50+ Australian Slang Terms To Make You Sound Like You’re From Down Under

By

Australian slang: all the best Australian slang terms
Bianca Sparacino

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

Australian slang

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

Australian slang

Prefer video? Watch Margot Robbie explain Australian slang.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qNZIJmEZ91g

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

Australian slang

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

Australian slang

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

Australian slang

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.”


About the author

January Nelson

January Nelson

January Nelson is a writer, editor, and dreamer. She writes about astrology, games, love, relationships, and entertainment. January graduated with an English and Literature degree from Columbia University.