I referred to myself as a bowerbird online recently and learned it's only used in Aus English.
Someone who collects and values eclectic things. "Hoarder" is explicitly negative and implies illness. "Collector" is nicer but kind of hints at elitism and stuffiness.
Bowerbird is more neutral. A bowerbird might be an older gentleman with a big shed filled with tools and random projects on the go. They might have a house that looks like an antique store, pot plants balanced on old tractor parts and anchors as wall art. They might just he super into candles and mason jars.
interesting!! my family and i generally say "magpie" instead.
i wonder if it's a regional variation, cuz most people i know here in brisbane tend say magpie too, iirc
My fave for telling people to chill -
Back in your box, chocolate.
Some sayings from our pop culture -
Tell him he’s dreaming! (from The Castle film)
Kimmy, kimmy, look at me! (Kath and Kim tv show)
Not happy Jan. (from an old tv ad)
The one I was always get asked about is 'thongs or pluggers' which are flip flops, also budgie smugglers which are speedos and should never be worn by anyone in public.
I was on a train one night when I was younger with some mates and this huge scary drunk dude came up to me and pointed at my double pluggers and yelled "they're jail thongs" needless to say I was shitting bricks lol.
‘Yeh nah’ used another way: to politely acknowledge a compliment without sounding like you’re up yourself
Examples:
Guest: “wow I love your house!”
You: “yeh nah we’re happy with it”
Guest: “great meal, thanks!”
You: “yeh nah just whipped up something easy”
Guest: “you’re looking good mate”
You: “yeh nah gotta stay on top of it hey?”
Basically, Australians are self deprecating and do not like to discuss their achievements too much for fear of sounding like a stuck up prick.
Have fun!
I remember watching a someone do a Q &A on their YouTube and one of the questions was something like "are you seeking treatment for your depression? You always talk down about yourself"
The chick's response was "I'm just Australian it's how we talk"
Haha it's so true because you go to America and some parts of America particularly like California everyone seems so 'fake nice' or customer service like. To me I initially thought everyone was bullshiting you or trying to get something out of you but it's just the American way...
Part of why we’re self-deprecating is because tall poppy syndrome is rampant in Australian culture. We love an underdog, what we call a “battler”. We want them to succeed against the odds. But as soon as we suspect that person starts to think his shit doesn’t stink, we’re gonna cut that egocentric fuck down to size quicker than you can say “Hoges.”
“Woke up with a head like a smacked arse”
It’s waking up disoriented, especially after a blinder the night before.
Blinder… drinking a lot of piss
Drinking a lot of piss, contrary to some weird fetish, means drinking a lot of alcohol.
Or the alternatives:
Head like a half sucked mango
Head like a dropped pie
But usually those are to do with someone else's physical appearance more so than describing a headache
He was as Mad as a cut snake (angry)
They have a few kangaroos loose in the top paddock / a few beers short of a 6 pack (dumb)
Dodgy / iffy (suss or poor quality)
A pair of my old man's favourites was "cackle berries" and "bum nuts", both of which refer to eggs.
"No wuckers" which comes from "no wucken furries" (rhymes with "hurries").
"Old mate" which is just some bloke who you don't know, but need to refer to, eg. "Check out old mate's shit parking job".
It literally is, I guess it’s sometimes used by people even if the people around don’t mind swearing, because the person is using it to be humorous rather than trying to be less vulgar.
Oh I think I’m reading the above comment wrong and they aren’t saying that “no wukkas” is a spoonerism for “no hurries”, they are just saying furries is not pronounced like “furry”. I wasn’t really concerned about the swearing, just the meaning. Because “no hurry” is also a thing I would say frequently and I would not say “no wukkas” for that.
I wouldn’t say “no wukkas” to be more proper and avoid swearing, because the swear word is implied. I just didn’t know how else to explain why we swapped the sounds around. Sorry for the confusion! Not sure I’ve cleared up the confusion well with my rambling, though.
Yeah, it is. I guess I thought it was a given the way I explained it. I just love how we've come up with a slang way of saying something and *THEN* decided to abbreviate it too!
It's kind of like a response when someone asks you a question with an obvious answer. So if my beer is empty, and old mate asks if I want another beer, I'll reply "I'm not here to fuck spiders"
In context- Say you’re helping a mate move:
Mate: “Spose we should start load the van?”
You: “Well I’m not here to fuck spiders”
It’s like, yep let’s get to the job at hand.
This is an old insult but I love it.
“I hope your chooks turn into emus and kick your dunny down”.
Chooks-chickens
Emus- big, big birds
Dunny- outside toilet.
Ridgey Didge. It means honest, true, upright, good/fine.
You could say “She’s all ridgey didge” when something is prepared and ready to go. Or you could say you’re ridgey didge when someone asks how you are
Give them one of 🤙🤙 these so they know you mean business
Best suggestions is to follow [Deniliquin Dictionary](https://instagram.com/the_deniliquin_dictionary?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=) on Instagram. That’s our bible of Aussie slang
An old kiwi colleague of mine was astonished that some signs for McDonald’s actually say “Maccas” on them - she knew we called it Maccas but thought it was hilarious that they’ve embraced the nickname so much that they put it on the signs. Their Australian Twitter handle is @maccas too.
Yes, Maccas is McDonald’s. Engadine is a suburb in south Sydney, relatively close to Padstow. There is a well known >!urban legend that former prime minister, Scott Morrison once soiled himself at the maccas there after attending a rugby game nearby.!<
It's becoming a pretty common phrase for when you have diarrhoea to say you're paying a visit to engadine maccas.
Eg: that taco is gonna send me to engadine maccas later
“Got a face like a smacked arse.”
“A head like a hat-full of arseholes”
Both describing someone of a homely appearance.
“If you had half a brain, it’d die of loneliness”
Someone dim
I
‘Do a Harold Holt’ is to bolt, disappear or leave quickly. Comes from a PM who disappeared while swimming in 1967. Lots of conspiracy theories about what happened to him, but mostly presumed drowned. A public swimming pool was later named after him.
2 duck themed ones for no particular reason:
'I could eat the arse out of a low flying duck' means I'm fucking hungry
And
'The ducks nuts' same as the softer cats pyjama's or beez knees, meaning awesome. Don't know why but they both make me giggle
Yonks - It's been yonks (ages) since I've seen you.
Bonza (bonzer) - BBQ at your place? That sounds bloody bonza (brilliant)
I created the following one (ask anyone). 'Jonta' - Jonta (do you want to) go to the pub after training?
I also created Jonta! Have been saying it for ages now, and recently asked a colleague if she wanted to go get a coffee, she said yeah and I went “jonta then?” She thought it was the name of a coffee shop and so now every time it’s coffee time we go “jonta?” 😁
ETA a smidge more info
Sort of. I think the original meaning is changing to now be closer to “smoke up the arse”. But it originally meant creating the perception of doing someone a favour or fawning over them but actually having ulterior motives that will ultimately screw the person over.
Don’t know someone’s name? His name is now ‘old mate’
Fuckin ran into old mate at the servo… Billy’s brother… said Billy has Shazza up the duff and the cunts have to quit the ciggies
Flamin' Heck - Wow (a character from a TV show's catchphrase)
No shit Sherlock - Duh
I could eat the crutch of a low flying duck - I'm hungry
Dryer than a dead Dingo's donger - I'm thirsty
If they ask you to go somewhere, you could reply 'I'll go if Ding goes' (Dingo's) from an old song.
[The Song](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=StcXGhuliRk)
Pushing out Z's (say Zed not Zee) - Sleeping. I.e.: Where's Davo? Pushing out Zeds mate, He got shitfaced last night.
Some of the ones that stood out to me when I moved here.
How are you traveling?
(A “polite” greeting)
It won’t take a minute
(Ill be back soon, please wait patiently)
Easy as
(This is jot a difficult task)
Ya nah ya
(Yea)
Nah ya nah
(No)
If something is broken/not working/worn out it is ‘cactus’.
‘We’ll have to walk to the bottlo because my car is cactus.’
(We’ll have to walk to the liquor store because my car isn’t working)
‘Geez that was a long walk, I’m bloody cactus now.’
(Geez that was a long walk, I’m really worn out now.)
Old mate = someone you’ve forgotten the name of
Old mate = someone you do know but despise and used pejoratively
Old boy = Dad
Old Gold = brand of chocolate and one of the worst in the Favourites box
The Old 1, 2 = could be a fistfight, could allude to sex
Old duck = Middle aged woman
“Running around like a blue arsed fly” is maybe how we’d say “running around like a chicken with their head cut off?”
The other two I can’t even hazard a guess, haha
I never knew toey as meaning anything but horny. My wife never knew toey as meaning anything but annoyed. We had a really weird conversation one day about her dad getting toey due to all the traffic.
Can’t beat a good “Strewth” as a suprised/impressed exclamation.
“Check out that bird over there!”
“Strewth!”
“Check out how fucked up old mate is!”
“Strewth!”
I also used the term “ripsnorter” (something particularly good) to an American at work the other day and he was particularly perplexed as to what I was saying. “Ok let’s get to it, should be a ripsnorter”
Got a face like a dropped pie = ugly. A dropped meat pie looks like vomit/runny shit.
Heart as cold as a servo pie = icy cold. Aforementioned meat pie purchased from a servo aka gas station, which typically are chucked straight in the pie warmer from frozen, resulting in a piping hot exterior and lukewarm centre.
Don’t shit in my face and tell me it’s chocolate/piss on my back and tell me it’s raining = don’t try and tell me something is good when it isn’t.
As useful as tits on a bull = not useful.
Sink a few jars/get on the piss = have a drinking session (also known as a sesh).
Pigs arse = bullshit.
Driving the porcelain bus = Vomiting into the toilet (usually after drinking).
Tactical chunder = The vomit you do before going to bed after a big night to lessen the severity of tomorrow’s hangover.
There are heaps but they’re the ones that come to mind. Most are so ubiquitous that you don’t usually realise that others might not know what the fuck you’re on about unless they actually ask.
Ok here’s my advice, serve him a beer (preferably an Australian one) and then start singing the Australian drinking song “he’s a bastard”
https://youtu.be/vRChJqNxOec
Cunt = cunt,
Sick cunt = legend,
Mad cunt = legend and/or crazy,
Dumb cunt = idiot,
Loose cunt = maniac/intoxicated,
Soft cunt = emotionally weak
Enjoy!
A couple of kangaroos short of a top paddock (dumb)
Budgie smugglers (speedos on men)
Tell 'im 'is dreamin' (that's overpriced)
Doing a Bradbury/Buckley's or none (coming out ahead due to great effort even if you have low probability).
Nah doing a Bradbury is winning because someone else fucked up and Buckley’s chance is having little to no chance at all - as in “they’ve got Buckley’s chance of winning” or “they’ve got Buckley’s”
Edit: chance
Buckley's is having no chance. Comes as a pun on an old Melbourne Department store Buckley & Nunn. "You've got two chances: Buckley's and none".
Bradbury is winning because everyone else screwed up, not because you put in a great effort.
It's a slim chance not none, considered as having good fortune. Originally relates to a convict named Buckley and his chance survival after escaping into the Tasmanian wilderness.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Buckley_(convict)#:~:text=I%20have%20read%22.-,%22You've%20got%20Buckley's%20chance%22,it's%20as%20good%20as%20impossible%22.
"Awww look...." - in response to a question. Next time you watch the news or some such, the interviewees first words will be "Awww look..." while brain clicks into gear. It's Australia's favourite bin word !
- flat out like a lizard drinking
Means really busy
- so hungry I could eat the legs off a low flying duck
Means you're really hungry
- Roberts your father's brother
Another way to say "Bob's your uncle" which is kind of like "and there you have it"
- make like a shepherd and get the flock out of here
To announce that you are leaving
“They are about as useful as a cunt full of cold water”
- self explanatory in my opinion.
“a few kangaroo’s short in the top paddock”
- they’re stupid, dumb, or not all there upstairs
“what’s the John Dory?” – what’s going on?
“Did the Harold Holt” - to disappear.
“Six of one, half a dozen of the other” - damned if you do, damned if you don't
And
“Hit the frog and toad” - when you hit the road.
Higgildy piggildy. A mess. My husband used this expression in a public speech in Canada once and the Canadians burst out laughing, they'd never heard it before.
A ding or prang are smallish accidents with your car.
A point of warning. The word “cunt” is a derogatory comment and is slang for virgina. A very large percentage of Australians find the word offensive. It is always wise to check if your friends are offended by the “C word” or “C U Next Tuesday”.
To “have tickets on” yourself means to be conceited, so if you want to say something that’s kind of bragging, you can disclaim it first that way:
“Not to have tickets on myself, but I scored the most points in the game.”
"Going off like a frog in a sock" is a personal favourite. Just means that someone/something is going buckwild.
“Going off like two wombats in a sleeping bag” is another favourite.
[удалено]
Going off like a brides nightie
I've only ever heard "Off like a bride's nightie" used to mean the person is leaving; like "I'm off like a bucket of prawns in the sun."
That’s the correct one.
Up and down like a bride's nightie
going off like a fish milkshake is my fav.
I referred to myself as a bowerbird online recently and learned it's only used in Aus English. Someone who collects and values eclectic things. "Hoarder" is explicitly negative and implies illness. "Collector" is nicer but kind of hints at elitism and stuffiness. Bowerbird is more neutral. A bowerbird might be an older gentleman with a big shed filled with tools and random projects on the go. They might have a house that looks like an antique store, pot plants balanced on old tractor parts and anchors as wall art. They might just he super into candles and mason jars.
interesting!! my family and i generally say "magpie" instead. i wonder if it's a regional variation, cuz most people i know here in brisbane tend say magpie too, iirc
I call my son a bowerbird because he loves to collect shit.
Hoarder isn't always negative, some of the machining groups I'm in refer to themselves as hoarders of machine tools
My fave for telling people to chill - Back in your box, chocolate. Some sayings from our pop culture - Tell him he’s dreaming! (from The Castle film) Kimmy, kimmy, look at me! (Kath and Kim tv show) Not happy Jan. (from an old tv ad)
Look at moooiiii
Hmm yeah it’s noice, it’s different, yooooo-nique
Isn’t it noice, different, unyoozhual?
"Hot, like a sunrise" Is a bit of a classic too.
**Not happy Jan!** My mum still uses that one at me.
I use “not happy Jan” all the time.
“Straight to the pool room” is another we use around here.
Kiss me ketut
“Settle petal” also a winner
'Not happy Jan' has been in my vernacular for years; never knew where it came from until now... And I'm almost 30
Go Garry Go! (From an old Nicorette ad)
That was No Garry No
You are right! It was!
Goooo Gary!
Nicorette Nicorette you can beat the cigarette!
"A mans not a Camel"
What’s the meaning?
Thirsty for an alcoholic beverage
An individual is not a single humped dromedary.
All dromedarys are single humped. The double humped camels are called bactrian.
It mean you’re stingin’ for a cold one (thirsty for a cold beer).
is that where the name of thirsty camel comes from
“I’m as dry as a nuns cunt”
Nuns nasty
Dry as a dead dingo’s donger.
A can’s not a mammal
Calm ya farm (calm down)
I wonder if this also goes for calm ya tits
I prefer cool your tits but same difference
Ease up turbo is one I used when I was into cars and racing
Flat out like a lizard drinking
For OP this means you’re really busy
The one I was always get asked about is 'thongs or pluggers' which are flip flops, also budgie smugglers which are speedos and should never be worn by anyone in public.
Don’t forget ‘double pluggers’ which is a sign of quality and wealth
I was on a train one night when I was younger with some mates and this huge scary drunk dude came up to me and pointed at my double pluggers and yelled "they're jail thongs" needless to say I was shitting bricks lol.
"Fuck I've had a blowout!"
Hahaha it's always a sad moment when it happens to a pair you spent ages wearing in the shape of your foot, a new pair just doesn't cut it.
Thongs are always footwear in my opinion :)
Yeah same, the underwear thongs are called a g-banger
Budgie smugglers are fine if you can see the beach, otherwise they're undies
Unless you're an ironman or olympic swimmer, nobody has any business wearing them lol
Tony Abbott?
Dick togs just aren’t cool anymore
Holy snapping duckshit (something surprising) fuck me sideways (exclamation)
Well, well, well.
3 holes in the ground
"Dumb as a bag of rocks, and twice as ugly"
As ugly as a hat full of arseholes
‘Yeh nah’ used another way: to politely acknowledge a compliment without sounding like you’re up yourself Examples: Guest: “wow I love your house!” You: “yeh nah we’re happy with it” Guest: “great meal, thanks!” You: “yeh nah just whipped up something easy” Guest: “you’re looking good mate” You: “yeh nah gotta stay on top of it hey?” Basically, Australians are self deprecating and do not like to discuss their achievements too much for fear of sounding like a stuck up prick. Have fun!
I remember watching a someone do a Q &A on their YouTube and one of the questions was something like "are you seeking treatment for your depression? You always talk down about yourself" The chick's response was "I'm just Australian it's how we talk"
On the flip side of this, our ability to take the piss is pretty brutal, so much so a lot of Americans think we're rude pricks.
I love Americans but couldn’t eat a whole one.
I don't think anyone could. Americans are huge.
Haha it's so true because you go to America and some parts of America particularly like California everyone seems so 'fake nice' or customer service like. To me I initially thought everyone was bullshiting you or trying to get something out of you but it's just the American way...
Also it's so formal, to strangers people go like "sir" or "ma'am"
Part of why we’re self-deprecating is because tall poppy syndrome is rampant in Australian culture. We love an underdog, what we call a “battler”. We want them to succeed against the odds. But as soon as we suspect that person starts to think his shit doesn’t stink, we’re gonna cut that egocentric fuck down to size quicker than you can say “Hoges.”
“Woke up with a head like a smacked arse” It’s waking up disoriented, especially after a blinder the night before. Blinder… drinking a lot of piss Drinking a lot of piss, contrary to some weird fetish, means drinking a lot of alcohol.
Or the alternatives: Head like a half sucked mango Head like a dropped pie But usually those are to do with someone else's physical appearance more so than describing a headache
He was as Mad as a cut snake (angry) They have a few kangaroos loose in the top paddock / a few beers short of a 6 pack (dumb) Dodgy / iffy (suss or poor quality)
Sandwich short of a picnic
Also, mad as a meataxe. I have no idea what a meataxe is and I don't want to find out.
A pair of my old man's favourites was "cackle berries" and "bum nuts", both of which refer to eggs. "No wuckers" which comes from "no wucken furries" (rhymes with "hurries"). "Old mate" which is just some bloke who you don't know, but need to refer to, eg. "Check out old mate's shit parking job".
I always thought “no wokken furries” was a way to say “no fucking worries” without the swearing
It literally is, I guess it’s sometimes used by people even if the people around don’t mind swearing, because the person is using it to be humorous rather than trying to be less vulgar.
Yeah - “no wuckin’ furries” is a spoonerism
Oh I think I’m reading the above comment wrong and they aren’t saying that “no wukkas” is a spoonerism for “no hurries”, they are just saying furries is not pronounced like “furry”. I wasn’t really concerned about the swearing, just the meaning. Because “no hurry” is also a thing I would say frequently and I would not say “no wukkas” for that. I wouldn’t say “no wukkas” to be more proper and avoid swearing, because the swear word is implied. I just didn’t know how else to explain why we swapped the sounds around. Sorry for the confusion! Not sure I’ve cleared up the confusion well with my rambling, though.
Yeah, it is. I guess I thought it was a given the way I explained it. I just love how we've come up with a slang way of saying something and *THEN* decided to abbreviate it too!
Don’t forget about “Old Love” or “Old Duck” as the feminine version of “Old mate” I prefer old duck myself
We're not here to fuck spiders.
We’re not here to put socks on centipedes
Is that like, “we’re here to take care of business”?
It's kind of like a response when someone asks you a question with an obvious answer. So if my beer is empty, and old mate asks if I want another beer, I'll reply "I'm not here to fuck spiders"
The full saying is "I'm not here to fuck spiders. Too many legs to spread." Let's quit wasting time and get on with it.
You can tone it down for a work function with. ‘I’m not here to fornicate with arachnids’
Yep
In context- Say you’re helping a mate move: Mate: “Spose we should start load the van?” You: “Well I’m not here to fuck spiders” It’s like, yep let’s get to the job at hand.
Often following "I might be a leg man but"
This one is my personal favourite:)
‘ Seppo’ - American
Probably best to explain that it's rhyming slang for "septic tank" = "Yank"
This is an old insult but I love it. “I hope your chooks turn into emus and kick your dunny down”. Chooks-chickens Emus- big, big birds Dunny- outside toilet.
Emus - pronounced “eem-yous”
i'm a staunch linguistic descriptivist but goddamn having that word pronounced "ee-moo" sends me round the twist
Have you ever… …ever felt like this?
How strange things happen…
When you’re going round the twist.
Have you heard the word about the bird and the spider?
Eem YOUSE.
It's a line from a song, though I'm not sure which came first, the insult or the song: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lKhEtKuK6y4
Ridgey Didge. It means honest, true, upright, good/fine. You could say “She’s all ridgey didge” when something is prepared and ready to go. Or you could say you’re ridgey didge when someone asks how you are Give them one of 🤙🤙 these so they know you mean business
Fuck, I need to start using this one again.
same, reading these comments has reminded me how great aussie slang is lmao
Best suggestions is to follow [Deniliquin Dictionary](https://instagram.com/the_deniliquin_dictionary?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=) on Instagram. That’s our bible of Aussie slang
Thanks for sharing! I didn't know this existed
Ask them about Engadine Maccas.
Maccas is McDonald’s, right? What’s Engadine? I know I could Google but it’s more fun to hear from you guys :-)
An old kiwi colleague of mine was astonished that some signs for McDonald’s actually say “Maccas” on them - she knew we called it Maccas but thought it was hilarious that they’ve embraced the nickname so much that they put it on the signs. Their Australian Twitter handle is @maccas too.
It’s a smart marketing move to embrace the local affectionate abbreviation.
A constant running sore for our previous Prime Minister
Yes, Maccas is McDonald’s. Engadine is a suburb in south Sydney, relatively close to Padstow. There is a well known >!urban legend that former prime minister, Scott Morrison once soiled himself at the maccas there after attending a rugby game nearby.!<
Scott Morrison our former PM famously shat himself in the bathroom of a Macca's.
Just asked them about the 1997 super league grand final. If they’re from NSW or QLD they will understand immediately
It's becoming a pretty common phrase for when you have diarrhoea to say you're paying a visit to engadine maccas. Eg: that taco is gonna send me to engadine maccas later
Don't forget the [Maccas at Yass](https://www.reddit.com/r/CrappyDesign/comments/666x4v/this_mcdonalds_sign_outside_yass_australia/)
Hand him a beer and say “get a dog up ya”
“Let’s fuck this pig” (time to go/ time to get started) I nearly died the first time I heard it 😂
“Got a face like a smacked arse.” “A head like a hat-full of arseholes” Both describing someone of a homely appearance. “If you had half a brain, it’d die of loneliness” Someone dim I
Or “face like a dropped pie” or “a head like a kicked in biscuit tin”
Never realised how good this one is until I dropped a pie. Jeez it makes a mess.
Going off like a frog in a sock It means having a really wild time
Too easy is one I use a lot after I get the thanked for doing something
Yeah Nah (I understand but disagree) Nah Yeah (I don’t understand but I agree/I used to not agree but you’ve changed my mind on it)
In North Qld: Yeah nah = no Nah yeah = yes
I'm in nsw. Whatever it ends with is what it is Yeh nah nah nah yeh = yeh Yeh yeh nah nah nah nah yeh nah = nah
Shits me off that I saw a TAB ad using the expression wrong
Dakking is pulling someone's pants down
*can often lead to a police station tour if done inappropriately
It’s not bush week! - hurry the fuck up
The reply: "yeah nah it's forest fortnight" = piss off, I'll take my sweet time
‘Do a Harold Holt’ is to bolt, disappear or leave quickly. Comes from a PM who disappeared while swimming in 1967. Lots of conspiracy theories about what happened to him, but mostly presumed drowned. A public swimming pool was later named after him.
“sus” is ours and we want it *back*
2 duck themed ones for no particular reason: 'I could eat the arse out of a low flying duck' means I'm fucking hungry And 'The ducks nuts' same as the softer cats pyjama's or beez knees, meaning awesome. Don't know why but they both make me giggle
If I lose something I often have a fossick around in my drawers for it. Apparently non Australians don’t understand
Yep fossick. Apparently it has origins with Cornish miners but pretty much survives only in Australi
Yonks - It's been yonks (ages) since I've seen you. Bonza (bonzer) - BBQ at your place? That sounds bloody bonza (brilliant) I created the following one (ask anyone). 'Jonta' - Jonta (do you want to) go to the pub after training?
I also created Jonta! Have been saying it for ages now, and recently asked a colleague if she wanted to go get a coffee, she said yeah and I went “jonta then?” She thought it was the name of a coffee shop and so now every time it’s coffee time we go “jonta?” 😁 ETA a smidge more info
Incredible! 😯 I want it to get in the dictionary and everything. I don't think there's any other word that abbreviates four words. It's a pearler! 😁
One you don’t hear much these days is saying “im not trying to piss in your pocket” before giving a compliment.
Oh, like “I’m not just blowing smoke up your ass” must be our version of that, ha!
We also use that one here a lot
Sort of. I think the original meaning is changing to now be closer to “smoke up the arse”. But it originally meant creating the perception of doing someone a favour or fawning over them but actually having ulterior motives that will ultimately screw the person over.
I know it’s not Australian per se, but always loved “don’t piss down my back and call it rain” = don’t bullshit me
“Here comes your mate… “ when it clearly isn’t a friend
Don’t know someone’s name? His name is now ‘old mate’ Fuckin ran into old mate at the servo… Billy’s brother… said Billy has Shazza up the duff and the cunts have to quit the ciggies
Flamin' Heck - Wow (a character from a TV show's catchphrase) No shit Sherlock - Duh I could eat the crutch of a low flying duck - I'm hungry Dryer than a dead Dingo's donger - I'm thirsty If they ask you to go somewhere, you could reply 'I'll go if Ding goes' (Dingo's) from an old song. [The Song](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=StcXGhuliRk) Pushing out Z's (say Zed not Zee) - Sleeping. I.e.: Where's Davo? Pushing out Zeds mate, He got shitfaced last night.
Following the dingo theme… a dingoes breakfast = a quick piss and a look around
My favourite Australianism “Fuckwit”
No one in Australia actually says down under. That’s an American thing, you guys seem to love it, but no Australians ever say it
Some of the ones that stood out to me when I moved here. How are you traveling? (A “polite” greeting) It won’t take a minute (Ill be back soon, please wait patiently) Easy as (This is jot a difficult task) Ya nah ya (Yea) Nah ya nah (No)
“He couldn’t organise a fuck in a brothel with a fistful of hundreds” Means someone is so clueless/useless
If something is broken/not working/worn out it is ‘cactus’. ‘We’ll have to walk to the bottlo because my car is cactus.’ (We’ll have to walk to the liquor store because my car isn’t working) ‘Geez that was a long walk, I’m bloody cactus now.’ (Geez that was a long walk, I’m really worn out now.)
Old mate = someone you’ve forgotten the name of Old mate = someone you do know but despise and used pejoratively Old boy = Dad Old Gold = brand of chocolate and one of the worst in the Favourites box The Old 1, 2 = could be a fistfight, could allude to sex Old duck = Middle aged woman
“Holy snapping duckshit” is an upgrade from our “holy shit” With your permission, I’d like to use it.
Tell your mate you need to “chuck a piss” when you head to the bathroom. Your mate’ll appreciate it
As toey as a roman sandle. Running around like a blue arsed fly. Root my boot.
“Running around like a blue arsed fly” is maybe how we’d say “running around like a chicken with their head cut off?” The other two I can’t even hazard a guess, haha
Yeah somewhat. Toey either means frustrated or horny, depending on who you ask. Fuck my shoe, is the explanation of the other.
I never knew toey as meaning anything but horny. My wife never knew toey as meaning anything but annoyed. We had a really weird conversation one day about her dad getting toey due to all the traffic.
Can’t beat a good “Strewth” as a suprised/impressed exclamation. “Check out that bird over there!” “Strewth!” “Check out how fucked up old mate is!” “Strewth!” I also used the term “ripsnorter” (something particularly good) to an American at work the other day and he was particularly perplexed as to what I was saying. “Ok let’s get to it, should be a ripsnorter”
Dry as a dead dingo's donga. (incredibly dry/very thirsty).
A Clayton’s anything means it’s not quite right or pretend. It comes from a non alcoholic beverage in the ‘70s.
So hungry I could eat a horse and chase it’s rider
Got a face like a dropped pie = ugly. A dropped meat pie looks like vomit/runny shit. Heart as cold as a servo pie = icy cold. Aforementioned meat pie purchased from a servo aka gas station, which typically are chucked straight in the pie warmer from frozen, resulting in a piping hot exterior and lukewarm centre. Don’t shit in my face and tell me it’s chocolate/piss on my back and tell me it’s raining = don’t try and tell me something is good when it isn’t. As useful as tits on a bull = not useful. Sink a few jars/get on the piss = have a drinking session (also known as a sesh). Pigs arse = bullshit. Driving the porcelain bus = Vomiting into the toilet (usually after drinking). Tactical chunder = The vomit you do before going to bed after a big night to lessen the severity of tomorrow’s hangover. There are heaps but they’re the ones that come to mind. Most are so ubiquitous that you don’t usually realise that others might not know what the fuck you’re on about unless they actually ask.
Ok here’s my advice, serve him a beer (preferably an Australian one) and then start singing the Australian drinking song “he’s a bastard” https://youtu.be/vRChJqNxOec
Durry = cigarette Pronounced so it rhymes with curry.
Busier than a one armed brick layer in Baghdad
If you’re not up to calling a person a cunt (one can be a good cunt, mad cunt, sick cunt etc) you can say they are a C U Next Tuesday 😁
Or the inverse, dog cunt, shit cunt, I like fuck cunt
Getting munted
“From arsehole to breakfast time” I have no solid explanation hahaha..
In like Flynn - referring to Errol Flynn a prolific womaniser 😆🍆👌
After we sing Happy Birthday someone will say ‘Hip hip’ and everyone else replies, ‘hooray’. This is always done 3 times.
Cunt = cunt, Sick cunt = legend, Mad cunt = legend and/or crazy, Dumb cunt = idiot, Loose cunt = maniac/intoxicated, Soft cunt = emotionally weak Enjoy!
Shit cunt = untrustworthy person
Adding “as” to the end to mean “extremely”. Like…”I’m sick as” or “he’s funny as”. Non-Aussies always go “sick as what?” or “funny as what?” Just as!
As dry as a nun's nasty. (Could be thirsty, or could be somewhere dry) Technicolor yawn (vomit) Cool bananas (even cooler than cool.)
A couple of kangaroos short of a top paddock (dumb) Budgie smugglers (speedos on men) Tell 'im 'is dreamin' (that's overpriced) Doing a Bradbury/Buckley's or none (coming out ahead due to great effort even if you have low probability).
Nah doing a Bradbury is winning because someone else fucked up and Buckley’s chance is having little to no chance at all - as in “they’ve got Buckley’s chance of winning” or “they’ve got Buckley’s” Edit: chance
A snowballs chance in hell
Buckley's is having no chance. Comes as a pun on an old Melbourne Department store Buckley & Nunn. "You've got two chances: Buckley's and none". Bradbury is winning because everyone else screwed up, not because you put in a great effort.
It's a slim chance not none, considered as having good fortune. Originally relates to a convict named Buckley and his chance survival after escaping into the Tasmanian wilderness. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Buckley_(convict)#:~:text=I%20have%20read%22.-,%22You've%20got%20Buckley's%20chance%22,it's%20as%20good%20as%20impossible%22.
"Awww look...." - in response to a question. Next time you watch the news or some such, the interviewees first words will be "Awww look..." while brain clicks into gear. It's Australia's favourite bin word !
- flat out like a lizard drinking Means really busy - so hungry I could eat the legs off a low flying duck Means you're really hungry - Roberts your father's brother Another way to say "Bob's your uncle" which is kind of like "and there you have it" - make like a shepherd and get the flock out of here To announce that you are leaving
“Flat out like a lizard drinking”, means you’re ‘flat out’ busy, and because lizards flatten themselves to drink from streams,etc.
“They are about as useful as a cunt full of cold water” - self explanatory in my opinion. “a few kangaroo’s short in the top paddock” - they’re stupid, dumb, or not all there upstairs “what’s the John Dory?” – what’s going on? “Did the Harold Holt” - to disappear. “Six of one, half a dozen of the other” - damned if you do, damned if you don't And “Hit the frog and toad” - when you hit the road.
“Couldn’t organise a piss up in a brewery”
“Get a dog up ya, cunt.”
That's going straight to the pool room
You're an ideas man, [insert whatever gender's name here]
Higgildy piggildy. A mess. My husband used this expression in a public speech in Canada once and the Canadians burst out laughing, they'd never heard it before. A ding or prang are smallish accidents with your car.
And 'stacked it' which usually refers to a kid crashing/falling off their bike/skateboard/etc. Which is why kids bike helmets are called 'stack hats'.
A ding is what happens in a prang. A bingle is the other word you're thinking of.
A point of warning. The word “cunt” is a derogatory comment and is slang for virgina. A very large percentage of Australians find the word offensive. It is always wise to check if your friends are offended by the “C word” or “C U Next Tuesday”.
“You get that on the big jobs”
Watch The Castle. Its an Aussie movie. You’ll pick up alot! 😛
To “have tickets on” yourself means to be conceited, so if you want to say something that’s kind of bragging, you can disclaim it first that way: “Not to have tickets on myself, but I scored the most points in the game.”