So today, or maybe it was yesterday (it is hard to keep track of days when I am on Sydney time, but my computer is on AZ time), I submitted my book to Amazon's Breakthrough Novel Award! It would be AWESOME if I could even make it through round one of this thing. We'll see how I go on the 23rd!
Which reminds me - I have been meaning to share my first installment of Australian Phraseology.
Whether we're going out in the arvo (afternoon) with friends or are just trying to pick up some "tasty cheese" (cheddar) at the local market, I often feel like I need to be carrying around an Aussie Decoder Pen. I know these folks are speaking English, but there are a heck of a lot of differences.
To get the full experience of this list, click on the links - you'll jump to one of my favorite websites in the entire world: Forvo.com. There you can actually listen to an Aussie say the word out loud!
All right! On to some of my current favorites:
Which reminds me - I have been meaning to share my first installment of Australian Phraseology.
Whether we're going out in the arvo (afternoon) with friends or are just trying to pick up some "tasty cheese" (cheddar) at the local market, I often feel like I need to be carrying around an Aussie Decoder Pen. I know these folks are speaking English, but there are a heck of a lot of differences.
To get the full experience of this list, click on the links - you'll jump to one of my favorite websites in the entire world: Forvo.com. There you can actually listen to an Aussie say the word out loud!
All right! On to some of my current favorites:
Bogan -- This is the Australian equivalent of a "redneck" though I think it's a bit more specific ... like a redneck in the city maybe? I haven't quite figured out how offensive this, and I haven't been brave enough to drop it in casual conversation to find out.
Maths -- This one just cracks me up. You don't work on your math homework. You work on your maths homework. In an interesting twist, you likewise don't watch sports, you watch some sport. I don't know why, but I giggle everytime I hear these words or see them painted on the "maths tutorial" buses ... which they have quite a lot of here.
Bench -- After Rob received several mysterious emails from colleagues about nibbles being left on the bench, we quickly realized that nibbles=snacks. What took us longer to figure out was why the heck people were leaving them lying around on a bench where someone could sit on them?! We had no reason to worry. Turns out a "bench" is a kitchen counter. The problem is I now have no idea what to call an actual bench! Sigh.
Biscuit -- This one still has me going in circles. If a biscuit is what we (Americans) think of as a cookie, what do Australians call a biscuit? I've sort of figured out the whole chips(AUS)=fries(US), and crisps(AUS)=chips(US) thing, but the biscuit/cookie mess has me completely confused.
Also, if like me, you ever suspected that American tv/movies were exaggerating how often Aussies say "mate" -- they aren't! They may even be under-exaggerating! They say it ALL the time, to friends and (more often) as a way to be welcoming/friendly to strangers. I love it! I don't think I'll ever be able to bring myself to say it with a straight face -- it just begs for that great Aussie lilt -- but I love it!
Maths -- This one just cracks me up. You don't work on your math homework. You work on your maths homework. In an interesting twist, you likewise don't watch sports, you watch some sport. I don't know why, but I giggle everytime I hear these words or see them painted on the "maths tutorial" buses ... which they have quite a lot of here.
Bench -- After Rob received several mysterious emails from colleagues about nibbles being left on the bench, we quickly realized that nibbles=snacks. What took us longer to figure out was why the heck people were leaving them lying around on a bench where someone could sit on them?! We had no reason to worry. Turns out a "bench" is a kitchen counter. The problem is I now have no idea what to call an actual bench! Sigh.
Biscuit -- This one still has me going in circles. If a biscuit is what we (Americans) think of as a cookie, what do Australians call a biscuit? I've sort of figured out the whole chips(AUS)=fries(US), and crisps(AUS)=chips(US) thing, but the biscuit/cookie mess has me completely confused.
Also, if like me, you ever suspected that American tv/movies were exaggerating how often Aussies say "mate" -- they aren't! They may even be under-exaggerating! They say it ALL the time, to friends and (more often) as a way to be welcoming/friendly to strangers. I love it! I don't think I'll ever be able to bring myself to say it with a straight face -- it just begs for that great Aussie lilt -- but I love it!
I was over in the US late last year and the biscuit vs cookie vs cracker thing really got me too. In Aus a biscuit can be either what you guys would call a cookie or a cracker. I think what you guys call a biscuit is like a scone (that is what it looked like anyway I never tried one). We would call a bench a bench-seat where a kitchen counter would be a kitchen bench. Oh yeah and a bogan is very much like a red-neck.
ReplyDelete