The Illustrated Dictionary of Australian English

Words and Phrases in Afferbeck Lauder

Sa

sacred site: a place of spiritual significance
They may be hills, rocks, waterholes, trees, plains and other natural features of the landscape, ranging in size from a single stone or plant to an entire mountain range. In coastal and sea areas they may include features which lie both above and below water.
Some are obvious, such as ochre deposits, rock art galleries, or spectacular natural features. In other instances they may be unremarkable to an outside observer.
They are recognised and protected as an integral part of the national cultural heritage, under the Aboriginal Land Rights Act and the Aboriginal Sacred Sites Act.; aboriginal australia
sandgroper: a person from western australia
Either born in WA, or regards it as his or her home.
salute ∼ the great australian salute: to brush flies away
Also known as a barcoo salute or bush salute, it is the waving of one's hand in front of the face at regular intervals in order to prevent bush flies from landing on it, or entering one's nose or mouth.
saltbush: a plant that grows in saline areas

A familiar sight over large areas of the dry desert country of Australia, it is a sprawling grey-blue shrub growing up to 3m high.It is a long living plant, growing strongly after periods of summer rain, producing long tassels of flowering seed heads.
Aboriginal Australians collect the seeds to grind and roast to make damper.
saltie: saltwater crocodile
The swamps, rivers and estuaries across the north are home to one of the biggest, fiercest — and perhaps most misunderstood — predators in the world.
Crocodylus porosus are the world’s largest living reptile, growing up to 6m long and weighing up to a tonne.
Protected since 1970, the population is around 100,000 in the NT alone and probably more than 150,000 Australia-wide.; aussie diminutive
Salvos: the salvation army
The Army's purposes are:

The advancement of the Christian religion …
of education, the relief of poverty, and other charitable objects beneficial to society or the community of mankind as a whole.

It is also the nickname of their op-shops.Let's go down to the salvos.; founded by william booth in 1865
sanga ∼ sanger, sambo: a sandwich; aussie diminutive
sav: saveloy
A highly seasoned sausage, boiled and consumed at fairs, fêtes, agricultural shows and sporting events. Often covered in dead horse and served on a slice of bread or in a bread roll. Also known as a cheerios or little boys.; aussie contraction

Sc

scallywag

rascal, mischievious person

schnozz

nose

school of the air

a system of schooling for children in rural and remote areas
Pioneered in Australia in 1951 to supplement correspondence education. Teachers use high-frequency, two-way radio to broadcast lessons and communicate with students. Email, the internet, video, and fax are also used today.
It remains the most important means of education for children who have no access to school.

schooner

1a 285 ml glass of beer in queensland

2a medium glass of beer in south australia
This word is understood around the country.
For more information see
beer, middy, and seven.

scozzer

a flannie-clad, mullet-sporting yobbo
Australia-wide known as a bogan

Qld: bevan

NSW: westie

Tas: chigger

vic slang

scratchy

instant lottery ticket
Played by scratching the ticket to reveal a prize (if won).

screamer ∼ two pot screamer

a person who has a low tolerance of alcohol

screamer

a spectacular overhead mark

Regarded by many fans of aussie rules as the epitome of skill.

aussie rules

scungies

a brief men's swimming costume
See speedos for a full set of synonyms.

scungy

unpleasant

Se

secret business

ceremony and ritual that is open only to a particular group
The word business in this term is from Aboriginal English, and means ‘traditional Aboriginal lore and ritual’, and is recorded from 1907. Secret business is first recorded much later in 1986, and from it have developed terms with a more specific reference. Secret men's business for ceremony and ritual that is open only to men, and Secret women's business for ceremony and ritual that is open only to women. From the late 1990s the terms transferred into standard aussie english where they are used jokingly in non-Aboriginal contexts.

Kingswood driving is secret men's business – just like pushing a shopping trolley straight is secret women's business.

aboriginal australian english

septic tank ∼ seppo

an american person

rhyming slang: septic tank for yank

servo

petrol station

seven

a seven fluid ounce glass of beer
Throughout the country when you order a beer you will get a seven fluid ounce glass.
See beer, schooner, middy and glass for more information.

shag

sexual intercourse

shaggin' wagon

a panel van
Usually set up with padded velvet, soft lights and stereo, for purposes of seduction.
See panel van for more information.

shag on a rock

someone isolated, lonely, exposed
Everyone pissed off and left me like a shag on a rock!

shithouse

of poor quality, unenjoyable
The movie was shithouse.

shit house

lavatory

sheep shagger

a new zealander

aussie slang first recorded in 1894

sheep's back on the …

a reference to the wool industry

The source of Australia's colonial prosperity, started by the squatters.

sheila

a girl or girlfriend, a woman
Derived either from Sile, an Irish girl's name, or Sile, Gaelic for an effeminate man or homosexual. The first written use of the term appeared in a 1928 edition of the Monitor, which reported on a Saint Patrick Day street brawl in Sydney.

…many a piteus Sheila stood wiping the gory locks of her Paddy.

It is basically a bloke's word; women on the whole do not use it. Some men seem to think it is a neutral word, rather than a derogatory one, and formerly this may have been the truth, but nowadays women in general don't much like being called sheilas. Don't call me a sheila!

first recorded in 1828

shonky

dubious, underhanded

shoot through ∼ like a Bondi tram

make a hasty departure
Two trams typically left the Sydney CBD for Bondi together, the first an express tram which would shoot through from Darlinghurst to Bondi Junction.

aussie slang since 1945

shout

turn to buy
Usually a round of drinks.
The etiquette of a shout

Immediacy Never accept beer if you do not intend to shout on that evening. Shouting "next time" is not acceptable no matter how much interest is involved.

Reciprocal Even worse than the previous rule is accepting beers from the drinking party and then just buying one for yourself when it is your turn.

Consistency Changing drinks on people during a shout is considered poor form. I.e., shouting everyone VBs then asking for a "boutique" beer on the return leg.

Accountability Knocking over someone else's beer will only be tolerated if there is a full replacement on the table.
In some mining communities, the spilling of ones beer requires the guilty party to receive a punch in the arm from all other members of the party which could be up to 60 people.

Egalitarian No matter how much money is earned by each of the party members, or where their money came from, the same shouting rules apply.

Free will The order of the round is determined by each individual volunteering that it is his/her shout. Fellow members should not never have to remind an individual of their obligations to the group. They will only do so in the event of a breach.

Abstaining From time to time an individual may wish to stop getting drunk. Ideally, they should wait till the completion of every group member's rounds before abstaining from future rounds.
If it is essential that they abstain mid-round, they should request a non-alcoholic beverage. This ensures that the first volunteer is not punished for putting their hand up first.
It ensures group equality and it also ensures that the person buying the next round does not feel like a bludger by being remiss in their obligations.

Gender neutral Should a women be given a drink that has been purchased in the course of buying a round, she is subsequently part of the round. All the previous rules thus apply. A round can consist of only two people.

shower

an admonishment that one has more intelligence than another assumes
I'm not stupid, I didn't come down in the last shower!

show pony

someone who tries hard, by his dress or behaviour, to impress those around him

Si

sickie: a period of sick leave, often one day
Usually with the implication that there is insufficient medical reason for the absence from work. Surf's up! I'm chuckin a sickie
skite: boast, brag
skull: to consume a drink – usually alcohol
Drunk in a single draught without taking a breath.
slab: a carton of beer
Usually containing two dozen of either stubbies or cans.
sleepout: a veranda, porch, or outbuilding
Used for sleeping accommodation, especially during hot weather that encourages people to sleep in a sheltered area that might receive cooling night breezes. Sometimes it may be enclosed with windows or walls, eventually becoming a permanent extra bedroom.; aussie slang first recorded in 1915
slouch hat: australian military headdress
Since its inception more than a century ago, the slouch hat has become one of the most distinctive and defining items of Australian clothing. It is made with rabbit-fur or wool felt and has one side of the brim pinned to the side. It has been suggested the pinning made it easier to sling a rifle over the soldier. While that may have been the case, other countries never felt the need to pin one side of their hats to the side in order to sling a rifle over the shoulder. In other words, although the need to sling a rifle over a shoulder was not unique to Australia, no other countries decided to have their soldiers wearing the hat in such a way.Perhaps the Australian soldiers pinned the hat because they put pragmatism over style. Alternatively, military commanders might have encouraged the hat to be pinned because it distinguished Australian soldiers from other soldiers in British allied forces. This distinguishment helped build a unique social identity of the Australian soldiers, which was good for morale.
slushy: a cook's assistant or kitchen hand
sluggos: a brief men's swimming costume
See speedos for a full set of synonyms.
smoko: a break from work for a smoke, coffee, tea, etc.

An institution symbolic of working culture, and even of workers' rights. The Industrial Relations Commission has arbitrated cases of industrial action over workers' entitlement to a smoko, so nowadays even non-smokers can take a smoko break.
snag: a sausage
Probably from British (mainly Scots) dialect meaning a morsel or a light meal.; aussie slang since 1937
sook: one who is soft, inoffensive

Sp

spanner water: very cold water
Because, of course, it tightens the nuts, especially for icebergs.; aussie slang since the 1930s
speccy: a spectacular overhead mark

Regarded by many fans of aussie rules as the epitome of skill.; aussie rules
speedos: a brief men's swimming costume
There are a host of terms for tight-fitting (and revealing) men's swimwear:
sluggos, cock jocks, CJs, DTs, dick togs, dick daks, racers, scungiesSee budgie smugglers for more. a trademark used generically
spewin': very angry
spew: to vomit
spruiker: someone employed to verbally encourage potential customers
sprung: caught doing something wrong
spit the dummy: have a tantrum
sport ∼ a good sport: fair minded person
A good sport is anyone easy to get on with, one who will be in anything.
spunk: a person of either sex who is regarded as sexually attractive
squatter: someone who settled on crown land
One of a group of rural landowners, either free settlers or ex‑convicts, who first took up Crown land in order to graze livestock without government permission.They gained its usage by being the first (and often the only) settlers in the area with a lease or licence and became rich and influential, especially on the sheep's back. colonial era term recorded in 1825 The term soon developed a class association, suggesting an elevated socio-economic status and entrepreneurial attitude.
By 1840 squatters were recognized as being amongst the wealthiest men in the colony of New South Wales, many of them from upper and middle‑class English and Scottish families.Eventually the term came to refer to a person of high social prestige who grazes livestock on a large scale without reference to the title by which the land was held. The term is still used to describe large landowners, especially in rural areas with a history of pastoral occupation.
Hence the term, squattocracy, a play on aristocracy. recorded in 1841See bunyip aristocracy for a related term.
squirrel grip: to grab and crush someone's testicles
To go the squirrel is the practice of gripping another player's testicles in a scrum, maul or tackle in either Rugby League or Rugby Union and is in common use throughout NSW, Qld and the ACT.; rugby slang
squizz: a look
Take a squizz at this.

St

stack: accident, crash, fall
stacks: lots of something
Come over, I've got stacks of beer.
stack on a blue: become extremely angry
stickybeak: a nosy person
stirrer: one who causes trouble
stoked: very pleased
I'll bet you're stoked with your new car.; originally surfie slang
stolen generation: aboriginal children who were taken from their families
From 1883–1969 thousands of Aboriginal children were placed in institutions or fostered with white families.; aboriginal australia
stonkered: perplexed, defeated, cornered
stoush: a fight or brawl
Hence, an argument or altercation.
Used by soldiers to refer to war or a battle.
WWI was commonly known as The Big Stoush.; aussie slang since the 1890s
strewth!: god's truth!
Strewth! That bloke's got no strides on! a mild oath in strine
strides: trousers
strine: aussie slang and pronunciation
Do you have a Gloria Soame? What is an egg Nishner?
What are sex?
And can you tell me where checque etcher londger ray?

Professor Lauder knows the answers!
stubby: a short, squat beer bottle
With a capacity between 330⁓375ml.
The bottle is stubby (short and thick) in comparison with the tall and slender 750ml beer bottle.
Invented in 1965. The expression a stubby short of a sixpack, recorded from the late 1990s, means very stupid; insane’. It combines the Australian stubby with the borrowed American sixpack (a pack of six cans of beer), demonstrating how readily Australian English naturalises Americanisms.; See also Darwin stubby
stubbies: a pair of short pants
stuffed: 1 very tired; 2 broken
stump: a seat
Bus driver welcoming a passenger:
Grab a stump!
stroppy: in a bad mood, being difficult
subbie: sub-contractor
suicide season: a feeling of oppression during the approach of the wet season
Afflicts residents of the top end during the build-up to the wet season and marked by an increase in heat and humidity, causing tension and irritability.
Also called mango madness or simply troppo.
sunnies: sunglasses
surfies: people who go surfing
suss: suspicious
That bloke looks pretty suss.
suss it out: check something
Something's wrong, I'll go and suss it out.
swag: 1 the possessions of one travelling, usually on foot in the bush; 2 the blanket-wrapped roll carried by a swagman
swagman ∼ swaggie: an itinerant worker or a drifter

Welcome to Australia!

This is a peculiar country where the principles of culture appear to have been turned upside down. Australians seem blissfully unaware of the achievements of their intellectuals… yet they will celebrate long dead horses, yobbo sportsmen, and bushrangers.

They often forget the words of their national anthem… yet it would be wrong to say they are not patriotic as a song about a suicidal sheep thief seems to instil them with a great deal of pride.

If they like you, they will not give you compliments. Instead, they might call you names like bastard or drongo — and then laugh at all the silly things you have done. If you have red hair, you might be called Bluey. If you are tall, you might be called Shorty. If you are quiet, you might be called Rowdy.

There is no better way of life in the world than that of the Australian.
I firmly believe this.

The grumbling, growling, cursing, profane, laughing, beer drinking, abusive, loyal-to-his-mates Australian is one of the few free men left on this earth.

He fears no one, crawls to no one, bludgers on no one, and acknowledges no master.

Learn his way. Learn his language. Get yourself accepted as one of him; and you will enter a world that you never dreamed existed.

And once you have entered it, you will never leave it.

Australian history is almost always picturesque; indeed, it is also so curious and strange, that it is itself the chiefest novelty the country has to offer and so it pushes the other novelties into second and third place.

It does not read like history, but like the most beautiful lies; and all of a fresh new sort, no mouldy old stale ones.

It is full of surprises and adventures, the incongruities, and contradictions, and incredibilities; but they are all true, they all happened.
Mark Twain, 1897

first australians

Long before a word of English was ever spoken in Australia, the Aboriginal languages were heard all over the continent.

Each group or mob has its own language, but those languages spoken close to what later became the main centres of European population were those which have had the most influence on modern Aussie English.

Aboriginal words are likely to have been absorbed into Aussie English as local leaders from both native groups and colonists tried to find some tentative common ground; and as the new arrivals sought to find names for the strange new things they were seeing.

Aboriginal words common in Aussie English include yakka, meaning work–common usage is the collocation ‘hard yakka’, and cooee, first used by Aboriginal people calling each other through the bush.

Also of Aboriginal origin is bung, from the aboriginal language Yagara in the Brisbane region, meaning "dead" and by extension "broken" or "useless".

Many place names are Aboriginal — the capital Canberra is so‑named because it means "meeting place" in Ngunnawal, the traditional language of the Ngunnawal and Gandangara peoples.

Commonly used Aboriginal words include many animal names, such as kookaburra, koala, wallaby and dingo.

animals of australia

immigrant influences

Whether convicts or willing migrants, the Europeans who found their way to Australia from the eighteenth century onwards came from a wide range of different groups.

At that time, there were great differences between different British English dialects, so that convicts from different regions of England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland would all have spoken very differently.
Some would not have spoken English at all – being Irish or Scots Gaelic or Welsh speakers.

To understand each other, these groups would have begun to create a common language, and words from various dialects would have become part of a new slang and new idioms.

new australians

The children of those early settlers would have been keen to mark themselves out as Australians, rather than Irish or English, and that meant that new accents and speech patterns developed as quickly as the colony itself did.

It was almost as if an informal Australian school of English and Irish arrivals alike had set itself up. Words which found their way into the language via the convicts include tucker, an Irish word for food, and swag a word from the criminal underworld meaning a parcel of goods taken by a thief, but coming to mean a bushman's bag.

the gold rush days

This era brought words such as fossick into common usage.

the bushrangers

Many terms come from the bushranger tradition, such as bush telegraph, bail up, and game as Ned Kelly.

the first world war

WWⅠ added another layer of slang, such as dinkum , meaning genuine or real.

Australian English is peppered with unique slang words and particular types of phraseology such as strine and ocker.

diminutives in australia

The use of diminutive forms of words such as arvo for afternoon or barbie for barbecue is common. Some words, such as ute, from utility vehicle, a car with a tray back, have become universal.

While many languages make use of diminutives, Aussie English uses them extensively – there are over 5,000 identified diminutives in use in Australia.

let stalk strine!

Professor Lauder knows the answers‼

Do you have a Gloria Soame?
What are sex? What is an egg nishner? And where checque etcher londger ray?

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