If you’re not quite familiar with the spoken language in Oz (short for Australia), it’s important to learn some Aussie slang words and phrases to get by. If you’re wondering how Australian vs American words compare or want to memorise some words, we have listed below some of the most common or characteristic words that Australians use.
Table of Contents
Greetings & Expressions
You have probably heard of the popular Australian greeting ‘G’day, mate’, but there are plenty of other greetings and expressions that Australians use on the daily:
| Australian Slang | Meaning | Example/Context |
| Arvo | afternoon | I’ll meet with him this arvo. |
| Beauty! | short for ‘beautiful’, often used to say ‘something is great’ or as an exclamation of joy | Ah, you beauty! What a fine goal! |
| Beg yours? | short for ‘I beg your pardon’ | used when you want someone to repeat something |
| Bloody oath | most certainly, you bet, of course | Bloody oath I’ll be having a drink. |
| Bonzer | excellent, first-rate | It was a bonzer party. |
| Buckley’s Chance | very slim chance, no chance at all | She’s got a Buckley’s chance of making it to the final. |
| Cheers | thank you/celebratory/hello/goodbye | Cheers mate! (while receiving something/entering or leaving a place) |
| Crikey | used to express surprise/amazement/wonder | Crikey! Has it been that long since I’ve seen you? |
| Deadset | I’m serious/without a doubt | I’m deadset about quitting smoking. |
| Defo | short for ‘definitely’ | Allan should defo compete for the title. |
| Gnarly | difficult, dangerous, challenging | That was a gnarly wave! |
| Good on ya | well done, good job | Good on ya for leaving him. |
| G’day mate | short for good day mate, used to say hello | this is one of the most common Australian greetings |
| Half your luck | used to express envy over someone’s good fortune | If only I had half your luck, I’d make it. |
| How ya goin’? | combination of “How are you?” and “Where are you going?” | Hey mate! How ya goin’? |
| No worries | don’t worry about it/it’s alright | No worries, you’ll pay me back later. |
| Reckon | guess, think, imagine | I reckon the train should arrive in a bit. |
Behaviour & Feelings
When you’re at social events or situations, you will ‘devo’ want to know these Australian slang words for behaviour & feelings:
| Australian Slang | Meaning | Example/Context |
| Aussie salute | moving one’s hand and arms to brush flies away from the face | derived specifically from the need to brush away Australian bush flies |
| Bail | to cancel plans, leave, back out of something | I’m going to have to bail on you for tomorrow. |
| Buggered | exhausted | I was up all night. I’m buggered. |
| Cark it | to die/break down/fail | The old neighbour carked it last week. |
| Cranky | in a bad mood, angry | I don’t get why he was being so cranky today. |
| Crook | ill, sick | David said he is feeling a bit crook. |
| Devo | short for ‘devastated’, disappointed, upset | Mum is devo you didn’t come home for the holidays. |
| Pissed | drunk | They got pissed at the birthday party. |
| Stoked | happy, enthusiastic | I’m stoked for the concert. |
| Stuffed | tired | They were stuffed after taking care of the baby. |
| True Blue | genuine/ loyal/quintessentially Australian | She’s a true blue Aussie. |
| Up oneself | arrogant, vain, self-absorbed | He’s so up himself just because he earns more. |
| Warm fuzzies | feelings of comfort and happiness | Being back home filled me with warm fuzzies. |
Activities
Whether you enjoy playing ‘footy’ or ‘sunbaking’, Australia is a land of opportunities when it comes to social and outdoor activities. Here are some slang words for activities that you will want to know:
| Australian Slang | Meaning | Example/Context |
| Av a go | to make an attempt, try | Come on, av a go at it! |
| Chuck a uey | to make a U-turn | pronounced chuck a ‘you E’ |
| Footy | football | also known as Australian football or Australian rules football |
| Pash | passionate kiss | She saw them pashing behind the pub. |
| Sunbake | to sunbathe, especially to tan | All I want is to sunbake and sip cocktails. |
| Chuck a sickie | to take a sick day from work when you’re not sick | Australians love chucking sickies. |
| Tee-up | to organise something, make arrangements | Molly will tee-up everything, you just relax. |
| Veg out | to relax in a mindless manner | All I want to do this weekend is veg out in front of the TV. |
People
Whether you’re in Australia for work or as an international student, you will meet a lot of people along the way. Want to know how to call or describe them? These are some commonly-used slang expressions for people:
| Australian Slang | Meaning | Example/Context |
| Ankle biter | young child | used especially when a child is annoying or behaving poorly |
| Banana bender | a native or inhabitant of Queensland | joking name derived from the notion that Queenslander spent time putting bends into bananas |
| Bludger | a lazy person, a person who avoids work | She’s doing all the chores while the husband sits there like a bludger. |
| Bogan | an unsophisticated, uncouth person | the Australian equivalent of the American ‘redneck’ |
| Bruce | a man | a generic name for ‘man’ |
| Cobber | friend, companion, mate | G’day cobber! |
| Copper | policeman/woman | the original word for policeman/woman, used in Britain, primary meaning being ‘someone who captures’ |
| Crow eater | a person from South Australia | from the belief that early South Australian settlers ate the breast meat of crows due to red meat shortage |
| Dag/daggy | someone eccentric in an entertaining way/unfashionable person, nerd | often used as an affectionate insult |
| Drongo | a fool, unintelligent person | What are you doing?! You drongo! |
| Grommet | young/inexperienced surfer | I’d go to that beach, but there are too many grommets. |
| Hoon | hooligan/reckless & dangerous driver | Lewis Hamilton was charged over the hoon driving incident. |
| Larrikin | a mischievous and rowdy but good-hearted person | That larrikin played a prank on me. |
| Rellie / Rello | a relative (family member) | My rello is visiting next week. |
| Shark biscuit | a bodyboard/someone who is new to surfing | He’s something of a shark biscuit, I don’t know if he can handle those waves. |
| Sheila | a girl or young woman | originally used to refer to an Irish woman and derived from the name Síle |
| Sparkie | an electrician | derived from ‘someone who works with sparks’ |
| Youse | plural of ‘you’ | similar to the American ‘you guys’ or ‘y’all’ |
Places
When you’re on the road, you will want to know the Australian slang for gas station or the wilderness. For example, the Australian slang for gas station is “servo,” which is short of service station. You’ll find these and some interesting nicknames for Australian cities below:
| Australian Slang | Meaning | Example/Context |
| Beyond the Black Stump | extremely remote, uncivilised, and isolated areas, the outback | Turn back! This place seems beyond the Black Stump. |
| Billabong | oxbow lake; an isolated body of water left behind after a river changes courses | We camped along the billabong and looked for fish. |
| Boozer | a bar or pub | They spent most late afternoons in boozers. |
| Brisvegas | Brisbane | blend of Brisbane + Las Vegas, ironically coined after the city’s lack of nightlife |
| Bush | the backwoods or hinterland areas outside of urban regions | Ava spend a couple of weeks in the bush. |
| Bush capital | Canberra | name derived due to the city being surrounded by forests, nature preserves, and farmland |
| City of churches | Adelaide | name derived due to some of the city’s oldest buildings being churches |
| Dunny | toilet | originally an outside toilet, dunny is now used for any toilet |
| Emerald City | Sydney | name derived from a 1987 play comparing Sydney to the “The Emerald City of Oz” |
| Oz | Australia | phonetic abbreviation of ‘Aus’ or ‘Aussie’ |
| Servo | service or gas station | We need to stop at that servo. |
| Silver City | Broken Hill | name derived due to the city being situated on one of the world’s richest silver deposits |
| Smellbourne | Melbourne | name derived from a time when households emptied sewage in open drains, causing the city to smell |
Animals & Insects
As the land of millions of kangaroos and other wildlife animals, it is no surprise that Australians have multiple slang words for them.
| Australian Slang | Meaning | Example/Context |
| Barra | a barramundi fish | We caught a barra, actually. |
| Bities | biting insects such as mosquitoes and midgies | There are too many bities out here. |
| Boomer | an adult male kangaroo | I saw a scary boomer from the window of my rental house. |
| Brumby | a wild horse | You can find many brumbies in the Australian Alps. |
| Chook | a chicken | He had a couple of chooks at his farm. |
| Dunny Budgie | a blowfly | named after its tendency to be around outside toilets |
| Joey | a baby animal, especially a kangaroo | The pouch is essential for joey gestation. |
| Kelpie | Australian medium-sized sheepdog | Australian Kelpies are great family pets that are capable of relentless work. |
| Mozzie spray | mosquito spray | Mozzie bites can be dangerous, don’t forget your mozzie spray. |
| Roo | short for kangaroo | Roos are a national symbol for Australia. |
| Saltie | short for saltwater crocodile | Salties are the largest living crocodilians on earth. |
| Tiddler | a small fish | We had no luck. All we caught were some tiddlers. |
Food & Drinks
Australian cuisine and drinking culture are an integral part of Australian culture and customs, so next time you’re going out to a restaurant or pub, it might help to check out the following words:
| Australian Slang | Meaning | Example/Context |
| A Cold One | a beer | Crack open a cold one and enjoy the party. |
| Avo | short for avocado | I had an avo sandwich for lunch. |
| Bottle-O | a bottle shop (a store that sells alcohol) | We’ll meet you at the bottle-o before the party. |
| Brekky | breakfast | Let’s get some brekky first, I don’t want to get hungry. |
| Bush tucker (bush food) | food or ingredient that is native to Australia | Lemon Myrtle leaves and kangaroo meat are two popular bush tucker. |
| Cab Sav | short for Cabernet Sauvignon | Let’s grab a Cab Sav and drink it at home with a nice meal. |
| Choccy Biccy | chocolate biscuit | clipping the word and adding a ‘y’ is a popular form of slang formation in Australia |
| Cuppa | a cup of tea | I’m thirsty. Let’s have a cuppa. |
| Barbie | short for barbeque | I’m firing up the barbie tonight. Bring your own drinks. |
| Frothy | a serving of beer | All I need is a nice cold frothy and my mates. |
| Goon | cheap wine in a box or bag packaging | derived from ‘flagon’— a large container for drinks |
| Maccas | McDonald’s | We’re too lazy to cook so we’re bringing some Maccas. |
| Slab | a carton of beers | Leo brought a slab so we’re getting pissed tonight! |
| Snag | sausage | Snags are on the barbie; grab one and I’ll get you a frothy. |
Clothing & Accessories
If you want to avoid an embarrassing incident by thinking thongs are underwear in Australia, these are some Aussie slang words for clothing to keep in mind:
| Australian Slang | Meaning | Example/Context |
| Brolly | an umbrella | Australians use brollies to protect themselves from the sun. |
| Budgie smugglers | tight-fitting men’s swimming trunks | Budgie smugglers are back in fashion. |
| Clobber | clothing, clothes | also used to denote belongings |
| Cozzie | swimming costume | Put on your cozzie, we’re going to the beach. |
| Daks | trousers | also used as a verb — to dak someone is to pull their trousers as a prank |
| Flannie / flanno | a button-down flannelette shirt with collars | He bought a couple of new flannies to wear in school. |
| Red grundies/ grundies | men’s underwear | rhyming slang for undies from entrepreneur’s Reg Grundy’s name |
| Jocks | men’s briefs | most likely from ‘jockstrap’ or the brand ‘Jockey’ |
| Runners | sneakers, trainers | Did you check the runners’ section at the store? |
| Sunnies | sunglasses | She wore sunnies to avoid eye contact. |
| Thongs | flip-flops | also called ‘double pluggers’, thongs are essential when you’re on Australia’s sandy beaches |
Typical Australian Phrases & Idioms
Last but not least, we’ll part ways with some quintessential Australian idioms that you might find humorous or interesting:
| Australian Phrases | Meaning |
| A few sandwiches short of a picnic | a humorous way to indicate that someone is crazy or unintelligent |
| As crook as Rookwood | idiom for feeling sick and unwell |
| Bullock short of a deck | used to describe someone who is not very bright |
| Dog’s breakfast | used to describe an unappealing mixture or a messy, disorderly situation |
| Full as a centipede’s sock drawer | to be very full (after eating) |
| To have kangaroos loose in the top paddock | to act or think in an eccentric, crazy manner |
| To feel like a shag on a rock | to feel completely alone or abandoned |
| One for the road | to have one last drink before leaving |
| Put a sock in it | used to tell someone to stop talking or be quiet |
| To be a flat chat | to be extremely busy |
| What’s the John Dory? | used to ask what’s going on or to request gossip |
| Shoot through like a Bondi tram | to leave, especially to avoid something/someone |
Now that you’re a pro at talking like Aussies, grab your sunnies, win a boxing match with a roo, and finish your day with a cold one. Or, you know, talk to people.
