Australian English is a language all of its own. If you’re not from Australia, here’s a quick guide to some of the words, expressions and colourful language you’ll encounter in The Long Grass.
Much of the time, we just like to shorten words or add an ‘O’ or a ‘Y’ to the end of them. Don’t worry if it all seems a bit strange at first—we understand each other… most of the time.
A
Arvo – Afternoon. Australians remove perfectly good syllables whenever possible.
B
Bastard – Depending on the tone, an insult, a complaint or even a compliment.
Belted – Hit hard or defeated convincingly.
Blackfella – A term used by many Australians, particularly in rural and northern Australia, to refer to an Aboriginal person. Context and tone matter.
Bloke – A man.
Bloody oath! – Absolutely! Strong agreement.
Blue – A fight or argument.
Bottle-o – A bottle shop or liquor store.
Bugger all – Almost nothing.
Buggered – Exhausted, broken or in serious trouble.
Bull dust – Very fine red dust. It can also mean nonsense.
Bundy – Bundaberg Rum.
C
Cark it – To die or, when talking about machinery, to stop working.
Chuck – To throw, place or hand over.
Chuck a darky – A common Australian expression in the 1970s and 1980s meaning to lose your temper or throw a tantrum. Today, it is generally regarded as offensive.
Coldie – A cold beer.
Copper – A police officer.
Crook – Sick or unwell. It can also mean dishonest.
Cunt – One of Australian English’s most versatile words. Depending entirely on tone, it can be affectionate, admiring, humorous or deeply insulting. ‘Good cunt’, ‘funny cunt’, ‘lucky cunt’, ‘mad cunt’ and ‘what a cunt’ can all mean different things. Tone is everything.
D
Dag – An unfashionable, awkward or endearingly uncool person.
Donger – A small transportable accommodation unit found on mine sites, construction projects and remote work camps.
Drongo – An idiot.
Dunny – A toilet.
E
Esky – A portable insulated cooler.
F
Fair dinkum – Genuine, truthful or ‘are you serious?’ depending on the context.
Fella – A man. Whitefella and blackfella are common terms in northern Australia.
Flanno – A flannelette shirt.
Flat out – Very busy or moving at full speed.
Flog – To beat, steal, overwork or sell aggressively.
Footy – Football. In Queensland in 1985, this usually meant rugby league.
G
Galah – A fool.
Get on the piss – To go drinking heavily.
Goon – Cheap cask wine.
Grog – Alcohol.
H
Hard yakka – Hard physical work.
Have a yarn – Have a chat.
L
Long grass – Bushland around northern towns where people sleep rough. It also gives this novel its title.
M
Mate – Australia’s most important word. It can mean a close friend, a complete stranger or someone you’re about to fight. ‘G’day, mate’ is friendly. ‘Listen here, mate…’ probably isn’t.
Mozzies – Mosquitoes.
N
No worries – It’s fine. Don’t mention it.
O
On the piss – Drinking alcohol, usually too much.
P
Pig shooter – Someone who hunts feral pigs.
Pom – A British person.
Pub – A hotel with a public bar.
R
Ripper – Excellent.
Root – To have sex. It can also mean to support your team, which can be unintentionally funny to Australians.
Rooted – Completely exhausted, broken, ruined or, depending on the context, having had sex.
Rough as guts – Very rough or unpleasant.
S
Servo – A petrol station.
Shout – To buy someone else’s drinks.
Stubby – A small beer bottle.
Stubbies – Very short cotton shorts popular with Australian men during the 1970s and 1980s.
T
The Dry – Northern Australia’s dry season.
The Wet – Northern Australia’s tropical wet season.
Thongs – Flip-flops. Definitely footwear.
Troopy – A Toyota LandCruiser Troop Carrier.
Troppo – Behaving strangely after spending too long in the tropics.
Tucker – Food.
U
U-ey – A U-turn.
Ute – A utility vehicle.
W
Whinge – To complain.
Y
Yarn – A conversation or a tall story.
Congratulations. You’re now qualified to order a beer in an outback pub, complain about the mozzies, survive the Wet and argue about the footy.
Just remember: thongs go on your feet, not under your trousers.
Peter Morris | Australian Crime Author 