Question
Updated on
24 Apr 2018
- Japanese
-
English (US)
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Question about English (US)
"a buck" basically means "one dollar". But when I saw a movie, someone says "a buck fifty" while the subtitle says "150000 dollars". (It's understandable because it's a cost to fix a zoo.) That means, "a buck" can sometimes means "100000 dollars", right? But why?
"a buck" basically means "one dollar". But when I saw a movie, someone says "a buck fifty" while the subtitle says "150000 dollars". (It's understandable because it's a cost to fix a zoo.) That means, "a buck" can sometimes means "100000 dollars", right? But why?
Answers
24 Apr 2018
Featured answer
- English (US)
So you’re right. Normally a “buck” is $1, and a “buck fifty” is $1.50.
However, we sometimes abbreviate large numbers. This is most common in casual, spoken speech.
For example, if I say:
“I’m looking to buy a house in the 250-300 range.” I actually mean that my budget is $250,000-$300,000. Why? Because in the context of houses, this makes the most sense.
Another example: When I play cards, most players are gambling a few hundred dollars. So sometimes we call $25 a “quarter” (when really a quarter means $0.25, 25 cents). Here, a “buck fifty” might mean $150. This is just because $1 makes no sense here.
So in short, a “buck” can mean $100,000. But it can also mean $1,000 or $1,000,000. You have to think about the context and decide.
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- Japanese
@Nika_ds Thanks, but $1.50 is toooooo small for fixing a zoo. So maybe the subtitle is right. After the scene, the daughter of the main character purely thought it's just $1.50 but the real cost is much more serious, that's how the story goes.
- English (US)
- English (US)
So you’re right. Normally a “buck” is $1, and a “buck fifty” is $1.50.
However, we sometimes abbreviate large numbers. This is most common in casual, spoken speech.
For example, if I say:
“I’m looking to buy a house in the 250-300 range.” I actually mean that my budget is $250,000-$300,000. Why? Because in the context of houses, this makes the most sense.
Another example: When I play cards, most players are gambling a few hundred dollars. So sometimes we call $25 a “quarter” (when really a quarter means $0.25, 25 cents). Here, a “buck fifty” might mean $150. This is just because $1 makes no sense here.
So in short, a “buck” can mean $100,000. But it can also mean $1,000 or $1,000,000. You have to think about the context and decide.
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- English (US)
ah, are you talking about “we bought a zoo?!”
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- Japanese
- English (US)
@popopo33 👍. I think you’ve got the basic idea. “Buck” is normally $1, but can be $100, $1,000, $10,000, etc.
Sometimes there is misunderstanding among native speakers, too. (I might think you mean $10,000 when you really mean $100,000).
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