• Click – kilometre
• Compo – Workers Compensation Insurance
• Knocker – somebody who criticises
• Oz – Australia!
• Quack, or off to the quack – the doctor, or off to the doctor
• Scratchy – instant lottery ticket
• Strides – trousers
• Thingo – Wadjamacallit, thingummy, whatsit
• Togs – swim suit
• Wobbly – excitable behaviour (“I complained about the food and the waiter threw a wobbly”)

• Bonzer – great
• Counter lunch – pub lunch
• Exy – expensive
• It’s gone walkabout – it’s lost, can’t be found
• Rego – vehicle registration
• Snag – a sausage
• Strewth – exclamation, mild oath (“Strewth, that Chris is a bonzer bloke”)
• Ta muchly – thank you very much
• Throne or, on the Throne – toilet or, on the toilet
• Too right! – definitely!

• Battler – a hard working person who is only just making a living
• Chook – Chicken
• Grouse (adj.) – great, terrific, very good
• In the nuddy – naked
• Rage on: to continue partying – “we raged on until 3am”
• Spit the dummy – get very upset at something
• Sprung – caught doing something wrong
• Spunk – a good looking person (of either sex)
• Stone the Crows – Heaven forbid!
• Top End – far north of Australia

As you can see by some of our slang, it can cause mix-ups at times. (re: ‘Spunk’)

• Blow in the bag – take a breathaliser test
• Booze Bus – police vehicle used to catch drunk drivers
• Buckley’s – no chance
• Chewie – chewing gum
• Daks: trousers
• Drink with the flies – to drink alone
• Lippy – lipstick
• Road train – big truck with many trailers (big buggers they are)
• Ropeable – very angry
• Shout – turn to buy – a round of drinks usually (“it’s your shout”)

Hope you enjoyed another round of Learn the Lingo…it must be your shout, I’m thirsty after that!!

Arvo – Afternoon
Blowie – blow fly
Blue – fight or argument
Chrissie – Christmas
Doozey – something very pleasant
Fair go – a chance (“give a bloke a fair go”)
I feel stuffed – I’m tired
I’ll be stuffed – expression of surprise
O.S. – overseas (“he’s gone O.S.”)
Reckon! -  you bet! Absolutely!
Shonky – dubious, underhanded. E.g. a shonky practice, shonky business etc.
Thongs – cheap rubber backless sandals
Woop Woop – invented name for any small unimportant town – “he lives in Woop Woop”

Some of our slang is silly but in a fun way, I’ve always liked woop woop.

As mad as a cut snake  – very angry.

Bizzo – Business, as in “mind your own business”.

Booze Bus – police vehicle used to catch drunk drivers.

Coldie – beer.

Give it a burl – try it, have a go.

Heaps – a lot, e.g. “thanks heaps”, “(s)he earned heaps of money” etc.

Mate’s rate, mate’s discount – cheaper than usual for a “friend”.

Outback – interior of Australia.

Pozzy – position – get a good pozzy at the football stadium.

Ripper – great, fantastic.

She’ll be Apples  – everything will be alright.

Slab – a carton of 24 bottles or cans of beer.

Amber fluid – beer
Big-note oneself – boast or brag
Clayton’s – fake or substitute
Deadset – true, the truth
Earbashing – nagging, non-stop chatte
Hooroo – goodbye
Lob, lob in – drop in to see someone (“the rellies (family) have lobbed”)
Mickey Mouse – excellent, very good
Never Never – the Outback, centre of Australia
Ocker – an unsophisticated person
Piker – Someone who leaves parties early or doesn’t want to socialise
Ridgy-didge – original, genuine
Shoot through – to leave
Tee-up – to set up an appointment
Whinge – complain

Ankle biter – toddler or small child
Bloke – a man or guy
Bludger – generally someone who relies on other people to do things for them; lazy
Bogan – person with little pride in their appearance
Bushie – Someone who lives in the bush
Cobber – a friend
Dag – a funny person or a bit of a goof
Dill – an idiot – but not meant in a nasty way
Dipstick – an idiot or loser
Dole bludger – someone who is on welfare and doing nothing to change it
Drongo – stupid person
Dropkick – an idiot or loser
Fruit loop – fool
Galah – fool or silly person
Hoon – refers to a hooligan, especially driving unsafely, too fast, wrecklessly
Mate – a friend, and often something to call a person when you can’t remember their name!
Mongrel – despicable person
Mug -  gullible person or friendly insult
Nipper – young surf lifesaver
No-hoper – someone who will never do well.
Ocker – an unsophisticated person
Oldies – parents
Postie – postman or mailman
Rellie or relo – a relative
Sheila – a woman (though rarely used in Australia except if it’s someone’s actual name)
Sook – cry baby
Stickybeak – a nosy person
Tall poppies – someone successful
True blue – patriotic
Vejjo – a vegetarian
Yobbo – an uncouth person

I’m definitely a dag at times, and always a good mate!

One thing I feel it’s important to mention here, sometimes Australians are thought of in a bad way and part of that comes from a lack of understanding. Australians are proud of their country, their heritage (no matter where they are from in the world) and also are very accepting of people from other countries. Australians embrace that their country is multi-cultural and we enjoy our mates from far and wide.

In saying that, some of our slang can come across bad and I want to explain that it we might take the mickey out of others, but we’re well known for laughing at ourselves first. We can dish a joke out and we can take one well, that’s what helps make us who we are and why so many people all over the world love us Aussies. None of the terms below are derogatory in any way, they’re often delivered with a smirk and believe me, we get it right back from them all (and love it!)

• Aussie [pronounced Ozzie] – Australian
• Banana bender – a person from Queensland
• Cane toad – a person from Queensland
• Cockroach – a person from New South Wales
• Crow eater – a person from South Australia
• Mexican – a person from Victoria (south of the border)
• Sandgroper – a person from Western Australia
• Taswegian – a person from Tasmania
• Seppo – an American
• Sheepshagger – A New Zealander
• Pom, pommy, pommie – an Englishman (thought to originate from “POHM – Prisoner of Her Majesty” from back in the convict days – when white settlement started here)

So, basically I come from Pommy stock and am married to a Pom, but I was born a Mexican and now I’m a Banana Bender and I’m proud of all of that!

• Ambo – ambulance driver
• Bushranger – outlaw or highwayman (well, they were an occupation for some all those years ago ha ha)
• Cockie – farmer (Cockie is short for Cockatoo, the bird)
• Digger – a soldier
• Fisho – fishmonger
• Garbo or Garbologist – garbage collector
• Greenie – environmentalist
• Gyno – gynaecologist
• Jackaroo – a male station hand – stations are massive farms with a lot of livestock over vast areas.
• Jillaroo – a female station hand
• Journo – journalist
• Milko – milkman
• Offsider – usually an assistant
• Truckie – truck driver
• Weekend Warrior – Someone in the Army Reserve

I’m pretty sure you can work out how these would fit into mainstream ‘talk’.  Feel free to leave a comment to show off your new lingo, or let us know what your occupation is and we’ll try and “Australian-ise” it for you