50+ Australian Slang Terms To Make You Sound Like You’re From Down Under
I’ve complied all the Australian slang from my aussie friends.
Australians are known for many things — spanning from being delinquent outcasts from Britain, to living in one of the most beautiful areas of the world, to Crocodile Dundee and Steve Irwin. But above all else, one of the most endearing things about an Australian is the way they speak.
Although most people who aren’t from Australia hear Aussie slang terms and scoff at how “they’re just shortforms of real words” — a lot of words we use today originated from the Lucky Country. For example, the word selfie, which was Oxford Dictionaries’ “Word Of The Year” originated from an Australian named Nathan Hope, who actually came up with the world while completely inebriated on the internet. Now, the Oxford Dictionary has started to add more and more Australian terms to it’s English lexicon, with an estimated 2,000 new words being introduced into the dictionary.
Australian slang is becoming so popular, that it has started to pique the interest of social scientists and psychologists. Dr. Nenagh Kemp, a psychologist from the University of Tasmania, is studying the slang and why Australians feel the need to shorten so many of their words. On that he has said:
“We don’t have a lot of information on this really essential part of our language and our culture,” Nenagh says. “It sounds obvious: we make words shorter to save us a bit of time and effort. But some diminutives actually make words longer, like Tommo for Tom. And we don’t really save a lot of time by saying barbie instead of barbecue. I think we all have an intuitive feeling that these words also make an interaction more informal, more friendly and relaxed.”
This makes a lot of sense, as Aussies are also known for their fun loving, laid back nature, and a lot of that stems from the way they speak. So, to celebrate everyone’s favorite foreigners, we’ve put together a list of our 50+ favorite Aussie slang terms.
1. Brekky: breakfast
2. Maccas: McDonalds
3. Arvo: afternoon
4. Bloody: very
5. Sauce: ketchup
6. Bogan: sort of like dickhead, asshole
7. Tea: dinner
8. Fresh off the boat: new to Australia
9. Heaps: a lot
10. G’day: hello
11. Pissed: drunk
12. Good onya: good work, well done
13. How ya goin’?: how are you?
14. Too easy: sounds good, works for me
15. Easy as: no problem
16. Mate: friend
17. No worries: it’s all good
18. Piece of piss: easy task
19. Reckon: for sure/think/assume
20. Ripper: great
Prefer video? Watch Margot Robbie explain Australian slang.
21. Air con: air conditioning
22. Snag: sausage in bread
23. Bathers: swimsuit
24. Bench: a countertop or table
25. Jumper: sweatshirt
26. Bottle-o: liquor store and bear distributor
27. Hens party: bachelorette party
28. Feral: poor/scummy/dirt bag
29. Dag: someone who doesn’t dress well
30. Docket: receipt
31. Esky: freezer
32. Fag: cigarette
33. Hungry Jack’s: Burger King
34. No dramas: no worries
35. Get stuffed: piss off
36. Pram: stroller
37. Rock up: arrive or show up
38. My shout: I’ll get this round
39. Stubbie: bottle of beer
40. Stubbie holder: coozie
41. Suss: size up
42. Sweet as: something really good
43. Thongs: flip flops
44. Trolley: shopping cart
45. Wanker: ridiculous person
46. Grouse: awesome
47. Brolly: umbrella
48. Chips: french fries
49. Servo: gas station
50. Bikkie: costing a lot
51. Bloody oath: that’s damn true
52. Bogged: stuck
53. Built like a brick shithouse: referring to someone being very big / strong
54. Cark it: die
55. Chokkie: chocolate
56. Chook: chicken
57. Chrissie: Christmas
58. Coldie: cold beer
59. Crook: to be sick / to describe something gross
60. Stands out like dogs balls: something obvious
61. Footy: Australian Rules Football / AFL — a popular sport
62. Freo: Fremantle, Australia
63. Gutful of piss: drunk
64. Hoon: hooligan
65. Icy Pole: popsicle
66. Mates Rate: friend’s discount
67. Mozzie: mosquito
68. Op Shop: thrift store
69. Ratbag: insult
70. Roadie: A beer you buy solely to take with you in the car
71. Root: to have sex with someone
72. Sanger: sandwich
73. Shark biscuit: a surfing novice
74. Sheila: a woman
75. To Skull: to chug (let’s skull a beer)
76. Squizz: To take a look at something (have a squizz at this)
77. As useful as an ashtray on a motorbike: referring to something that is in fact, not useless
78. As useful as tits on a bull: see above.
79. Whinge: to complain
80. Bruce: an Aussie man.
Bonus: Australian sex slang
Here’s a rundown from author Kat George kind of slang used in Australia to describe sex acts. So enjoy good folks of America some of the dirty words used down under.
81. Got The Hots For: The act of having a crush on someone. i.e. “OMG so Sally Jones totally has the hots for Johnno.”
82. Pash: The act of kissing someone i.e. “OMG Sally Jones and Johnno totally pashed!”
See also: Kate Cebrano’s “Pash”; “Disco Pash” (the act of kissing a random at a club/bar/disco) and “Pash and Dash” (the act of kissing a random at a club/bar/disco and never seeing them again; the one night stand of kissing).
83. Wristy: The act of jerking off a man, i.e. “She gave him a wristy in the bathroom at the party.”
84. Gobby: The act of giving a man a blow job, i.e. “Then she got on her knees and have him a gobby.”
85. Cop A Root: The act of having sex i.e. “Did you cop a root?”
See also: “A Cheeky Root” (the act of having sex when it’s a bad idea, guilt free; the use of “cheeky” in front of any elicit act for instance smoking a “cheeky” ciggie, doing a “cheeky” line, implies you’re not responsible for the irresponsible behaviour despite engaging willingly/wanting to engage/being the one to suggest engaement); “Root Rat” (a person that enjoys a cheeky root more often than not).
86. Smash Your Back Out: The act of having sex, i.e. “Let me take you back to the shed, throw you on the workbench, and smash your back out.” It’s commonly accepted that Australians don’t “do” things, but that they “smash” things; applies equally to smashing beer, smashing vegemite toast, smashing a run, etc.
87. Tits Out For The Boys: A chant commonly used by drunk bros around women, usually while clapping in time to the words, i.e. “Tits! Out! For the Boys! Tits out for the boys!”
88. Toeir Than A Roman Sandal: Someone that is very horny, i.e. “All these babes are making me toeir than a Roman sandal.”
89. Jut (Pronounced “Joot”): A vagina i.e. “My joot’s itchy.”
90. Tosser: A slur against someone implying that they masturbate a lot; wanker, i.e. “Johnno cheated on Sally Jones, what a fucking tosser.”
91. Spoof: Semen, i.e. “I got his spoof in my hair, how embarrassing.” Also used to imply aimlessness in life, i.e. “I just spoofed about all day.”