Key Vocabulary

· rebate (noun): a refund of part of all of the amount paid
- The company offers a fifty-dollar rebate on the purchase of a new cellphone.

· catch (noun): a hidden drawback or disadvantage

- So, there must be a catch to buying this cellphone. I mean, why would the company offer it for free?

· in case (adverb): in the event that
- Bring your phone in case we need to call for help.

· fee (noun): cost, the amount of money you have to pay for something
- There are always a number of fees you have to pay when buying a car.

· charge (noun, also a verb): fee, the amount of money you have to pay for something or (as a verb), require someont to pay money for a product or service

- The store charged me too much for the cell phone, so I'm going to return it.

· nationwide (adverb and adjective): happening around the nation or country
- The cell phone company is promoting their services nationwide.
- That company offers nationwide cell phone coverage.

· roll over (phrasal verb): transfer or carry over

- This is one of the few companies that allows you to roll over your minutes to the next month without losing them.

· term (noun): period of time
- Over the long term, buying a high-quality phone might make the most financial sense.

· lemon (noun): a defective automobile
- I bought a used car at a really good price, but it turned out to be a lemon.

Idioms

to call someone up – to call

Please call me up if you aren’t busy this weekend. I’ll have my cellphone with me.

a thousand apologies – say one is very, very sorry

Hey, Steve. A thousand apologies for not calling you up earlier. My cellphone battery died.