Australian Words and Definitions

Looking for a special word? Click on the letter it starts with. 
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 acca  Australian abbrevation of academic  
 arvo  afternoon  
 Australia  Latin for southern land  
 avago  have a go  
 bananalander  native of Queensland  
 bandicoot  some Australian mammals having long pointed heads and bearing some resemblance to their Indian namesake  

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 barbie  barbeque pit  Mac PC Unix
 barracking  cheering for your team  
 battler  one who fights the odds, hangs in  
 bickies  bucks, money  Mac PC Unix
 billabong  an Australian waterhole  Mac PC Unix
 billy  tin can for boiling water  Mac PC Unix
 bitumen  asphalt paving  
 bloke  a guy  Mac PC Unix
 blue  a blunder or quarrel  
 bodgie a male youth that is distinguished by his conformity to certain fashions of dress and larrakin behavior. (old fashioned term)  
 bogan  a person that you just don't bother with  
 boomerang  crescent shaped wooden inplement used for hunting, recreation and warfare  
 bush  rural area  
 bush tucker  wild edibles  Mac PC Unix

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 crook  sick, broken down, or useless  Mac PC Unix
 coolibah  it is the term for any of the several eucalyptus trees  Mac PC Unix
 cordie  is a term for an army cadet from the Royal Military College Duntroon in Canberra  
 cossie: short for bathing costume, i.e., bathing suit  
 didgeridoo  a wind instrument, long, wooden, tubular and produces a low pitch sound  Mac PC Unix
 dingbat  a weirdo; someone eccentric  Mac PC Unix
 dole  on welfare  Mac PC Unix
 drongo  dimwit  
 drum  latest news on something  
 dummyspit  temper tantrum  
 dummy  pacifier, binky  
 dunny  an outhouse  Mac PC Unix
 durry  an Australian term for cigarette  

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 fair dinkum  honest  Mac PC Unix
 fair go  fair chance  Mac PC Unix
 footy  name for Australian National Football  
 furphy  a rumor, false news  
 galah  used to refer to a fool or an idiot  
 g'day  good day  Mac PC Unix
 geek  a person who is socially inept, boringly conventional  Mac PC Unix
 gilgai   describes a terrain of low relief on a plain of heavy clay soil  
 greenie  conservation activist  
 grog  an alcoholic drink, usually beer  Mac PC Unix
 guernsey  second largest of Channel Islands  

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 hoon  fool, or idiot  
 jackeroo  stockhand  
 jumbuck  an Australian word for sheep  Mac PC Unix
 koori  it came to mean Aboriginal people  
 kylie  female personal name such as Kylie Minogue  
 lairy  flashily dressed, showy  
 larrikin  rascal  
 lollies  candies  

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 mate  buddy  Mac PC Unix
 mob  any group of people, not necessarily a gang  
 moomba  the name of a carnival held annually in Melbourne  
 nong  a fool or simpleton  
 ocker  describes a rough and uncultivated Australian man  
 on the wallaby  a person who journeys through the country, especially in search of seasonal work  
  Oz Australia, the land down under  
 Queenslander  a person who is native to or is a resident of Queensland  

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 ringer  an outstanding performer  
 ripper  terrific  
 rogaining  a sport where you have to visit many checkpoints going cross-country in a certain amount of time  
 screamer  a person who has a low tolerance of alcohol  
 sealed road  blacktop road  
 shout  a round of drinks  
 smoke-o  tea or smoke break  
 sticky beak  a nosy person  
 swag  possessions carried by a traveler in the bush  
true blue  faithful, staunch and unwavering in one's faith, principles, etc. and a person who is extremely loyal  
 whinge  to complain, whine, or gripe  
 widgie  a female bodgie (old fashioned term)  
 wowser  officious moralist, killjoy  
 yakker  hard work  

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 Updated August 10, 2000