Laughing all the way to the bank

Feifei
Hello and welcome to The English We Speak. I’m Feifei.

Rob
And hello, I’m Rob.

Feifei
Something funny, Rob?

Rob
Not really … Well, yes actually. I’ve had some luck.

Feifei
Tell me more.

Rob
Well, I bought loads of shares in that new chain of burger restaurants and guess what?

Feifei You’ve got a free burger?

Rob
No, Feifei - the price of the shares has risen and I’ve doubled my money. I’m laughing all the way to the bank! For the first time in my life I’m rich!

Feifei
Calm down, Rob! I think you’d get some strange looks if you went to the bank laughing - the bank has all your money - there’s nothing to laugh about.

Rob
Seriously, Feifei! If I ‘laugh all the way to the bank’, it just means I have made lots of money very easily.

Feifei
Of course!

Rob
Let’s hear some more examples.

Examples
The florist laughed all the way to the bank when she signed a deal to supply all the hotels in the chain with flowers.

Since we bought it, the price of our house has greatly increased. So when we come to sell it, we’ll be laughing all the way to the bank.

Now the two companies have merged, shareholders will be laughing all the way to the bank!

Feifei
This is The English We Speak from BBC Learning English and we’re looking at the funny phrase ‘laughing all the way to the bank’, which means ‘to make lots of money very easily’. But, Rob, buying shares is no laughing matter.

Rob
Why’s that?

Feifei
Shares can go down in value as well as up - and I’ve just read that because someone got food poisoning at one of those burger restaurants, the share price has gone down.

Rob
Oh, so my get-rich-quick plan hasn’t worked.

Feifei
Can you cry all the way to the bank as well?

Rob
Cry all the way to the bank? Yes, I think you can - and I’m going to do that right now. I need to borrow some money. Bye.

Feifei
I can lend you a fiver! Bye.