Vocabulary Lesson #2

Last night we turned on the TV for maybe the third time since we’ve been here. What was playing? Crocodile Dundee, of all things!  It reminded me that it’s time for another Aussie vocabulary lesson.

Much Australian slang is derived from the country’s history. The first settlers to Australia were convicts from England. To communicate with one another without the jailer understanding them, the prisoners shortened some words and rhymed others, hence Cockney Rhyming slang. If you saw Ocean’s 11, you’ll remember the scene where Basher shouts “we’re in real Barney… Barney Rubble – trouble!” Aussies still shorten many words today, for convenience I imagine, rather than avoiding the law. They are great teasers and give back as good as they get. Upon first hearing a bloke insult his "mate" at a bar, you expect a fight to break out. Instead you get laughter and a barrage of wisecracks as they try to outdo one another. Great fun. Here are some examples:

Britney Spears - From the Cockney Rhyming slang: Britney Spears/Beers, as in “a couple of Britneys please, Doreen”.
Fat as a match - Someone who’s actually thin. (Aussies frequently tease each other by describing their opposite)
Monkey bath - A bath so hot, that when lowering yourself in, you go “Oo! Ool Oo! Aa! Aa! Aa!” Try this one on your kids.
A few Kangaroos loose in the top paddock - someone who is mentally 'not quite there,' also a picnic short of a sandwich, lights are on but nobody is home, etc.
A bit more choke and you would have started, mate - A classic. Said to somebody who has just passed wind in public rather loudly. Highlights the Aussies gift for sarcasm.

Shortened words that end in “ie”
Bikkie – biscuit, or cookie in America. Also, “it cost big bikkies” – it was expensive.
Bikie – biker, Hell’s Angels style motorcycle rider. As opposed to biker – a bicycling enthusiast. This still trips me up occasionally.
Brekkie - breakfast.
Cossie – pronounced cozzie. Swimsuit. Short for “bathing costume.”  Also called a "bather", but only in certain parts of the country.
Greenie - environmentalist
Kindie - kindergarten
Mozzie – mosquito
Postie - postman
Rellie - family relative, as in “can’t go fishing this weekend, the rellies are in town.”
Sunnies - sunglasses
Surfies - people who surf (usually more often than they go to work!) A related term is Shark biscuit – somebody new to surfing.
Oldies - parents, as in “I’ll have to ask the oldies.”
Trackie - track suit
Truckie - truck driver
Uni – University. Not to be confused with “college,” which is equivalent to years 11 and 12 of American high school.

Shortened words that end in “o”
Arvo – afternoon
Journo - journalist
Rego – vehicle registration
Thingo – whatchamacallit, thingamabob, gizmo, thingie (my favorite!)
Salvo - The Salvos – Salvation Army, bless them
Yobbo – uncouth person

Expressions (You've probably heard these before)
Right – All right, OK, as in ”She’ll be right, mate.”
Too right! - Definitely!
Ripper - great, fantastic, as in ”It was a ripper party.” Pronounced "rippah potty!"
Ridgy-didge - Original, genuine.

Assorted Nouns
These are Australian, so they don’t always make sense to us Yanks ;-D
Bottle Shop - liquor store
Budgie smugglers - Speedos. So named because they fit so tight there isn’t even enough room for a bird (budgie) and the bulge in front makes it look like the wearer is trying to smuggle a budgie out in his underpants. Hey, I didn't make it up...
Click – kilometre. As in “He’s 10 clicks away.”
Docket - A bill or receipt, as in "May I put the docket in your bag?"
Digger - A soldier. Named for the soldiers in North Africa in WWII who dug trenches to hide in and shoot from. The protection helped them survive the extreme desert heat and wartime conditions.
Hoon - Hooligan. This sounds quaint to our ears, but hooligans are in the same class as petty thieves, gang members and drunk drivers who do donuts in your front yard at 1am. Not nice people.
Hotel – not a hotel at all, but a bar. The Windsor Hotel, which shares a parking lot with our building, is a very large bar. Not a sleeping room to be had there. 
Larrikin: A bloke who is always enjoying himself, harmless prankster. Kind of like Americans think of hooligans.
Squizz (noun): A look. ”Take a squizz at this” means have a look at this or “check this out.” 
Manchester - bedroom linen: sheets, pillowcases, comforters (known as doonas), etc. When you shop for bed linens in Kmart or Target, you go to the Manchester section.
Stubby - A 375-ml beer bottle.
Stubby Holder - Polystyrene insulated holder for a stubby. We’d call it a koozie. Not to be confused with a cossie (swimsuit)!