My real first exposure to Aussie slang was through the infamous movie Crocodile Dundee (if you haven't seen it yet, rent it tonight and laugh your arse off!)
I was puzzled. Seriously. From the G'day mate to Fair dinkum. What on earth was Paul Hogan talking about?
As soon as I got here, I struggled with a few words but soon figured out that Australians can't be f***** (CBF) saying entire words, so they shorten them and add the "ie" sound at the end. Therefore:
Breakfast is brekkie
Umbrella is brawlie
Chewing gum is a chewie
Chocolate is chookie
Biscuit is a bikkie
Television is a telly
A beer is a coldie
A coolbox is an esky
A hot water bottle is a hottie
Lipstick is lippy
A present (gift) is a prezzy
A lottery ticket is a scratchy
A track suit is trackies
Vegetables are veggies
A bricklayer is a brickie
An electrician is a sparkie
An electrician is a sparkie
And the list goes on...!!
There even are postcards "translating" Aussie slang. My co-worker put the Sheila one on our wall just to make me laugh.
While Sheila and the Aussie gentleman are actual "bogans" ("chav" in England, "redneck" in America - the equivalent of "BS" in Québec), the expressions on both postcards are still quite common among Australians, especially younger generations.
