So we all know that there are some words that are used regularly in australian lingo. Phrases such as "G'day," "Mate," and "I'll have another beer" have been long recognized as casual aussie speak. There were a few new words that have been used in an exam room situation that I had to stop the conversation and ask for a translation. Here are a few.
1. Bogan. (n) Person who is usually of a socioeconomically disadvantaged stratum of society who is not overly interested in grooming or appearance, spends days slacking and having a few stubbies (short bottles of beer).
2. Bluey. (n - various) In the consulting room, an australian cattle dog, so called for its blue ticking, very popular. Confusing because it is also the phrase used to describe a stinging jellyfish (portugeuse man o'war). Imagine the look of shock when asked to examine bluey in room one as it was vomiting. Also means a redhead, a traffic ticket, a backpack, or a heavy coat worn by miners. Very versatile word, bluey.
3. Dag. (n) An uncouth or loutish person. Is often used as an adjective, "She's so daggy, she just opens her lunch (farts) in front of everybody." Can have superlatives, e.g. megadag.
4. Stands out like a dog's balls. (adj) Meaning is obvious. It's obvious what the meaning is. The meaning is, obvious.
5. Ocker. (n) Unsophisticated person. Nearest North American synonym may be redneck.
6. Root. (v) Is synonymous with f*ck in every usage. "I hit a roo, and now my car is rooted." "He's so randy, a total root-rat."
7. Sook. (n, v) A softy, a mama's boy/girl. Used in the exam room to describe those pets that are in constant need of a cuddle. Can also be a verb, "She's going to sook," or even an adjective, "she's so sooky." The superlative is to be a sookie la-la. Really.
These are just a few of the colorful new words that we're adding to the lingo, and a selection based on what I've heard in the exam room. I'll leave you with a new favorite, used to describe a car that I was considering buying that evidently gets very good mileage.
"It'll run on the fumes of an oily rag."
4 comments:
Kristin here:
People and organizations will also run on the smell of an oily rag.
Sookie la-la is my new name for the kids.
I think you have the best ones there, when I saw the first one I laughed as that was new to us as well, and were were given the explanation of it while we were in Melbourne :-)
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