Australians most commonly call underpants "undies," but also use regional slang like "jocks" (for men's briefs), "knickers" (for women's), and the more colloquial "underdaks" or "Reg Grundies," while "daks" refers to trousers, making "underdaks" underwear.
In the United States and Canada, "panties" is a common term to refer to female underwear bottoms. In the United Kingdom and occasionally in other Commonwealth countries such as Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa, panties may be referred to as "knickers", "undies", or simply "underwear".
In North America, Australia and South Africa, pants is the general category term, whereas trousers (sometimes slacks in Australia and North America) often refers more specifically to tailored garments with a waistband, belt-loops, and a fly-front.
Australians call Speedos "budgie smugglers," a humorous slang term for tight men's swimwear, referencing how the front bulge resembles a small bird (a budgerigar or "budgie") being smuggled inside. Other terms for swimwear in Australia include "cossies," "togs," "bathers," or "swimmers," but "budgie smugglers" is the classic slang for Speedo-style briefs.
(dʒɒks ) plural noun. Australian and New Zealand slang. boy's or men's underpants.
Sexual intercourse. Root. Sexual intercourse, similar to the British word 'Shag'. Can also be used as a verb.
Woop Woop is used to refer to a place in the middle of nowhere. People use it to signify that a location is far away, unfamiliar to them, and difficult to get to.
In Australia, "thongs" refer to flip-flops, the rubber or plastic sandals with a Y-shaped strap that goes between the toes, a term that confuses visitors from countries like the US where "thong" usually means a type of underwear. Australians also sometimes call them "double pluggers" or "pluggers", especially in the Northern Territory, while the underwear is typically called a "g-string".
Common Australian slang for a girl includes "Sheila" (older, sometimes dated or slightly derogatory), "chick," or just using general terms like "mate," "gal," or "lass," with context and tone being important, but "girl" is still widely used; some slang, like "moll," can refer to a girlfriend or a promiscuous woman, while "bogan" describes an unsophisticated person.
A drongo is a slow-witted or stupid person: a fool. This great Australian insult was originally an RAAF term for a raw recruit. It first appeared in the early 1940s, but its origin reaches back to the name of the racehorse Drongo, who ran around in the early 1920s.
A "bogan" in Australia (and New Zealand) is slang for an uncouth, unsophisticated, or unrefined person, often from a working-class background, characterized by specific tastes, fashion (like mullets, flannelette shirts), speech, and behavior, though the term can be derogatory, humorous, or even self-adopted, depending on context and intent, referring to a laid-back, anti-establishment attitude rather than just poverty.
The most Australian thing to say often involves casual abbreviations, laid-back optimism like "She'll be right" or "No worries," and unique slang for everyday items, such as "Arvo" (afternoon) or "Barbie" (barbecue), often delivered with "mate," making phrases like "G'day, mate, chuck us a coldie at the barbie this arvo?" quintessentially Aussie.
Australians primarily call sausages "snags," a popular slang term often used in the context of a "sausage sizzle" (a casual BBQ, often for fundraising) or a "democracy sausage" (sausage in bread at polling stations). Other less common terms might include "snarler" or "snork," but "snag" is the overwhelmingly popular and recognized term, stemming from the idea of a quick grab or light meal.
The most common Australian slang for toilet is dunny, especially for outdoor or older toilets, while loo is used more generally for indoor toilets, similar to UK usage. Other terms include thunderbox (often for rural/outdoor) and more informal/humorous options like throne, facilities, or the crapper, though "dunny" remains iconic, notes.
In our recent survey on classic Australian slang terms bloody featured in 2.28 per cent of the 4523 responses. Elsewhere, we found that it occurs in about 0.2 per cent of sentences Aussies use. So yes, it's used a lot.
sprog – Semen. Also old Australian term for an infant, as in, "The misses just gave birth to a little sprog", or "The buggar's got 3 young sprogs at home".
"Ozzy Ozzy Ozzy, Oi Oi Oi" (often written as "Aussie Aussie Aussie, Oi Oi Oi") is a patriotic Australian sports chant, a rallying cry of national pride, originating from older British cheers like "Oggy Oggy Oggy," with "Aussie" being slang for Australian, and "Oi" functioning as an emphatic interjection, similar to "Hey!" or "Go!". It's used at sporting events, sometimes considered a bit cheesy or "cringey" by some Australians, but generally seen as an inclusive way to support national teams.
Missus. A person's wife or girlfriend. I'm taking the missus out for their birthday.
Pommy or pom
Newspapers in Australia were using the term by 1912, with it appearing first in Western Australia, and was said to be short for pomegranate, with the terms "jimmy" and "jimmigrant" also in use. The term Ten-pound Pom refers to British (subsidized) migrants to Australia and New Zealand after World War II.
Woop Woop (wop-wops in New Zealand) is an Australian term meaning a place that is a far distance from anything.
A Flaming Galah is Australian slang for someone who is a bit doofus, a bit of a fool, a bit of a mentalist but nonetheless is a very loveable creature. A Flaming Galah is a person who makes a fool of themselves but isn't afraid to laugh at themselves when everyone else starts laughing at them.
Australians call G-strings "G-strings," but also use slang like "bum floss" or "G-banger," though the term "thong" in Australia usually means flip-flops (footwear), leading to confusion with Americans who use "thong" for G-string underwear. So, while "G-string" is common, you might hear cheeky Aussie nicknames for the minimal underwear, say locals.
The birds have also come to be regarded as a problem species in Victoria as a result of their scavenging activities, scattering rubbish from tips and bins in the process, and earning the widespread nickname "bin chicken". They are even known to snatch sandwiches from picnickers.
In this mini episode of Aussie English I explain the expressing “Far Out” which is often used as a way of expression surprise or that you are impressed by something. Improve your listening skills today – listen, play, & pause this episode – and start speaking like a native English speaker!
inferior in character or quality; seedy; sleazy.