|
Song playing is called a land down under. That where NZ is.
Kiwi Slang.
A
ads: TV commercials,
adverts
A & P Show: usually
a 3 or 4 day event where farmers strut their stuff and win prizes for best
cow, largest onion, best pikelet etc. Often has sideshows for the townies,
with ferris wheels, dodgems and such like. (A&P = Agricultural &
Pastoral)
arse: rear end, butt
B
banger: sausage
bach: small holiday
home, pronounced "batch" see also crib
beaut: great; good
fun; "that'll be beaut mate"
bit of a dag: hard
case; comedian; joker
biscuit: cookie
bloke: usually a
man, and often used when referring to a stranger as in; "There's this bloke
down the road who sells greasies from his pie-cart for $1 a bag, which
is much cheaper than that bloke who has a shop", or used when referring
to someone you like, as in; "That bloke, Joe Blow, is a really nice guy
once you get to know him".
blow me down: expression
of surprise, as in; "Well! Blow me down, I didn't know that."
bonnet: car hood
box of fluffies:
cheerful, happy, very good. taken from "LikeA box of fluffy ducks"
boxing day: the day
after Christmas Day. This word comes from the custom which started in the
Middle Ages around 800 years ago: churches would open their 'alms boxe'
(boxes in which people had placed gifts of money) and distribute the contents
to poor people in the neighbourhood on the day after Christmas. The tradition
continues today.
braces: suspenders
brassed off: disappointed,
annoyed
brickie: bricklayer.
bugalugs: a bit like
"mate" as in "how's it going bugalugs"
bugger all: not much,
very little; as in "I know bugger all"
buggered: exhausted
bugger off:get lost,
shove off, get out, go away!
Please note the word bugger is a degrogatory
term here it is not said polietly.
bumper: fender
bun in the oven:
pregnant (also see)
bush: small and large
trees and native plants densely packed together - sort of like a small
forest. bust a gut: make an intense effort
C
cackhanded: left
handed, southpaw
candyfloss: cottoncandy
car park: parking
lot
caravan: trailer,
mobile home
cardy: woollen button-up-the-front
jersey (also cardie)
carked it: died,
kicked the bucket
chips: french fries
cheers: goodbye or
thanks or good luck. From JT
chemist: pharmacy,
drug store. Also a euphemism for druggist.
cheque: check
cheerio: good bye.
also a cocktail sausage
chilly bin: sealable,
usually polystyrene insulated box, for keeping beer & food cold
chips: french fries
chippy: builder,
carpenter
choc-a-block: full
to overflowing
chocolate fish: a
chocolate covered marshmallow fish. Also frequently given (literally or
figuratively) as a reward for a job well done; as in "Good on ya, mate.
You deserve a chocolate fish". From JT
choice: very good
chook: chicken
chrissy: Christmas
chuffed: pleased;
as in "he was dead chuffed"
cods wollop: untrue
statement or remark is referred to as a "load of lod cods wollop".
colly wobbles: a
feeling of nausea usually associated with nervousness; as in "bungee jumping
gave me a dose of the colly wobbles"
corker: very good
cornflour: cornstarch
cotton buds: Q-tips
cracker: very good.
See also wee cracker
crib: small holiday
home This is only used in the south island
crikey dick!: gosh!
wow!
crisps: potato chips
crook: sick, unwell
cuppa: cuppa tea,
cuppa coffee, cuppa milo
cuz: as in male or
female cousin
D
dag: hard case; joker;
comedian, as in "Joe Blow's a bit of a dag isn't he?" "A bit of a dag mate!
dairy: "corner" store
originally only selling milk, bread, papers, convenience foods and dairy
produce, and until the past decade or so, the only shop allowed to open
7 days a week. Still is the only shop allowed to open on Christmas day
and Good Friday, for a few hours, and without a special licence.
ding: a small dent
in a vehicle; as in "the prang caused a bit of a ding"
dole: unemployment
benefit; income support for the unemployed
doing the ton: Driving
really, really fast! but corrected by Phil Lyall as "Doing 100mph" (and
I agree, although only us "oldies" would remember the thrill of the possibility
your car could actually go that fast!)
dodgy: bad, unreliable,
spoiled; as in "that fish is a bit dodgy". From JT
draughts: checkers
dreaded lurgy: alternative
name for the flu or a head cold; used as an excuse for not going to work,
as in "I can't come in today because I have the dreaded lurgy". Also slang
for venereal diseases.
dressing gown: bathrobe
dummy: pacifier
dunny: toilet, bathroom,
lavatory
duvet: quilt
E
eh: pronounced as
you would the letter "a" and often used at the end of sentences when expecting
a response to a statement - it is not spoken as a question. i.e. "This
would be a better gift eh", instead of saying "Do you think this would
be a better gift"? Using it this way has become an everyday part of our
conversation. It is also often used as a substitute for "pardon"? or "what"?
i.e. "eh"? - but neither "what"? nor "eh"? are really acceptable and you
would probably get a lengthy lecture about polite language if you tried
using it too often
F
fanny: A warning to
Americans, from an American, Jody Tompson : take care how you use this
phrase in New Zealand! A "fanny" refers to female genetalia; fanny is not
the same as bottom!
fizzy: soda pop
flannel: wash cloth
flat: apartment
flicks: movies, picture
theatre
flog: steal, nick
footpath: pavement
or sidewalk
fortnight: two consecutive
weeks, derived from 14 days (nights)
G
gas guzzler: large
car, usually associated with older USA imports
gawk / gawking: stare
at; take a look at. As in "What are you gawking at!?" or "Take a gawk at
this!"
get off the grass:
exclamation of disbelief; equivalent to "stop pulling my leg", "get outta
here", and "no way"
gimme: abbreviation
for "give me..."
gizza: abbreviation
for "give us a..."
going bush: become
reclusive. To take off for the bush and live for an extended period to
"get away from it all".
good on ya, mate!:
congratulations, well done
greasies: common
term for fish and chips, probably because they usually are! (greasy that
is)
ground floor: first
floor. Very confusing for Kiwi visitors to the States! When using lifts
(elevators) we are always one floor out!
gumboots: rubber
boots, wellingtons, wellies
gummies: gumboots
guts for garters:
in big trouble; as in "I'll have your guts for garters!"
H
hard case: joker;
comedian
hard yakka: hard
work, associated with labouring
heaps: general expression
to mean a lot, as in "miss you heaps", or try hard; "give it heaps"
hissy fit: throwing
a tantrum when things you don't get your way or when someone does something
to offend you. From Jenni with thanks.
hokey pokey: 'candy
home 'n hosed: safe,
completed successfully
hoon: usually associated
with young adults, fast cars, loud stereos and alcohol
hooray: the Kiwi
"Goodbye"
hosing down: raining
heavily
hottie: hot water
bottle
hunky dory: or honky
dory: everything's fine, as in "my life is hunky dory"
I
ice block: popsicle
J
jandal: thongs, flip-flops
jersey: sweater
judder bar: speed
bump
jumper: woollen sweater
K
Kiwi: New Zealander
kiwi: an endangered
flightless bird native to New Zealand
kiwifruit: hairy
skinned fruit with lime green flesh (formerly known as Chinese gooseberry)
kick the bucket:
die, cark it
knackered: stuffed;
fagged out; rooted, as in "I am knackered"; "that bike is knackered" and
surplus farm animals go to the "Knackers
Yard"! (This word has MANY uses - few of them being optimistic!)
mainly meaning ruined.
L
L&P: fizzy soda
water, Lemon & Paeroa (L&P); originally lemon flavoured spring
water from the town of Paeroa,
lemonade: 7Up
lift: elevator
lolly: candy
loo: bathroom
lorry: truck
M
main: primary dish
of a meal
Maori: indigenous
people of New Zealand.
mate: buddie (common
term, and can be used even with strangers) as in "how's it going mate"
for "how are you", but it is NOT used to the same extent as spoken in Australia
where every second word seems to be "mate".
metal road: a country
road (usually) with a gravel or shingle surface
motorway: freeway
Mum: Mom
N
naff off: get lost!
nana: female grandparent
nappy: diaper
netball: game somewhat
similar to basketball
nought: zero
P
pack a sad: become
morose, ill-humoured, moody. Also suggested as meaning "broken or died"
i.e. the fridge "packed a sad"
pakeha: non-Maori
person
panel beater: auto
body shop
pavement: sidewalk
petrol: gasoline
pie cart: affection
term for a road-side or side-show food seller's converted mobile caravan,
from which you can buy predominantly fast food take-aways such as pies,
burgers, hot-dogs, fish and chips and such-like tasty treats.
pike out: to give
up when the going gets tough
pikelet: small pancake
often served with jam and whipped cream
piker: one who gives
up easily (see pike-out)
pinky: little finger
pinky bar: a chocolate-covered
marshmallow confection
pong: bad smell
power cut: outage
postal code: zip
code
pony tail: as in
hair tied at the back of one's head
pram: baby carriage,
stroller
prang: minor vehicle
accident, or a major one as in "that was one hell of a prang"
pub: bar, hotel were
liquor is served
puckeroo: Something
that is broken, buggered, disfunctional.
push bike: bicycle
pushing up daisies:
dead and buried
Q
quite nice: a term
used when you can't really think of anything better to say ; as in "her
hat is quite nice", and you often mean the opposite!
R
rack off: go away
(angry),
raining cats & dogs:
raining heavily!
rark up: give somebody
a good telling off
rattle your dags:
hurry up; get a move on.
ring: phone somebody;
as in "I'll give him/her/them a ring"
roadway: pavement
rubber: eraser
rubbish: trash or
garbage; as in "should I throw this in the rubbish?
S
serviette: A napkin
made of either fabric or absorbent paper, and used to wipe hands &
mouth at tea.
sellotape: scotch
tape / cellotape
she'll be right:
not a problem, it'll be O.K.
skiting: bragging;
showing off
sickie: as in "Throw
a sickie":- to take time off work "officially" for illness, but more likely
for a fun day!
skint: short of money
squiz: as in "Have
a squiz":- to take a look at something; "Giz a Squiz":- ask for a look
at something.
smoko: break, rest
period
snarky: mixture of
sarcastic and nasty
snotty: snooty, ill-humoured,
packing a sad
sook: kindly description
of someone who is being silly, or behaving like a softy or scaredy cat.
As in:- "you're being a sook"... "just a big sook" and so on... More often
than not the phrase is used as a term of endearment.
sparkie: electrician
spew: to throw up
spit the dummy: to
throw a tantrum or get mad.
sprog: a child
sticking plaster:
band-aid
sticky tape: cellotape
/ sellotape / scotch tape
stirrer: trouble-maker,
agitator
strapped for cash:
short of money
strewth: honestly,
expletive showing frustration.
strop: go for a strop,
go for a burn, speed with reckless disregard
stubby: small bottle
of beer
stuffed: really tired.
stupid as a two bob watch:
used to describe a person who behaves irrationally
sunday driver: Driving
really, really slow
sunnies: sunglasses
super loo: massive
automated public toilet complex.
suss: to figure out
T
ta: Thanks
tata: goodbye, usually
when speaking to a child
take-aways: New Zealand
term for "take-outs" or food "to go".
take a hike: Expression
of anger, as in; "Go away!" "Get lost!"
tasty cheese: sharp
cheddar cheese
tea: dinner - generic
name for evening meal
tea towel: dish rag
tights: pantyhose
tiki tour: roundabout
way to get somewhere; scenic tour
tinned goods: canned
goods
tracksuit: sweats
tramping: hiking
togs: swimsuit, bathing
suit
tomato sauce: catsup
torch: flashlight
trots: horse racing
with a buggy trots: diaorrhoea as in "having a dose of the trots"
two sammies short of a picnic:
used
to describe a person who is a "bit thick".Or a couple of slates missing
off the roof.
tyre: tire
U
underpants: undershorts
up the duff: pregnant
V
verge: grassy area
on the side of the road, bern
vest: undershirt
vegemite/marmite:
spread for toast or bread. Indescribable, but missed by many expat Kiwi's.
"A spread the color of dark molasses, the consistency of cold honey and
the flavor of yeasty soy sauce. A flavor that is acquired, and quite good
on warm soft pretzels
W
walkshorts: dressy
shorts for men
wally: clown, loser
wardrobe: clothes
closet
wee cracker: lovely,
beautiful, nice "Wee cracker of a day, isn't it?"
wet blanket: Someone
who spoils the fun of others; someone who doesn't get into the "swing"
of things, particularly at a social occasion.
wellies: gumboots
what are ya!: "Are
you mad?"
wharfie: stevedore
whinge: complain
windscreen: windshield
wobbly (pack a wobbly):
become angry, get snotty
wonky: crooked
wop-wops: out of
the way location
Y
yonks: forever, a
long time ago, ages; as in "I haven't seen them in yonks".
yarn: spin a "tall
story", tell a joke
yack: general conversation
held between friends; as in "have a yack".
yoo-hoo: Hello, I'm
here. Can I come in?
you ain't wrong: that's
right, yes you can't help bad luck: contrary to the wording, the phrase
quite often means congratulations!, also a dismissive phrase for "too bad"
or "who cares"
Z
zed: Z; zee; the
last letter of the alphabet.