Originally called a continental quilt, duvets are commonly referred to in Australia by the generic trademark doona.
Home Archived Posts Design You Say Doona, They Say Dyne, I Say Duvet… To most people around the world, Aussies and Kiwis are pretty similar – not least because of our shared geography.
A comforter is the American term for a doona, quilt, or duvet. It means a weighted bed covering, often filled with feathers or down, or man-made fillers or fibres. There is no difference between a comforter or a doona - they are two different terms that mean the same thing.
In England it is commonly called a continental quilt or quilt. In Australia it is also referred to as a doona. In America you may even be called a comforter. They are really the same thing but depending on your location or where you are from these words interchangeably.
Also known as a duvet or quilt, a doona is a type of heavy, flat bag bedding that's used as the top layer of your bed to keep you warm, and comes in a variety of types, sizes and fills, including feathers, down, wool, silk or a synthetic alternative.
Most Australians now use the term doona meaning a quilt: there is no difference between a quilt and a doona. You might also hear the term 'duvet', which is used most commonly throughout Europe. This also refers to a quilt or doona. All three terms can be used interchangeably.
In Australian and New Zealand English, bedding is often called manchester, especially in shops.
'Duvet' is European, derived from the French word for down. Duvet is the term used more commonly in Canada, of course, because most of us can't say more than 'Bonjour' but love to pretend like we're super francais, super sophistique.
Manchester is what the locals call bed linen, because Manchester, the northern British industrial city and one-time centre of the cotton spinning industry, was the main source of bedding for Australia's early settlers.
A brolly is the same as an umbrella.
Europeans Drop the Top Sheet
Top sheets are unnecessary, uncomfortable, and messy, if you ask Europeans. You slide into them at night, a too-tight straitjacket that puts pressure on your joints, potentially causing leg cramps—not our idea of a restful bedtime.
In the US, comforters could be the same as the trad British duvet, but equally they might be thinner, more like a padded quilt, and not always used with duvet covers – some are instead dressed with top sheets.
A large number of people, old and your still like a top sheet and not straight under the duvet. Prior to Duvets being adopted in the UK, which was as late as the 1970s, as another conntirbutor states the standard “British bed” was made in the order of: Flat sheet laid on the mattress, tucked in under the mattress.
5. Sheila = Girl. Yes, that is the Australian slang for girl.
'Ta' means 'thank you'. "A: Can you please pass me the sauce? B: Sure, here you go. A: Ta."
Jandals: Flip flops/thongs. A bit like going barefoot, which Kiwis love!
A: Ah, well, the main two players worldwide are “couch” and “sofa”. Sofa is more common in Britain, while couch is preferred in North America, Ireland, South Africa, New Zealand and Australia. Q: Is there a difference?
dunny – a toilet, the appliance or the room – especially one in a separate outside building. This word has the distinction of being the only word for a toilet which is not a euphemism of some kind. It is from the old English dunnykin: a container for dung. However Australians use the term toilet more often than dunny.
In Australia and New Zealand, they are also commonly known as trackpants, trackies, tracky daks or joggers.
Outside of Saskatchewan, most Canadians are not familiar with the term bunny hug (which can also be written as "bunny-hug" or "bunnyhug"), and generally refer to their hooded sweatshirts as "hoodies" - how unoriginal!
“Serviette,” means napkin; “serviette en papier,” is a paper napkin.
Washroom: a polite word for bathroom. The Canadian version of “restroom.”
And just in case you have to ask for a washcloth, in Australia they are normally called face-washers or flannels.
Australians have been using the word freely since its probable emergence in the late 19th century as a nickname for English immigrants, a short form of pomegranate, referring to their ruddy complexions.
Ute: From the word "utility," it's an Australian term for pickup truck. The cargo bed in a ute may also be referred to as a "tray."