la plural:

scissors - foarfece, spectacles - ochelari, eye-glasses - ochelari,

spectacles - ochelari, rubbers - galoşi, trousers, pyjamas, outskirts,

riches, contents - conţinut credentials - scrisori de acreditare, wages

- salariu, goods, stairs, headquarters - sediu, series - serie, species -

specie;

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Unele substantive au formă de singular şi înţeles de plural şi

se acordă cu verbul la singular:

knowledge - cunoştinţe, luggage - bagaje, progress - progrese,

furniture, business, advice - sfaturi, money, homework - teme,

information - informaţii, nonsense - prostii.

Ideea de singular se redă în cazul acestor substantive cu ajutorul

expresiei: a piece of.

Substantive ca: bread, butter, chalk, food, fruit, gold, jam,

silver, chocolate, paper sunt invariabile la singular.

Cuantificarea substantivelor invariabile la singular se face cu ajutorul

unor cuvinte ca: a piece of, a slice of, a loaf of, a lump of, a bar of,

a sheet of etc.

EXERCISES:

76

GETTING READY FOR AN INTERVIEW (II)


What do you call the person who takes an applicant’s

interview?

What is, in your opinion, the interviewer’s aim?

What attitude, must an interviewer display during the

interview?

The person giving an interview is called an interviewee.

What are the qualities an interviewee must display?

What must his appearance and behaviour be?

If a person is lucky enough that his/her letter of application

may rouse the interest he/she will have to take another step in the

process of employment - the last and most important but also the

most frightening and embarrassing -the interview.

The interviewer may be a person (the employer) or a group

of selectors who mean to find the most suitable person for their

company’s need and, if they are well trained interviewers, they’ll

have to be helpful, friendly so as to help the applicant (interviewee)

be natural, relaxed, self confident, and able to articulate his/her

resources, goals and hopes for the future.

It is during an interview that many people find out what

they are best suited for and, if you have the chance to face such an

experience, you have to know that any interviewer wants to convince

himself upon your qualification, background, your sense of

responsibility, commitment to give your best in the position you may

be appointed in, ability to work in group with other fellow workers,

with the public or customers.

The interviewee has the obligation to prepare himself for

the appointment beforehand. First he/she ought to be able to present

his/her autobiography and this must be accurate, detailed and, if

possibly, learnt by heart. It must be attractive so it must point out

your education and work experience. It must reflect your school or

university activity- what subjects you studied, which were your

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favourites and what courses you enjoyed, where you got highest and

lowest grades, what extracurricular activities you attended, which

was your first, last or which is your present job, your political and

social activity, if there is any, what field did you majored in and

when or for how long.

Don’t be shy to declare your lack of experience but make it

clear that you are open and determined to learn and to perform any

kind of work in your field.

Don’t pretend or hunt high positions; take any you are offered,

prove you are the best and promotion will come in the course of

time.

Don’t speak feebly but in a loud, clear voice, be firm when

speaking about your professional knowledge, ask about your wages,

vacation, and hospitalisation insurance but don’t be too insistent and

don’t show your disappointment and disapproval if they are below

your expectations.

Last but not the least, mind your appearance and clothes for the

interview, as the first impression is always that which counts.

Dress neatly and well groomed and avoid shocking

appearances, gestures or language.

Don’t smoke even if you are invited, don’t chew gum during

the interview, shake your interviewer’s hand firmly, and try to be a

few minutes earlier.

No matter how keen you are on getting the position/ job don’t

try to make the interview longer than necessary and when everything

is over stand up and thank before you leave.

And now one more thing: any information about the

interviewer and the position you apply for may be useful and helpful.

Discussion topics:

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What must an applicant write or fill in?

What is an interview?

What is the interview good for?

How do you think you can make an appointment?

What are the do’s and don’ts of an interview?

Present your autobiography.

Write some questions you would ask an applicant if you were the

interviewer.


appoint [∂' pכint ] – a numi (într-un post); a stabili, a fixa; at the

appointed time – la timpul stabilit

appointee [∂' poin' ti:] – persoană numită într-un post, funcţionar

appointive – (adj.) (despre un post) obţinut prin numire (nu prin concurs)

appointment [∂' pכintm∂nt] – numire într-un post; post, funcţie;

întâlnire, întrevedere; to make an appointment – a fixa o întâlnire

articulate [a:tikjuleit] – a exprima, a rosti, a pronunţa clar

beforehand – (adv.) dinainte

chew [t∫u:] – a mesteca

embarrass [im' bær∂s] – a stânjeni, a jena, a complica, a încurca, a îngreuna

embarrassment – stinghereală, jenă, încurcătură; jenă financiară

embarrassing – (adj.) stânjenitor, jenant

feeble [fi:bl] – (adj.) (despre voce) slab, imperceptibil; to speak in a

feeble voice – a vorbi cu voce stinsă

feebly [' fi:bli] – ( adv.) slab, de-abia perceptibil

in the course of time – cu timpul

interviewee – intervievat

interviewer – persoană care ia interviuri

keen on – dornic, care râvneşte la, care nu mai poate după ; boys are

keen on playing football – băieţii se prăpădesc după fotbal

lack – lipsă, nevoie, neajuns; (vb.) – a-i lipsi, a nu avea

last but not the least – ultimul dar nu cel mai puţin important

neat – (adj.) curat, îngrijit, ordonat

neatly – (adv.) curat, îngrijit

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shy [ ∫ai ] – timid

well - groomed – îngrijit, dichisit

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G R A M M A R FRAZELE CONDIŢIONALE

(CONDITIONAL CLAUSES)

Frazele condiţionale sunt formate din: propoziţia subordonată

condiţională (If clause) şi propoziţia regentă (Main Cause).

Există trei tipuri de propoziţii condiţionale:

tipul I: o condiţie reală, viitoare sau generală.

tipul II: o condiţie ireală, prezentă sau viitoare.

tipul III: o condiţie ireală trecută.

Propoziţia circumstanţială condiţională se introduce prin

conjuncţiile: if (dacă), even if (chiar dacă), even though (chiar

dacă), provided (that)/ so long as/on condition that (cu condiţia să),

in case (în caz că), suppose/supposing that (presupunând că),

unless (dacă nu, doar dacă, în afară de cazul în care).

De obicei propoziţia condiţională urmează propoziţiei regente

dar dacă o precede se desparte de aceasta prin virgulă.

Conjuncţiile in case şi provided that se folosesc mai ales în

propoziţii condiţionale de tip I:

e.g: In case he calls, I’ll tell you. In caz că sună o să-ţi spun.

He’ll help you provided that you ask him. O să te ajute cu

condiţia să-l rogi.

Unless este urmat de un verb la afirmativ şi este mai

frecvent folosit în propoziţii condiţionale de tip I.

e.g. I shall not go there unless they invite me. Nu voi merge acolo

decât dacă ei mă invită.

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FOLOSIREA TIMPURILOR IN PROPOZITII

CONDITIONALE:

Tip de

prop.

cond.

Timpul în propoziţia

principală

Timpul în propoziţia

condiţională.

I

VIITOR

I’ll go for a walk

PREZENT

You get always good marks

IMPERATIV

Hurry up

PREZENT

if the weather is fine.

PREZENT

if you learn well.

PPREZENT

if you want to catch the

train.

II

CONDITIONAL

PREZENT

We should buy the house

I should go for a walk

PAST TENSE

if we had money,

if the weather were fine

(la vb. to be se foloseşte

forma were la toate

persoanele)

III

CONDITIONAL TRECUT

We should have bought the

house

PAST PERFECT

If we had had money.

Dacă propoziţia condiţională conţine verbele be, have, could

sau should, se poate omite conjuncţia if şi se face inversiunea

subiect- verb auxiliar:

e.g. Were I in your place, I should not do it. = If I were in your

place, I should not do it. Dacă aş fi în locul tău n-aş face-o. Had he

found out about this, he would have been angry. = If he had found

about this, he would have been angry. Dacă ar fi aflat asta, s-ar fi

înfuriat

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Should + infinitivul poate fi folosit în propoziţii condiţionale

de tip I şi II iar were to + infinitivul în propoziţii condiţionale de tip

II pentru a exprima un grad mare de incertitudine:

e.g.: If she should call let me know. Dacă se întâmplă să sune,

anunţă-mă.

If she were to call, I would be happy. De ar suna cumva, aş fi fericit.

Will poate fi folosit în propoziţii condiţionale de tip I şi

would în propoziţii condiţionale de tip II cu valoare de verb modal a

voi.

e.g. If you will come, I’ll be happy. De vei vrea să vii, voi fi fericit.

If you would come, I would be happy. Dacă ai vrea să vii aş fi

fericit.

In limba engleză este permisă folosirea timpului viitor după

if doar când acesta introduce o propoziţie completivă directă.

e.g. I don’t know if he will accept this. Nu ştiu dacă va accepta

asta.

EXERCISES:

83

THE MARKET (I)


How would you define the term market? What kind of

activity takes place on the market?

What are the two categories of economic agents that meet

on the market?

What happens if the goods are scarce? What if they are

abundant?

What is a beneficiary/ producer?

How would you define the word price?

Where is the selling and buying price settled?

What do the demand and supply depend on?

The market is a notion that reflects a very complex reality, different

and varied in time and space. Its content and meaning has gradually

enriched so that nowadays it synthesises the most important

characteristics of modern economies, which are also called market

economies. That’s why, in order to understand the way these

economies exist and function, we must first try to define the concept

of ’market’.

WHAT IS THE MARKET?

There’s not a unanimously accepted definition of the term

market but all opinions concerning its meaning have common aspects

which point out the fundamental element, absolutely necessary in

order to define the already above- mentioned term.

So, the market is primarily considered to be the economic

space where the economic activity itself takes place and where

individuals and companies act as economic agents. Obviously the

economic space has a physical determination and it always represents

a region on Earth.

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Secondly the market is considered to be the meeting place for

the economic agents, which can be divided in two large categories:

the buyers and the sellers. In any of its actions on the market an

economic agent can only perform one of the two capacities

mentioned but if an economic agent performs one or more actions on

the same market or on different markets it may be both a buyer and a

seller.

Thirdly, it’s on the market where the demand and supply of

goods and services meet and the bearers of these are the buyers and

respectively the seller or, to put it in another way, the beneficiaries

and the producers. Both the supply and the demand are one against

the other in a structural and sizeable relation according to which the

economic agents plan their future activity.

If the demand for certain merchandise or service exceeds the

supply the producers do their best to enhance that type of activity,

out of which greater quantities of the respective product can be

obtained. On the contrary, if the demand is below the supply they

face the necessity to reduce the respective activity.

Fourthly it’s on the market where the selling and buying price

for the economic goods is settled and depending on this price the

economic agents decide what and how much to supply or to buy. The

higher the selling price of certain merchandise, the more tempted the

economic agents to produce and supply it on the market, but

concurrently, the buyers’ temptation to buy decreases. The lower the

price of certain merchandise, the more tempted the economic agents

to buy it, but at the same time many lack interest in manufacturing it.

Prices are the tool by which the invisible hand – as the market

is called – coordinates individuals’ desire and limits how much

people are willing to buy, how much they really want. When goods

are scarce, the market reduces people’s desires for those scarce

goods; as their price go up, people buy fewer and fewer. As goods

become abundant, their prices go down, and people want more of

them. The invisible hand sees to it that what people want matches

what’s available. In doing so, the invisible hand co-ordinates

individuals’ wants.

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Fifthly competence is the one that regulates the market

(competence is the market’s regulator); the relations which settle

among the economic agents inside/ within the same economic space

are relations inside of which every one tries to fulfil his activity and

goals.

The market appears under several actual forms: fairs and public

market halls, networks made up of stores with several branches,

chains of supermarkets, exhibitions where goods may be sold,

transactions made among companies and specialized agents, etc.

Among these types of markets, the commodity markets occupy a

very important place as they are the place where commodities like:

cereals, cocoa, coffee, sugar, soy(a), oil, non-ferrous metals like

copper, aluminium, tin, but also flowers, animals, and others are

traded.

It can be concluded that the market represents the whole range of

actions or facts by which the buyers and the sellers come into contact

with each other and change goods and services, irrespective of the

place where these actions are carried on.

WORDS AND WORDS COMBINATION available [∂'veil∂bl] – disponibil; la îndemână; accesibil be willing to – a fi dispus, gata de, pregătit de, înclinat să bearer – (ec.) purtător, susţinător capacity – calitate; aptitudine, capacitate; volum, capacitate; in my capacity as… – în calitatea mea de…, ca… commodity – (ec.) articol de comerţ, (pl.) mărfuri; obiect de uz

curent, lucru folositor concurently [k∂n'kΛr∂ntli] – simultan, în acelaşi timp, totodată decrease [di:'kri:s] – a reduce, a micşora, a diminua, a descreşte enhance [in'ha:ns] – a mări, a spori, a intensifica fair [fε∂] – târg, iarmaroc, bâlci; a day after the fair – la spartul

târgului, prea târziu goal [goul] – ţintă; scop; misiune

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irrespective of [iris'pektiv ∂v] – independent de, fără a ţine seama de, indiferent de

lack [læk] – lipsă, nevoie trebuinţă; articol care lipseşte; (vb.) a lipsi, a nu se găsi, a avea mare nevoie de; for lack of – din lipsă de, neexistând; bread is the chief lack – pâinea este principalul articol care lipseşte

manufacture [mænјu'fæt∫∂] – fabricare, manufactură, prelucrare; produs; (ec.) producţie; a fabrica, a confecţiona, a produce; a născoci, a inventa, a plăsmui

market – piaţă, târg, obor; (vb.) a vinde, a lansa pe piaţă; a face piaţa marketable – (d. marfă) vandabil; cotat, negociat la bursă marketeer – vânzâtor în piaţă merchandise [m∂: t∫∂ndaiz] – marfă, mărfuri scarce [skε∂s] – care se găseşte rar, puţin; a scarce book – o carte rară scarcety – deficit, lipsă de, puţinătate sizable = sizeable [saiz∂bl] – de mărime mare, voluminos supply – aprovizionare, furnizare, livrare; a aproviziona; a furniza, a livra¸a alimenta cu; (ec.) ofertă, fond, credit; (pl.) furnituri(de birou, croitorie etc.); provizii, merinde, alimente synthesize [`sinθisaiz]/ synthetize [`sinθitaiz] – a sintetiza trade – comerţ, (vb.) a face comerţ whole range – o gamă întreagă

EXERCISES:

87

THE MARKET (II) THE LAW OF DEMAND AND SUPPLY

DEMAND

Necessities, which are the reason of being of every economic activity are found or met on the market as demand of goods and services. Demand is the expression of the necessities which can be satisfied by means of the market, under the conditions imposed by the already existing restrictions, by the price rising or by price evolution. The accentuation of restrictions is often felt on the market by a rise in the price and, as a consequence of this rise, by a tendency of decrease of demand or a tendency of slow growth of demand. If on the contrary, restrictions lessen, the price can remain constant, grow more slowly or decrease and demand tends to grow. That’s why demand is defined as being the quantity in which a good is bought depending on its price during a certain period of time. To put it briefly the Law of Demand is : The more of a good will be demanded the lower its price, other things constant. Or alternatively: The less of a good will be demanded the higher its price, other things constant. This law is fundamental to the invisible hand’s ability to co-ordinate individuals’ desires: as prices change, people change how much of a particular good they’re willing to buy. To be clear about the meaning of the law of demand, economists differentiate the concepts demand and quantity demanded. Demand refers to a schedule of quantities of a good that will be bought per unit of time at various prices. Quantity demanded refers to a specific amount that will be demanded per unit of time at a specific price. In graphical terms, demand refers to the entire demand curve which tell how much of a good will be bought at various prices. Quantity demanded refers to a point on a demand curve; so, when

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economists talk about movements along a demand curve, they mean changes in quantity demanded. To understand the law of demand you also must understand the phrase ‘other things constant’. Other things constant is a translation of the Latin phrase ceteris paribus. Sometimes economists just use ceteris paribus without translating it. But what does ’other things constant’ mean? Say that over a period of two years, the price of cars rises as the number of cars sold likewise rises. That seems to violate the law of demand, since the number of cars sold should have fallen in response to the rise in price. Looking at the data more closely, however, we see that a third factor has also changed: individuals’ income has increased overall. As income increases, people buy more cars, increasing the demand for cars.

The increase in price works as the law of demand states - it decreases the number of cars bought. But in this case, income doesn’t remain constant: it increases. That rise in income increases the demand for cars. That increase in demand outweighs the decrease in quantity demanded that results from a rise in price, so ultimately more cars are sold. If you want to study the effect of price alone - which is what the law of demand refers to - you must make adjustments to hold income constant when you make your study. That’s why the qualifying phrase, other things constant, is an important part of the law of demand. How much somebody wants to buy a good depends on many other things beside its price. These include individuals’ tastes, prices of other goods, and even the weather. Those other factors must remain constant if you are to make a valid study of the effect of an increase in the price of a good on the quantity demanded on it. In practice it’s impossible to keep all other things constant, so you have to be careful when you say that when price goes up, quantity demanded goes down. It’s likely to go down, but it’s always possible that something besides price has changed. Economists recognise that many things besides price affect demand. They call them shift factors of demand. A shift factor of demand is something, besides the merchandise’s price, that affects how much of the good is demanded. Important shift factors of demand include:

1. Society’s income.

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2. The prices of other goods. 3. Taste.

4. Expectations. These aren’t the only shift factors. In fact anything - except price changes - that affects demand (and many things do) is a shift factor. While economists agree these shift factors are important, they believe that no shift factor influences how much is demanded, as consistently as price of the specific item does. That’s what makes economists focus on price as they try to understand the world. That’s why economists make the law of demand central to their analysis.

SUPPLY

In one sense, supply is the mirror image of demand. Individuals control the inputs, or resources, necessary to produce goods. Such resources are often called factors of production. Individuals’ supply of these factors to market mirrors other individuals’ demand for those factors. For example, say you decide you want to rest rather than weed your garden. You hire someone to do the weeding; you demand labour. Someone else decides he would offer more income instead of more rest; he supplies labour to you. You trade money for labour; he trades labour for money. Here supply is the mirror image of demand.

For a large number of goods, however, the supply process is more complicated than demand. For a large number of goods, there’s an intermediate step in supply. Individuals supply factors of production to firms. Firms are organisations of individuals that transform factors of production into consumable goods. For produced goods, supply depends not only on individuals’ decisions to supply factors of production; it also depends on firm’s ability to produce - to transform those factors of production into consumable goods. The supply of non produced goods is more direct. Individuals supply their labour in the form of services directly to the goods markets. For example, an independent contractor may repair your washing machine. That contractor supplies his labour directly to you. Thus, the analysis of the supply of produced goods has two parts: an analysis of the supply of factors of production to households and

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firms, and an analysis of why firms transform those factors of production into consumable goods. In talking about supply the same convention exists that we have used for demand. Supply refers to the various quantities offered for sale at various prices. Quantity supplied refers to a specific quantity offered for sale at a specific price. There’s also a law of supply, which corresponds to the law of demand. The law of supply states the quantity supplied of a good is positively related to that good’s price, other things constant. Specifically: The more of a good will be supplied the highest its price, other things constant. Or: The less of a good will be supplied the lower its price, other things constant. Price regulates quantity supplied just as it regulates quantity demanded. Like the law of demand, the law of supply is fundamental to the invisible hand’s (the market’s) ability to co-ordinate individuals’ actions. What accounts for the law of supply? When the price of a good rises, individuals and firms can rearrange their activities in order to supply more of that good to the market, substituting production of that good for production of other goods. Thus, the same psychological tendency of individuals that underlies the law of demand - their determination to want more for less - underlines the law of supply. Individuals and firms want the highest price they can get for the smallest possible quantity they can supply.

With firms, there’s a second explanation of the law of supply. Assuming firms’ costs are constant, a higher price means higher profits (the difference between a firm’s revenues and its costs). The expectation of those higher profits leads it to increase output as price rises, which is what the law of supply states. When you have a market in which neither suppliers nor demander can organise and in which prices are free to adjust, economists have a good answer for the question: ’What happens if quantity supplied does not equal quantity demanded? If quantity

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supplied is greater than quantity demanded (that is, if there is excess supply), some suppliers won’t be able to sell their goods. Each supplier will think:’Gee, if I offer to sell it for a bit less, I’ all be the lucky one who sells my good; someone else will be stuck with not selling their good’. But because all suppliers with excess goods will be thinking the same thing, the price in the market will fall. The reverse is also true. Say that instead of excess supply, there’s excess demand: quantity demanded is greater than quantity supplied. There are more demanders who want the good than there are suppliers selling the good. Let’s consider what’s likely to go through demander’ minds. They’ll likely call long - lost fiends who just happen to be sellers of that good and tell them it’s good to talk to them and, by the way, don’t they want to sell that…? Suppliers will be rather pleased that so many of their old friends have remembered them, but they’ll also likely see the connection between excess demand and their friends’ thoughtfulness. To stop their phone from ringing they’ll likely raise their price. The reverse is true for excess supply. It’s amazing how friendly suppliers become to potential demanders when there’s excess supply. This tendency for prices to rise when demand exceeds supply and for prices to fall when supply exceeds demand it’s a phenomenon economists call the first dynamic law of supply and demand. When quantity demanded is greater than quantity supplied, prices tend to rise. When quantity supplied is greater than quantity demanded, prices tend to fall. How much pressure will there be for prices to rise or fall? That, too, will likely depend on differences between quantity supplied and quantity demanded. The greater the difference, the more pressure there is on individuals to rise or lower prices. If you are a seller (supplier) and all your old friends are calling you (there’s major excess demand), you’ll simply put a message on your answering machine saying: ’the price has gone up 200 or 300 per cent. If you are still interested in talking about old times, say on the line. Otherwise, it was nice knowing you’. If, however, only a couple of old friends call you (there’s only minor excess demand) you’ll

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probably raise your price only slightly. Or if you are a buyer (demander) and there’s major excess supply, you’ll leave the following message: ‘If you are trying to sell me anything, I’m broke and can only pay less than what you ask.’ Thus, the second dynamic law of supply and demand is:

In a market, the larger the difference between quantity supplied and quantity demanded, the greater the pressure on prices to rise (if there is excess demand) or fall (if there is excess supply).

People’s tendencies to change prices exist as long as there’s some difference between quantity supply and quantity demanded. But the change in price brings the law of supply and demand into play. As price falls, quantity supplied decreases as some suppliers leave the business (the law of supply); and as some people who originally weren’t really interested in buying the good think, ‘Well, at this low price, maybe I do want to buy’, quantity demanded increases (the law of demand). Similarly, when price rises, quantity supplied will increase (the law of supply) and quantity demanded will decrease (the law of demand).

Whenever quantity supplied and quantity demanded are unequal, price tends to change. If, however, quantity supplied and quantity demanded are equal, price will stay the same because no one will have an incentive to change it.

This observation leads to the third dynamic law of supply and demand:

When quantity supplied equals quantity demanded, prices have no tendencies to change.

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be likely – a fi probabil, verosimil; be likely to happen – a fi posibil

să se întâmple

be stuck – a fi blocat, a fi înţepenit

growth [grouθ] – creştere

incentive [in`sentiv] – (s.) stimulent, interes; imbold, îndemn; (adj.)

stimulator, încurajator

input – furnizare, intrare, admisie, absorbţie; putere de alimentare

lessen – a micşora, a reduce, a diminua

likewise [laikwaiz] – în acelaşi mod, fel, chip; mai mult decât atât, pe

lângă asta, în plus

overall – total, general, global; în întregime, complet,

raise, ed, ed, [reiz] – a avansa; a strânge, a aduna (fonduri); a ridica

(în picioare), a pune pe verticală, a se ivi, a apărea, a trezi

(interes); a construi

rise [raiz], rose[ rouz], risen [rizn] – (d. preţuri, salarii) a creşte, a se

ridica, a se urca, a se sui; a răsări; a se scula (de pe scaun

sau dimineaţa)

schedule [`∫edјul] – program, plan, schemă; orar, grafic, tabel; listă,

inventar; anexă; a trece pe listă, inventar, a programa; on

schedule – punctual, la timp; to be behind schedule – a fi

în întârziere

shift – schimb, tură; schimbare, mutare, deplasare; a schimba; to

work in shifts – a lucra în schimburi

thoughtfulness – meditare, gândire, chibzuială; chibzuinţă, prudenţă;

atenţie, consideraţie, grijă

EXERCISES:

94

INTRODUCTION TO ACCOUNTING

CONCEPTS (I)

Accounting is considered to be a profession like law and

medicine because accountants have special abilities and

responsibilities and they have to serve decision makers by providing

them with financial information in order to help them reach better

decisions.

The main function of accounting is to provide the necessary

information to those who make investments, credit and similar

decisions. Those who make decisions may be investors, lenders,

managers of business, those who sell or who buy from businesses.

When the owners and managers of business, individual investors and

banks make decisions about economic entities they must be answered

certain questions like: what resources and debts does the business

own, what is its earned income, are the expenses justified, can the

debts be paid in time, should new products be introduced and the

operations expended, should the price be increased, should the

investments be bought, kept or sold, should a company by granted

credit, is it able to pay its current debts? The answers to these

questions are found in accounting reports.

Accounting and bookkeeping are two different things and very

often people mistake them for each other. While bookkeeping is

critical to accounting, it is only the clerical part of the accounting

process. That is, bookkeeping is the part of accounting that records

transactions and other events, either manually or with computers.

Accounting, on the other hand, is concerned with identifying how

transactions and events should be described in financial reports. It is

also concerned with designing bookkeeping systems that make it

easy to produce useful reports and to control the operations of the

business. Thus, the work of the accountant is much broader than

bookkeeping; accounting involves more professional expertise and

judgement than bookkeeping because the accountant must analyse

complex and unusual events and must be able to interpret the

information contained in accounting reports.

185 183

95

Accountants practice in three fields of accounting – financial

accounting, management accounting and tax accounting.

Financial Accounting provides information to decision makers

who are not involved in the day-to-day operations of an organisation.

These decision makers include investors, lenders, and others. The

information is distributed primarily through general purpose financial

statements. Financial statements describe the condition of the

organisation and the events that happened during the year. Many

companies issue their financial statements only after they have been

subjected to an audit. The purpose of an audit is to add credibility to

the financial statements. For example banks require audits of the

financial statements of companies applying for large loans. Also the

law requires companies to have audits before their securities (stocks

and bonds) can be sold to the public. In performing an audit, the

auditors examine the statements and the accounting records used to

prepare them. During the audit, the auditors decide whether the

statements reflect the company’s financial position and operating

results in agreement with generally accepted accounting principles.

These principles are rules adopted as guides in measuring, recording,

and reporting the financial affairs and activities of a business.

Management Accounting. The field of management accounting

involves providing information to the managers of organisations.

Management accounting reports often include much of the same

information provided through financial accounting but also

information not reported outside the company. The activities related

to management accounting are:

General Accounting. The task of recording transactions,

processing the recorded data, and preparing reports for managers of

businesses and government agencies is called general accounting.

General accounting also includes preparing the financial statements

presented to investors, lenders and others.

Cost Accounting. One management accounting activity is called

cost accounting because it is designed to help managers identify,

measure, and control operating costs. Cost accounting information is

also useful for assessing the performance of managers who are

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96

responsible for controlling costs. Goods management requires

knowledge of costs so that they can be controlled.

Budgeting. The process of developing formal plans for future

business and government activities is called budgeting. A primary

goal of budgeting is to provide managers with a clear understanding

of the activities to be undertaken and completed to accomplish the

company’s objectives.

Internal auditing. Just as independent auditing adds credibility to

financial statements, internal auditing adds credibility to reports

produced and used within an organisation. Internal auditors not only

evaluate the record- keeping processes but also assess whether

managers throughout the organisation are following established

operating procedures. Internal auditors also evaluate the efficiency of

the operating procedures.

Management Advisory Services. Public accounts participate in

management accounting when they provide management advisory

services to their clients.

Tax Accounting. Many taxes raised by state are based on the

income earned by taxpayers who include both individual and

corporate business. The amount of taxes is based on what the tax

laws define to be income. Tax accountants help taxpayers comply

with these taxes by preparing their tax returns.


assess, ed, ed – a evalua

audit [`o:dit] – (ec.) bilanţ; revizie contabilă; a revizui

auditing committee [`כ:ditiŋ k∂`miti] – comisie de revizie

auditor – (ec.) revizor contabil

bond – (ec.) obligaţiune; bond issue – emitere de obligaţiuni

budget [`bΛdЗit] – buget; a aloca, a repartiza prin buget; buget for –

a aloca, a prevedea în buget, a trece în buget; introduce/open the

budget – a prezenta bugetul

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budgetary [`bΛdзitri] (adj.) (ec.) – bugetar; budgetary deficit –

deficit bugetar

clerical (d. o activitate) – de redactare, de birou

complete – a încheia, a desăvârşi, a perfecţiona

critical – decisiv, hotărâtor, critic

event [i`vent] – eveniment

expend – a extinde

grant – a acorda, a da, a aloca; a recunoaşte, a accepta; a garanta

involve – a implica

judgement – judecată, discernământ; părere, opinie; hotărâre

provide – a furniza, a aproviziona, a se îngriji pentru

security – (ec.) garant, chezaş, girant; titlu de valoare; garanţie,

siguranţă, integritate

statement – (ec.) extras de cont; situaţie, evidenţă, raport

stock – (ec.) capital, fonduri, numerar, depuneri; acţiuni (la bursă)

stock account – cont de capital

stock adventurer – speculant de acţiuni

stock broker – agent de bursă

stock company – societate pe acţiuni

stock exchange – bursă (de valori)

throughout [θru'aut] – complet, în toate privinţele, în întregime;

pretutindeni, peste tot; de-a lungul

thus [ðΛѕ] – astfel

undertake – a întreprinde, a iniţia, a face; a experimenta, a trece prin

EXERCISES:

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98

INTRODUCTION TO FINANCIAL

CONCEPTS (II)

FINANCIAL STATEMENTS. Financial statements communicate

accounting information to managers and other decision makers.

These statements are the primary product of the accounting process.

The first financial statement widely used is the income statement.

The income statement is considered by many people to be the most

important financial statement. The income statement is important

because it shows whether the business earned a profit (also called net

income), which is one of its primary operating objectives. A net

income is earned if the company’s revenues exceed its expenses; a

net loss is incurred if the expenses exceed the revenues.

Revenues are inflows of assets received in exchange for goods or

services provided to customers as part of the major or central

operations of the business. Instead of inflows of assets, revenues may

also occur as decreases in liabilities. You should think of an asset as

a property or a property right. You can also think of a liability as a

debt owed by a business.

Expenses are outflows or the using up of assets as a result of the

major or central operations of a business. Instead of outflows or the

using up of assets, expenses may also occur as increases in liabilities.

The balance sheet. The purpose of the balance sheet is to provide

information that helps users understand the financial status of the

business and that’s why it is often called the statement of the

financial position. The balance sheet describes financial position by

listing the types and amounts of assets, liabilities, and equity of the

business. Equity is the difference between a company’s assets and its

liabilities.

Assets, Liabilities and Owner’s equity. In general, the assets of a

business are the properties or economic resources owed by the

business. More precisely, assets are defined as probable future

economic benefits obtained or controlled by a particular entity as a

result of past transactions or events. One familiar asset is cash.

Another asset consists of amounts owed to the business by its

customers for goods and services sold to them on credit. This asset is

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called accounts receivable. In general, individuals who owe

amounts to the business are called debtors. Other assets owed by

business include; merchandise held for sale, suppliers, equipment,

buildings, and land. Assets also can be intangible rights, such as

those granted by a patent or copyright.

The liabilities of a business are its debts. Liabilities are defined

more precisely as probable future sacrifices of economic benefits

arising from present obligations of a particular entity to transfer

assets or provide services to other entities in the future as a result of

past transactions or events. One common liability consists of

amounts owed for goods and services bought on credit. This liability

is called accounts payable. Other liabilities are: salaries and wages

owed to employees, taxes payable, notes payable, and interest

payable.

A liability represents a claim against a business. In general, those

who have the right to receive payments from a company are called its

creditors. From the creditor’s side, a liability is the right to be paid

by a business. If a business fails to pay its debts, the law gives the

creditors the right to force the sale of the business’s assets to obtain

the money to meet their claims. If the assets are sold under these

conditions, the creditors are paid first, up to the full amount of their

claims, with the remainder going to the owner of the business.

Equity is defined as ‘the residual interest in the assets of an entity

that remains after deducing its liabilities’. Equity is also called net

assets.

The statement of changes in owner’s equity presents information

about what happened to equity during a time period. The statement

shows the beginning amount of equity, the events that increased it

(new investments and net income), and the events that decreased it

(net loss, if any, and withdrawals).

The Statement of Cash Flows. The fourth financial statement is

the statement of cash flow, which describes where cash came from

and where it went during the period. The statement also shows how

much cash was on hand at the beginning of the period, and how

much was left at the end. This information is important because good

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cash management is essential if a business is to prosper or even

survive.

The first of the statement of cash flows shows the amount of cash

provided by the operating activities of the business. The amount

specified here includes cash received from customers in transactions.

The amount here equals the total revenues in case all fees are

collected in cash. If some revenues are not received in cash, or cash

is collected for work done in a prior month the amount of cash

received will not equal the revenues. The first section also lists cash

payments for salaries and rent expenses. These amounts are shown in

parenthesis to indicate they are to be subtracted.

The second section of the statement of cash flows displays the

amount of cash paid out for investing activities. Investing activities

are the events that turn cash into some other assets or that turn some

assets into cash.

The third section of the statement shows the cash flows caused by

financing activities which involve borrowing cash from creditors and

investments of cash by the owner. Financing activities also involve

repayments of loans and withdrawals by the owners.


accounts payable – credite pe termen scurt (datorii actuale sau

plătibile într-un an)

accounts receivable – conturi debitoare; credit furnizor (sume

datorate pt. servicii sau bunuri vândute pe credit)

assets – active, mijloace, bunuri

balance sheet – bilanţ contabil

cash flow statement – situaţia fluxurilor de numerar

deduce – a deduce

equities – titluri de valoare (ce reprezintă capitalul deţinut)

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inflow – (ec.) încasări

on hand – la dispoziţie

revenue – venit (anual); câştig(uri), beneficii; bunuri care constituie

surse de câştig

revenue authority – autoritate fiscală, fisc, percepţie

revenue office – administraţie financiară, fisc

revenue officer – administrator financiar, perceptor

EXERCISES:

102

RECORDING TRANSACTIONS.

BUSINESS PAPERS (I)

The printed documents that businesses use in the process of

completing transactions are called business papers. They include

such things as sales slips or invoices, checks, purchase orders,

customer billings, employee earnings records and bank statements.

Because they provide evidence of business transactions and are the

basis for accounting entries, business papers are also called source

documents.

For example, if you buy a pocket calculator on credit, two or more

copies of an invoice are prepared. One copy is given to you, the other

is sent to the store’s accounting department and becomes the basis

for an entry to record the sale. On the other hand, if you pay cash the

sale is rung up on a cash register that records and stores the amount

of each sale. The total cash sale for a day becomes the basis for an

entry to record the sales.

Business papers such as sales invoices often are used by both the

seller and the buyer as a basis for recording the transaction in their

accounting records.

To summarize, business papers are the starting point in the

accounting process. Furthermore, verifiable business papers, provide

objective evidence of completed transactions and the amounts at

which they should be recorded.

In accounting for an entity, the different effects of its business

transactions must be recorded and stored in separate locations so that

they can be stored and combined when financial reports are prepared.

These locations in the accounting system are called accounts. A

separate account is used to summarize the increases and decreases in

each asset, liability, and owner’s equity item that appears on the

balance sheet. Further, a separate account is used for each revenue

and expense item that appears on the income statement.

The specific accounts a business uses, depend on the assets owed, the

debts owned, and the information it needs to obtain from the

accounting records. While different businesses use a variety of

accounts, the following ones are widely used:

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Asset Accounts

If the accounting system is to provide useful information

about the different assets of a company, you must keep a separate

account for each kind of asset owned. Generally, accounts are kept

for the following common assets:

Cash. Increases and decreases in cash are recorded in a Cash

account. The cash of a business consists of money or any medium of

exchange that a bank accepts for deposit. Cash includes coins,

currency, checks and postal and bank money orders. The balance of

the Cash account shows both the cash on hand in the store or office

and the cash on deposit in the bank.

Accounts Receivable. Goods and services are commonly sold to

customers on the basis of oral or implied promises of future payment.

Such sales are called credit sales or sales on account; and the oral or

implied promises to pay are called accounts receivable. Accounts

receivable are increased by credit sales and decreased by customer

payment. So here we find amounts not yet collected from customers,

who are usually given 30, 60 or 90 days to pay.

Notes Receivable. A promissory note is an unconditional written

promise to pay a definite sum of money on demand or on a defined

future date. When amounts due from others are evidenced by

promissory notes, the notes are known as notes receivable and

recorded in a Notes Receivable Account.

Prepaid Insurance. Insurance contracts normally require payment in

advance for protection against losses. The amount paid is called a

premium and the protection lasts for a period from one to more than

three years. As a result a large part of the premium may be an asset

for a considerable time after payment. When an insurance premium

is paid in advance, the payment normally is recorded in an asset

account called Prepaid Insurance. Thereafter, whenever financial

statements are prepared, the cost of the insurance that has expired is

calculated and recorded as an expense, and the balance of the Prepaid

Insurance account is reduced accordingly.

Office Supplies. Stamps, stationery, paper, pencils and similar items

are called office supplies. They are assets when purchased and

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continue to be assets until used up. As the supplies are used up, their

cost becomes an expense.

Store Supplies. Wrapping paper, carton, bags, tape and similar items

are called store supplies. Increases and decreases in such items are

recorded in Store Supplies Account.

Equipment. Increases and decreases in physical assets such as

machinery, furniture, automobiles, trucks, typewriters, computers,

faxes, furniture, or physical assets used in the selling operations of a

store like counters, cash registers are commonly recorded in an

Office Equipment account

Buildings. A building used by a business in carrying on its

operations may be a store, garage, warehouse or factory. Such assets

are commonly recorded in a building account. If several buildings are

owned, a separate account may be kept for each building.

Land. Land does not imply the buildings on it but, as buildings wear

out, the land is recorded in a separate account.

These last three accounts are also referred to as Fixed Assets.

Liability Accounts Recall that liabilities are present obligation to transfer assets

or provide services to other entities in the future. A business may

have several different liabilities, each of which requires a separate

account. The following are common:

Accounts Payable. When purchases are made on the basis of oral or

implied promise to pay, the amounts owed are called accounts

payable. The items purchased on credit may be merchandise,

supplies, equipment, or services. Since a business must know the

amount owed to each creditor, a separate record must be kept of the

purchases from and the payments to each creditor. All increases and

decreases in accounts payable are recorded in a single Accounts

Payable account.

A company also owes salaries to its employers, interest on funds

borrowed from banks and from bondholders, fees, insurance

premiums, pensions and similar items. If unpaid at the date of the

balance sheet, these expenses are grouped as a total under Accrued

Expenses Payable.

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Notes Payable. When an entity makes a formal written promise to

pay a definite sum of money to a bank or other creditor, on a definite

future date, the liability is called a note payable. Depending on how

soon the liability must be repaid, it is recorded in a Short- Term

Notes Payable account or in a Long- Term Notes Payable account.

Unearned Revenues. Revenues should not be reported on the income

statement until the revenues are earned. The problem raised is how to

record a cash receipt from a customer for products or services that

are to be delivered at some future date. Because receipts such as this

are received in advance of being earned, they are called unearned

revenues. An unearned revenue is a liability that will be satisfied by

delivering the product or service that was paid for in advance (legal

fees collected in advance by a lawyer, rent collected in advance by a

building owner).

Owner’s equity, withdrawals, revenues, expenses accounts.

Capital Account. When a person invests in his own proprietorship,

the investment is recorded in an account that carries the owner’s

name and the word Capital.

Withdrawals Account. The net assets of the business increases if the

business earns income and the owner may choose to leave the

additional assets invested in the business, or may, from time to time,

withdraw assets from the business. As the owner withdraws assets

(for personal living expenses or uses), both the equity and the

owner’s equity of the business are reduced. To record the withdrawal

of assets by the owner an account that has the owner’s name and the

word withdrawal is used. This account is also known as personal

account.

Revenue and Expenses Accounts. Here are listed all revenues and

expenses under names such as: for revenues- Commissions Earned,

Legal Fees Earned, Interest Earned; for expenses: Advertising

Expense, Store Supplies Expenses, Insurance Expenses.

Check your comprehension: What do business papers include?

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Why are they called source documents? What do accounts depend on? Name the most widely used accounts. Define accounts receivable. Define notes receivable. Define prepaid insurance. What are fixed assets? Define unearned revenues. Define withdrawal account. WORDS AND WORD COMBINATION accrue – acumulare anticipată accrued expenses payable – cheltuieli plătibile acumulate furthermore – mai mult decăt atăt, în plus, invoice – factură; to write/send an invoice – a scrie/ trimite o factură note payable – notă plătibilă (sumă datorată de o firmă unei bănci

sau altui creditor sub formă de împrumut pe termen scurt) note receivable – notă de încasat (sumă datorată unei firme sub

forma unei note de către un client sau debitor) premium – primă; primă de penalizare; agio prepaid expenses – cheltuieli în avans prepaid insurance – asigurare plătită în avans promissory note – bilet la ordin recall – a-şi aminti ring up – a da semnalul de începere slip – bilet, hârtie, foaie statement – situaţie, evidenţă, raport verifiable [veri`fai∂bl] – care poate fi verificat withdrawal – retragere wrapping paper – hârtie de ambalat

EXERCISES:

107


BUSINESS PAPERS (II)

The size of a business generally affects the number of

accounts that is used to record its transactions. A small company may

get by with as few as two dozen accounts, while a large company

may use several thousand accounts. Depending on the accounting

system, the accounts may take different forms. In a computerised

system, each account is stored on a disk. In a manual system, each

account is placed on a separate page in a bound or loose-leaf book, or

on a separate card in a tray of cards.

Regardless of the physical form the accounts of a business

may take, the collection of accounts is called ledger. If the accounts

are kept in a book, the book is the ledger. If they are kept on cards in

a file tray, the tray of cards is the ledger. In other words, a ledger is

simply a group of accounts.

All companies should follow a systematic method of

assigning identifying numbers to their accounts. A list of all the

accounts used by a company, showing the identifying number

assigned to each account, is called a chart of accounts. One example

of a system that service business might use in developing a chart of

accounts is to assign numbers as follows:

Assets accounts: 101 through 199.

Liability accounts: 201 through 299.

Owner’s equity accounts: 301 through 399.

Revenue accounts: 401 through 499.

Notice that the first (or hundreds) digit of the numbers assigned to

asset accounts is 1, the first (or hundreds) digit of the numbers

assigned to liability account is 2, and so on. In each case, the first

digit of an account’s number tells its balance sheet or income

statement classification. The second and third digits further identify

the account.

In its simplest form, an account looks like the letter T and it

is called a T- account. (This type of account eliminates details and

allows someone focus on ideas; in real world accounting systems T-

account are not used. Balance column accounts are.) Anyway, let’s

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say a few words about them in order to get familiar to some other

accounting terminology.

The T format gives the account a left side and a right side and

a place for the name of the account. When such account is used to

record the increases and decreases in an item, increases are placed in

one side and decreases in the other. Acting like this, it is easy to

determine the balance of an account. To do so, you simply add the

increases shown on one side and the decreases on the other and then

subtract the sum of the decreases from the sum of the increases.

Regardless of the type of the account, the account balance is the

difference between its increases and decreases.

Debits and Credits. In accounting, the left side of a T account

is called the debit side, abbreviated “Dr“; the right side is called

credit side, abbreviated “Cr“. These abbreviations are the remnants

of the 18th

century English practice, when the terms used were

Debtor and Creditor. The abbreviations take the first and the last

letters from the words, just as is done for Mister (Mr.) and Doctor

(Dr.)

When amounts are entered on the left side of an account, they

are called debits, and the account is said to be debited. When

amounts are entered on the right side, they are called credits, and the

amount is said to be credited. The difference between the total debits

and the total credits recorded in an account is the account balance.

The balance may be either a debit balance or a credit balance. It is a

debit balance when the sum of the debits exceeds the sum of the

credits. It is a credit balance when the sum of the credits exceeds the

sum of the debits. The words to debit and to credit should not be

confused with to increase and to decrease. To debit means to enter

an amount on the left side of an account. To credit means to enter an

amount on the right side. Whether a debit (or credit) is an increase or

a decrease depends on the type of account.

Before transactions are recorded in the accounts, they are

first entered in a journal. This practice links together the debits and

credits of each transaction. Remember the rule: all transactions

should be recorded first in a journal. After the transactions are

entered in a journal, the debit and the credit information about each

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transaction is copied from the journal to the ledger accounts. These

procedures reduce the likelihood of errors. And, if errors are made,

the journal record makes it possible to trace the debits and the credits

into the accounts for the purpose of locating the errors. The process

of recording transactions in a journal is called journalising

transactions. The process of copying journal entry information from

a journal to a ledger is called posting. Since transactions are first

journalised and then posted to the ledger, a journal is called a book

of original entry and a ledger a book of final entry.

The simplest and most flexible type of journal is a General

journal, designed so that it can be used to record any type of

transaction. For each transaction, it provides places for recording: the

transaction date, the names of the accounts involved, the amount of

each debit and credit, an explanation of the transaction. When a

transaction involves three or more accounts, it is recorded in the

general journal with a compound journal entry. That is, a compound

journal entry involves three or more accounts.


assign – a atribui, a destina; a fixa, a stabili

card – fişă, cartelă

chart [t∫a:t] – diagramă, tabel, grafic

chart of accounts- planul conturilor

charter – statut

entry – înregistrare, trecere pe listă; a înregistra; to make an entry –

a face o înregistrare; book of entries – registru de intrări

journal – jurnal

journalize – a înregistra într-un jurnal

ledger – carte mare; registru de intrări ce înregistrează tranzacţiile

financiare ale unei firme

likelihood – posibilitate

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link – legătură, verigă; a uni

loose- leaf – foaie volantă

post – (ec.) a transcrie în cartea mare

regardless of [ri`ga:dlis] – indiferent de, fără a ţine seama de;

regardless of expenses – indiferent de cost / preţ

remnant – rămăşiţă, rest

tray [trei] – compartiment ( de cufăr); tavă

EXERCISES:

111

LEGAL FORMS OF BUSINESS ORGANIZATIONS

There are three legal forms of business organisation. The three forms are single (or sole proprietorships),

partnerships, and corporations. The simplest and easiest form of business organisation is a

single proprietorship (or sole proprietorship) which is owed and operated by one person who may start the business with limited funds. Small retail stores and service enterprises are commonly operated as single proprietorships. The owner of such an enterprise has the complete freedom and independence over his business, he is free to work as much as he pleases, to hire whoever he pleases and to decide upon the earned net income which belongs to him entirely. No person can interfere. He also has the right to withdraw the profits earned or he may decide where and when to reinvest the income in the already existing business in order to extend it. Single proprietorships are the most numerous of all types of businesses but still they have some drawbacks; besides the great responsibility, they have restricted financial resources- these are limited to the owner’s financial resources, so expansion is limited and they also have limited life –as they stop to exist when the owner dies.

To put it briefly, if you are starting a business of your own, you’ll most likely start a sole proprietorship, easy to start, and controlled by you, the owner. You are the business, you do what you want when you want. If you decide to expand, you’ll likely hire a few employees and if you do this you are still the owner but if you want to expand more and diversify the product line or increase output of the current product you’ll find it difficult to raise capital necessary for expansion. Shortage of funds is one of the biggest problems facing most small business. A partnership is that type of business owed and operated by two or three individuals called partners, voluntarily associated, who contribute with money, in equal or agreed proportions, or with their skills and know-how. A partnership is defined as the relation that subsists between two or more people carrying on business in common with a view to profit. The relations between the partners are stipulated in the Articles of Partnership where one can find out

112

information about the number of partners, the capital contributed by each and the amount of money or interest one may withdraw, and at what intervals of time(weekly or monthly), the general policy of the firm. All the partners take part in the management of the business and they have equal shares of profit or loss. Like a sole proprietorship, a partnership might have no workers except the owners themselves.

For accounting, a partnership is treated under the business entity principle as separate and distinct from its partners. However, no legal distinction is made between the partnership and its owners with respect to its debts.

A partnership’s advantage over a sole proprietor is that partners can share the work and risk of business. For example one partner might provide funds ant the other might provide business expertise. But at the same time as a result of one partner’s blunders the other one can lose not only what he invested but also his personal assets which may be ordered to be sold by a court to satisfy all the debts of the partnership, even if the amount of the personal assets exceeds the partner’s equity in the partnership. This unlimited liability aspect of the partnership can be an important disadvantage of organising a business with this form.

There are general partnerships (in an ordinary partnership), in which all partners are equal and have joint liability for the debts of the firm in front of the law, and limited partnerships in which one or more (active partners) are responsible and more liable, while the others may be passive investors (sleeping/ silent/ dormant/ secret partners) whose liability is limited to the capital contributed. A partnership is more profitable as its capital, and consequently its profits, are increased. Partnerships are very customary and frequent with professions performed by professionals such as: doctors, accountants, lawyers.

A company or corporation normally signifies a joint stock company and is a separate legal entity. Unlike a single proprietorship or partnership, a company is legally separate and distinct from its owners.

Limited companies came into being as a result of the necessity to overcome the limitations in capital of one man business and partnership.

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The corporation’s equity is divided into units called shares or stock. Therefore, the owners of a corporation are called stockholders or shareholders. Perhaps the most important characteristic of a corporation is its status as a separate legal entity. This means that the corporation is responsible for its own acts and its own debts and by this, the shareholders are relieved of liability for these acts and debts. The separate legal status of a corporation means that it can enter into contacts, can buy, sell, sue or can be sued. In short, this legal status enables the corporation to conduct its business affairs with all the rights, duties and responsibilities of a person. The corporation lacks a physical body, and it must act through its managers, who are its legal agents. This legal status also means that stock can be transferred or sold without affecting the corporation. There are public limited companies or corporations (they have the letters PLC added to their name) which are owned by large number of public investors. These companies consist of a very small number of members who must have a capital of a certain amount before they are allowed to do business, and may sell their shares to the public in order to acquire large amounts of permanent capital. The shareholders receive part of the profit if the corporation is successful and they may trade their shares on the Stock Exchange.

Private limited companies or corporations (have the letters LTD after their name) consist of a number of members (shareholders), do not offer their shares to the public and support expansion of business from their own expenses and earnings or loans from outside sources.

These both types rest on two main principles: the joint-stock principle, that is the provision of capital through the individual contribution of a large number of investors, and the limited liability principle, that is the limitation of the shareholders’ liability to the nominal value of their share.

The limited liability principle facilitates capital investment required by modern business, as it is the most flexible medium of raising capital. The liability of the investor is limited to the amount he has agreed to contribute into the capital. The investor may invest small or large sum and lastly he may transfer his shares to a third party.

The capital of the company is subscribed by the shareholders. The Board of Directors, elected by the shareholders has in its hands the conduct of the firm and it controls the work of the staff.

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What are the legal forms of business organisation?

What is the drawback in a sole proprietorship?

Define partnership.

Name the types of partnership.

What are the advantages of partnership?

What types of corporations are there?

WORD AND WORD COMBINATION

articles of association/ partnership – contract de asociere/ parteneriat

be on the staff – a face parte din conducere

blunder – boacănă

drawback – neajuns, inconvenient

hire – a angaja

interfere – a se amesteca

joint – comun; joint stock company – societate pe acţiuni

likely – probabil

operate – a conduce, a administra; a mânui

output – producţie

relieve – a degreva, a despovăra; a uşura

retail – [`ri:teil] vânzare cu amănuntul, comerţ în detaliu;

[ri`teil] a vinde cu amănuntul, cu bucata

shortage – lipsă

staff – personal, cadre; conducere a unei întreprinderi

stockholders/ shareholders – acţionari

subscribe – a fi de acord, a subscrie; a iscăli

sue – a da în judecată

with respect to – în ceea ce priveşte, cu privire la

EXERCISES:

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ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES OF CORPORATE FORM.

ORGANIZING A CORPORATION. Teacher: In today’s lesson we are to find out more about business and business organisation. But let’s resume our conversation by a few questions I want you to be those who answer. So, the first question would be: - How can we define partnership? Student: Partnership may be defined as an association of two or more persons who carry on a business for profit as co-workers. T: Right. A partnership is a voluntary association between legally competent people (who are of age and have sound mental capacity), who agree to co-operate in business on the basis of a partner contract. In zour opinion, is the lifetime of a partnership limited? S: I think that death, bankruptcy, free will to terminate a partnership, and any other situation that disables a partner to enter into or fulfil a contract maz put end to a partnership. T: What are the characteristics of the partnership? S: Mutual agency and unlimited liability. By mutual agency we mean that a partner can commit or bind the partnership to any contract and by unlimited liability we mean that partners may be called to pay all the debts of the partnership. T: Well, what can we say about corporations? S: They are fewer in number, but they are the most important form of business organisation. A corporation is a separate legal entity but, as it is not a real person, it acts only through its agents who are officers and managers. It is responsible for its own acts and debts, its shareholders being responsible for neither. A corporation’s ownership is represented by shares of stock. And its life is not tied to the physical lives of its owners. T: You have shown only the advantages of a corporation. Still, there are two disadvantages. First the state’s incorporation laws subject a corporation to considerable control and then the taxation is rather harsh. A corporation has to pay state income taxes that may take a high percentage of its income. However, the tax burden does not end here. The income of a corporation is taxed twice, first as income of the corporation and again as personal income to the shareholders,

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when cash is distributed to them as dividends. This does not happen with a proprietorship or partnership whose income is taxed only as the personal income of their owners. S: How is a corporation created? T: It is created by securing a charter from a state government. Usually a charter application is signed by some of the subscribers, the application must be filed with the appropriate state official, fees are paid and, when the charter is issued, the corporation is formed. S: Who manages a corporation? T: The ultimate control of a corporation rests with its shareholders, but this control is exercised indirectly through the election of the board of directors. Normally a corporation holds a shareholders’ meeting once a year to elect directors and transact other business but those who do not attend the meetings are given the opportunity to delegate their voting rights to an agent and he does this by signing a proxy. A corporation’s board of directors is responsible and has final authority for managing the corporation’s activities. It can only act as a body. An individual director has no power to transact business. The board establishes the corporation’s policy while the day- to- day direction of corporate business is delegated to executive officers appointed by the board to manage business. S: Excuse me, but I don’t understand who the president of a corporation is. T: Traditionally, the chief executive officer is the president of the company, under him there may be several vice-presidents who are assigned specific areas of management responsibility, such as finance, production and marketing. In addition, the corporate secretary keeps the minutes of all the meetings and ensures that all legal responsibilities are fulfilled. You also have to know some other things, about stock for example. When a corporation is organised, its charter authorises it to issue a specified number of shares of stock. If all of the authorised shares have the same rights and characteristics, the stock is called common stock. Many stock have a par value, which is an arbitrary value assigned to the stock when it is authorised. When a corporation sells its stock at a price above the par value, the stock is said to be issued at a premium. A premium on stock is the amount in excess of par paid by the

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purchaser of newly issued stock. If stock is issued at a price bellow par value, the difference between par and the issue price is called a discount on stock. Usually, stock is sold for cash but corporations sometimes sell stock through stock subscriptions that is, if a corporation is in need for cash it sells the stock to investors who agree to contribute cash now by buying a certain number of shares at a specified price. However a corporation may be authorised to issue more than one kind of stock. If two classes are issued one is called preferred stock, which may also be sold at a greater or less value than par, but which include a preference for receiving dividends before the common stockholders, and a preference in the distribution of assets, if the corporation is liquidated. Preferred stock can be either cumulative or noncumulative. Corporations also issue convertible bonds that can be exchanged by the bondholders for shares of common stock.

Check your understanding:

Define mutual agency.

Speak about the taxes a corporation must pay.

How is a corporation created? How is it managed?

What’s a proxy?

What is the meaning of minutes in the text?

Define common stock.

How can corporations sell stock?

What do you mean by preferred stock?

What is the Romanian for bonds?

WORD AND WORD COMBINATION

agency – (ec.) agenţie; instituţie, organizaţie, organ; mijlocire,

intermediu; by/ through the agency of – prin intermediu, cu ajutorul

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agent – agent (al unei societ.); reprezentant, mijlocitor, persoană de

încredere;

charter – cartă, statut

chief executive officer – şeful executivului,

commit oneself to – a-şi lua angajamentul să

commit – a-şi asuma obligaţia

disable – a incapacita, a face neputincios

executive officer – funcţionar superior

file – (am.) a prezenta un document; (engl.) a îndosaria

fulfil – a îndeplini

incorporate – a grupa într-o societate,

safe and sound – teafăr şi nevătămat

sound – întreg, robust, sănătos, logic, raţional, precis, clar

ultimate [`Λltimit] – fundamental, de bază, esenţial; ultim, final

EXERCISES:

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

GAUDEAMUS IGITUR C.W.Kindeleben……………… pag.1

ENGLISH AND AMERICAN MONEY,

MEASURES AND WEIGHT ………………pag. 3

Grammar: Future Perfect. Common Aspect.

The Numeral. The Collective Numeral. Exercises.

TALKING WITH A BANK MANAGER

ABOUT BANK SERVICES ……………...pag. 17

Grammar: Future Perfect. Continuous Aspect.

The Fractional Numeral. The multiplicative Numeral.

The Distributive Numeral. Exercises.

MONEY AND BANKING (I) ………………pag. 29

Grammar: Future in the Past. Common Aspect.

Future in the Past. Continuous Aspect.

Past Conditional. Common Aspect. Exercises.

‘HOW I HONESTLY EARNED THREE DOLLARS’

by Mark Twain ……………….pag. 44

Grammar: The use of SHALL and WILL as Modal

Verbs. Exercises.

MONEY AND BANKING (II) ……………….pag. 52

Grammar: The Passive Voice. Exercises.

AN ADVICE TO A YOUNG TRADESMAN

By Benjamin Franklin ……………….pag. 65

Grammar: Modal Verbs. Execises.

BANKING SERVICES ……………….pag. 79

Grammar: Sequence of tenses. Exercises.

‘WHAT’S MONEY AFTER ALL?’ after

Dombey and Son by Charles Dickens ………………pag. 92

Grammar: Direct and Indirect Spech. Exercises.

THE AMERICAN SUPERMARKET ………………pag. 102

Exercises.

GETTING READY FOR AN INTERVIEW (I) ………pag. 111

Exercises.

GETING READY FOR AN INTERVIEW (II) ………pag. 127

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Grammar: Conditional Clauses.Exercises.

THE INTERVIEW ………pag. 138

Exercises.

THE MARKET (I) ………pag. 144

Exercises.

THE MARKET. THE LAW OF SUPPLY

AND DEMAND (II) ………pag. 152

Exercises.


CONCEPTS (I) ………pag. 161

Exercises.


CONCEPTS (II) ………pag. 167

Exercises.


BUSINESS PAPERS (I) ………pag. 173

Exercises.


BUSINESS PAPERS (II) ………pag. 180

Exercises.

LEGAL FORMS OF BUSINESS

ORGANIZATIONS ..…….pag. 188

Exercises.

ADVENTAGES AND DISADVABTAGES OF

CORPORATE ORGANIZATIONS ………pag. 199

Exercises.

COMPUTERS - THE FUTURE OF MANKIND ………pag. 207

READING AND GRAMMAR EXERCISES ………pag. 211

COMMON ABBREVIATIONS ………pag. 217

TABLE OF CONTENTS ………pag. 225

ENGLISH AND AMERICAN MONEY, MEASURES AND WEIGHTS · 9 She will have worked in this office for forty...

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