Skip to main content

Words/things I learned watching BBAU from the US

Surly's use of the word "muppet" is a British slang thing - it's not from aust but lots of younger guys say it because they like that whole cockney Guy Ritchie/Jamie Oliver south London gangsta thing. I hate that people use Muppet as a pejorative term. The Muppets are awesome and Jim Henson was a legend.

And Tim's accent is weird for an adult Aussie no matter which state or territory one comes from.

Personally, people I've travelled with reckon the Perth accent is softer than NSW. And being from Perth myself, I reckon that the regional NSW accent could strip paint off walls. It sounds exaggerated even to us
 
Rose711 said:
This is embarrassing to admit as I like to think I know geography.

I didn't realize, or had forgotten, just how massive Australia is. Somehow I thought it was closer to 2/3 of the continental US.

I was comparing maps when I figured this out.

Sorry about that Australia. And thank you for educating me.
Click to expand...

You weren't really that far off. Australia is 78% as large as the US in area (84% of the continental US).
 
Winterbourne said:
Accent in Australia seems to be more linked to outlook than geography, as most areas have a bogan accent, a posher one and a middle one, I think. She went with the bogan, because it suits her character and humour.
Click to expand...

I went to a private school and the boarders ( kids from all over the state - especially the Wheatbelt and the north) were like Boog. Boisterous, good at sport, strong strine accent. She could well have come from a high socio- economic background - farming family, mining engineers etc...
 
watermellie said:
Or wife beater!

UK calls them vests...
Click to expand...

In the country in Australia they'll be called johnny howes, a sheep shearer he has the world record for highest amount of sheep sheared with hand cutters in an hour or day, it's 386 also used to have the electric cutter record as well he got 287 but it has been beaten the hand cutter still stands though.
 
Nang72 said:
Surly's use of the word "muppet" is a British slang thing - it's not from aust but lots of younger guys say it because they like that whole cockney Guy Ritchie/Jamie Oliver south London gangsta thing.
Click to expand...

Yeah, Surly is based on the Tree of Temptation from the UK version of Big Brother, which is where his use of "muppet" comes from, I think. He's voiced in a British accent.
 
zagan said:
In the country in Australia they'll be called johnny howes, a sheep shearer he has the world record for highest amount of sheep sheared with hand cutters in an hour or day, it's 386 also used to have the electric cutter record as well he got 287 but it has been beaten the hand cutter still stands though.
Click to expand...
It's a Jackie Howe (singlet) I think - my dad was a shearer and still won't wear any other singlet even though retired for many years.
 
Nang72 said:
I went to a private school and the boarders ( kids from all over the state - especially the Wheatbelt and the north) were like Boog. Boisterous, good at sport, strong strine accent. She could well have come from a high socio- economic background - farming family, mining engineers etc...
Click to expand...

tumblr_mv5s73UpTX1qc8jh0o2_250.gif
 
zagan said:
In the country in Australia they'll be called johnny howes, a sheep shearer he has the world record for highest amount of sheep sheared with hand cutters in an hour or day, it's 386 also used to have the electric cutter record as well he got 287 but it has been beaten the hand cutter still stands though.
Click to expand...

Impossible in an hour so probably a day....ppfffffttttt. A sheila has a record of over 500 (can't remember exact number) in a day with an electric clipper - as seen on ACA last night.
 
Poona said:
So strange to think they're the first time you've heard those words. Things like sook and whinge I pretty much thought as a part of the English language, and not exclusive to Australia.

Pash, bogan, footy are also quite common in Australia but I can see how they may not be known elsewhere.
Click to expand...
funny, I've watched most of the BBUK seasons and i'm married to a Brit so i've heard most all of these so yes I think most are part of the English language.
One that get's me, I just love it, is pash That sounds more like a newly made up word, like the slang of today, like cra cra and totes. Is pash an expression you used growing up?
 
San Antonio said:
What's "povo?" Also "strine."
Click to expand...

povo = poverty stricken, ie poor.

It is a cruel way to refer to someone who has no money. I reckon Cartman could use it correctly without too much trouble.

If you see a slang word you don't know in strine, ignore the final vowel, and think of other words that begin with the same first syllable. eg devo, povo, Aussie etc
 
Great thread.

Strine is an joke/informal term for a broad Australian accent. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Strine

Ocker is an informal term for an Australian person who speaks Strine, says 'mate' a lot, drinks plenty of beer, etc. It is usually a term of endearment; you might say something like 'Caleb is a good bloke, a bit Ocker, but a good bloke', etc. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ocker

There's nothing new about 'pash'. In the early 1980s, in my high school in Victoria, 'pashing on' was the standard term for 'passionate kissing' and 'pash' comes from that.
 
Melbourne003000 said:
Great thread.

Strine is an joke/informal term for a broad Australian accent. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Strine

Ocker is an informal term for an Australian person who speaks Strine, says 'mate' a lot, drinks plenty of beer, etc. It is usually a term of endearment; you might say something like 'Caleb is a good bloke, a bit Ocker, but a good bloke', etc. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ocker

There's nothing new about 'pash'. In the early 1980s, in my high school in Victoria, 'pashing on' was the standard term for 'passionate kissing' and 'pash' comes from that.
Click to expand...
Pash is really old slang , as old as saying "neat" in the USA.

We also used to say "get with" instead of hooked up. i.e Drew got with Tully.

And the housemates tend to eat a lot of "spag bol" in the house. Spaghetti Bolognese.
 
We still say get with. At least when I was in HS and now in Uni 'Get with/ got with/ gotten with/ got it on with' are still the preferred terms to variations of the 'hooked up'
 
lynne said:
funny, I've watched most of the BBUK seasons and i'm married to a Brit so i've heard most all of these so yes I think most are part of the English language.
One that get's me, I just love it, is pash That sounds more like a newly made up word, like the slang of today, like cra cra and totes. Is pash an expression you used growing up?
Click to expand...

I like you implied assertion that because it is said in the UK then it must be part of the English language. The truth of the matter is that what constitutes the English language is determined in the US - simply on the numbers. The UK and Australia speak similar dialects of English.
 
Hekate said:
I like you implied assertion that because it is said in the UK then it must be part of the English language. The truth of the matter is that what constitutes the English language is determined in the US - simply on the numbers. The UK and Australia speak similar dialects of English.
Click to expand...

Hmmm...I don't think so. Heck in a country as large as the US certain regions don't have the some phrases and slang that are in common use in another. So why the hell anybody would use a foreign country thousands of miles away as the barometer of what constitutes 'English' is beyond me. Not sure what superiority/inferiority complex that is based on but not every other shares such a dodgy outlook.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top