As I got off the plane, I paused to take in the feeling of stepping back on home soil. I looked around and listened—Australian accents all around me. I beamed enthusiastically at passersby. They probably thought I was weird, but I didn’t care. Nothing felt better than being back home, especially during the summer.

Before leaving New York, fellow Shen Yun dancer Rebecca Jiang instructed me to have fun in the motherland. I knew I would, but what about the non-Australians in our company? Would they be able to comprehend the laidback Aussie language?

Thus, I have prepared an Aussie-English dictionary to assist new visitors to my homeland:

• Arvo: the afternoon
• “Aussie Aussie Aussie!”: the start of a battle cry usually used at sporting events. (The traditional reply is “Oi Oi Oi!”)
• Barbie: barbecue
• Bathers/Cossie/Togs: swim wear, swim suit
• Beauty: great; fantastic
• Billabong: a watering hole
• Billy: teapot; a container for boiling water
• Bloke: man; guy
• Brekkie: breakfast
• Brizzie: Brisbane, the state capital of Queensland
• Bunyip: a mythical aboriginal bush spirit animal that lives in swamps and billabongs
• Bush: the Outback, or anywhere that isn’t in town
• Cheers: thanks
• Chrissie: Christmas
• Didgeridoo: an Australian Aboriginal musical instrument made from a hollow log
• Dingo: the Australian wild dog that howls but does not bark
• Docket: a bill, receipt
• Esky: a large insulated food and drink container usually used for picnics and barbecues
• Fair Dinkum: true, right
• Fairy Floss: cotton candy
• G’day/Gidday: the universal Australian friendly greeting or hello
• Gobsmacked: surprised, astounded
• Gumtree: Australian eucalyptus tree
• Jumbuck: sheep
• Lamington: an Australian delicacy, made from spongecake that is cut into squares and covered in chocolate and coconut
• Lollies: candy, sweets
• Maccas: McDonald’s
• Mate: friend, buddy
• Mozzie: mosquito
• No worries: expression of forgiveness or reassurance.
• Rapt: pleased, delighted
• Reckon!: You bet! Absolutely!
• Rellie/Relo: family relative
• Shout: turn to buy—a round of drinks usually
• Singlet: a sleeveless cotton undershirt
• Stoked: very pleased
• Sunnies: sunglasses
• Ta: thank you
• Telly: television
• Thongs: rubber backless sandals, flip flops
• Tomato sauce: ketchup
• Trackies: track suit
• True blue: patriotic, Australian person or thing
• Vegemite: a savory spread made from an extract of brewers yeast, eaten on toast
• Yabby: inland freshwater crayfish or lobster found in Australia
• Yewy: U-turn
• Yonks: a long time, ages
• Zinc: sunscreen

 

Am I forgetting anything?

February 12, 2013