Milk, for example, in South Australia has a vocalised /l/, leading to the pronunciation [mɪʊ̯k], whereas in other states the /l/ is pronounced as a consonant. In Victoria, many speakers pronounce /æ/ and /e/ in a way that is distinct from speakers in other states.
Cuppa - a cup of tea or coffer 'Drop by this arvo for a cuppa' means please come and visit this afternoon for a cup of tea or coffee. Loo or dunny - Thesea are slang term for toilet.
See also: 'Dirty Bird' (KFC). “Let's pop into Maccas after the footy.”
Certainly if you're in the US, your mother is your “mom” – short for “mommy” and in the UK, Australia and New Zealand it's “mum” – shortened from “mummy”.
While some Australian speakers would pronounce “no” as a diphthong, starting on “oh” as in dog and ending on “oo” as in put, others begin with an unstressed “a” (the sound at the end of the word “sofa”), then move to the “oh” and then “oo”.
Too easy means something along the lines of that is easy to do and no problem (also known as no wakkas!). Example: After ordering a coffee, the waiter tells you that it is “too easy”.
2. a bath or swim: I'm going to have a bogey.
Send 'er down, Huey!, sometimes Send her down, Huey! or Send it down, Huey!, is an idiomatic Australian phrase uttered in response to the onset of rain.
You may have noticed that the way Canadians speak is changing and the reason why words sound different these days is because linguists have confirmed we're going through the Canadian Vowel Shift. "Milk" is being pronounced more like "melk." The word "dress" is starting to sound like "drass."
In a linguistic pivot called the Canadian Vowel Shift, we are pronouncing “God” more like “gawd,” “bagel” like “bahgel,” “pillow” like “pellow,” and “sorry” less like “sore-y.” The word “Timbit” is becoming “Tembet,” and “Dan slipped on the staircase” now sounds more like “Don” “slept” on it.
“My research shows the British and Irish working-class introduced most of the swearing we have in Australia,” Krafzik says. “It was cemented in those early colonial days.” The British officer class tended to rotate in and out of the colonies. The working-class settlers – and convicts – stayed.
Z is for ZINGER
Meaning: A witty remark.
Also, we don't refer to gasoline as “gas” in Australia. We call it “petrol”… unless it's diesel. We often have a mini-market inside each gas station that sells food and offers other services.
In Britain, Ireland, United States, Australia, New Zealand and, particularly prevalent in the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador, Nan, Nana, Nanna, Nanny, Gran and Granny and other variations are often used for grandmother in both writing and speech.
Aborigine. Australian Formal – Garrimaay. Australian Paternal – Mamaay. Australian Maternal – Momu. Polynesian Maori dialect – Tipuna Wahine.
The most common and uniquely Australian slang terms for dad are “ol' man” and “oldies,” which can refer to both parents as well. These are used more or less universally across the country and are understood by just about everyone.
Residents of Victoria and South Australia call the large sized beer a “pint,” while in all other states it's called a “schooner” (pronounced “skooner”).
That being said, let's start with something most of us will probably have sitting in the fridge or pantry: ketchup. Ketchup is underrated. We call it tomato sauce in Australia. Or just “sauce”.
The shoe known in Australia as a "thong" is one of the oldest styles of footwear in the world. Worn with small variations across Egypt, Rome, Greece, sub-Saharan Africa, India, China, Korea, Japan and some Latin American cultures, the shoe was designed to protect the sole while keeping the top of the foot cool.