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Diminutive forms of words are commonly used in everyday Australian English. While many dialects of English make use of diminutives and hypocorisms, Australian English uses them more extensively than any other. Diminutives may be seen as slang, but many are used widely across the whole of society. Some forms have also spread outside Australia to other English speaking countries. There are over 5,000 identified diminutives in use in Australian English.
Usage
In other English dialects, diminutives usually imply smallness or have a childish connotation such as in 'birdie', 'doggy', or 'kitty'. While diminutives can be used in this way in Australian English, they are also used widely in a non-childish manner with over 4300 being recorded. For example, bikie (a motorcycle, or motorbike club member), does not imply a bicycle in a small or childish sense as it may in other English dialects.
In Australian English, diminutives are usually formed by taking the first part of a word, and adding an ending such as a, o, ie, or y. Sometimes, no ending is added. While the form of a diminutive is arbitrary, their use follows strict rules. Diminutives are not used creatively. For example, an ambulance paramedic is called an ambo, never ambie, or amba. Some diminutives are almost always used in preference to the original form, while others are rarely used or restricted to certain groups or locations. The use of diminutives also evolves over time with new words coming into use and falling out of favour. Some diminutives have become so common that the original form has fallen out of common usage. For example, Salvos has begun to replace the name Salvation Army to such an extent that some Australians do not recognise the Salvation Army name. Deli has become so universal that delicatessen is rarely used. Some words, such as ute, from utility vehicle, a car with a tray back, have become universal.
There is common usage of the diminutive forms of people's names; Hargrave → Hargie; Sharon → Shazza; Clark→ Clarky; Wilkinson → Wilko; John → Jonno; David → Davo; Hogan → Hoges; James → Jimmy → Jim → Jimbo; Benjamin → Ben → Benno; Barry → Bazza. This is usually a display of affection and acceptance rather than belittlement.
Organizations and businesses will often embrace the diminutives given to them by Australians, using them in their own advertising and even registering it as a trademark. McDonald's Australia, for example, has registered and uses the name Macca's, rather than the term McDonald's still seen on its restaurants in Australia.
Some diminutives are rarely used, but widely recognised. For example, chalkie means teacher, but most Australians simply call a teacher a teacher.
Diminutives are often used for place names, and are only recognised by people in the local area, for example, cot for Cottesloe Beach in Perth, Parra for Parramatta in Sydney and Broady for Broadmeadows in Melbourne. Pub and hotel names in particular are often shortened. For example, pubs called the Esplanade Hotel, such as the Esplanade Hotel in St. Kilda, will often be called The Espy.
Purpose and History
The purpose of diminutives in Australian English is not well understood despite being a prominent part of Australian culture. Some research suggests that the use of diminutives serves to make interactions more informal, friendly and relaxed. Linguist Anna Wierzbicka argues that Australians' use of diminutives reflects Australian cultural values of mateship, friendliness, informality, and solidarity, while downplaying formality and avoiding bragging associated with tall poppy syndrome.
Records of the use of diminutives in Australian English date back to the 1800s. Older Australians tend to prefer diminutives with endings such a '-o' in smoko (a work rest break), however younger Australians have begun to use endings such as -s as seen in totes (totally).
List of diminutives
This list contains noteworthy and commonly understood diminutives from Australian English.
Those marked ‡ are also common in other English dialects.
A
- Abo, an indigenous Australian. From Aboriginal. Now considered highly offensive.
- Aggro, aggressive, aggravated or angry
- Ag pipe, agricultural pipe (black heavy-duty hose used for irrigation etc.)
- Alco or (less commonly) ‡Alkie, an alcoholic
- Ambo, an ambulance paramedic
- Arvo or (less commonly) Arvie, afternoon
- Avo, avocado
- ‡Aussie, Australian
- Acca/Dacca, AC/DC, popular band
B
- Barbie, a barbecue, the cooking apparatus itself or the event of cooking food on a barbecue
- Barra, a barramundi, or the Ford Barra engine built by Ford Australia
- Beauty, Beaut, or Bewdy, beautiful. Used in a much wider sense than the beauty, e.g. fantastic or excellent.
- ‡Bickie, Biccy or bikkie, a biscuit
- Bidgie, the Murrumbidgee River
- Bikie, a member of a motorcycle club, with a connotation of involvement in criminal activity. This is equivalent to biker in other forms of English. A motorcycle club is called a bikie club. Outlaw motorcycle clubs may also be called bikie gangs.
- Blowie, a blowfly. A large buzzing fly common in Australia.
- Blowy, fellatio, short for blow job.
- ‡Bolshie, from Bolshevik, meaning of a person or attitude, deliberately combative or uncooperative.
- ‡Bookie, a bookmaker
- Boardies, boardshorts, worn by surfers
- Bottle-oh, (historical) a mobile bottle collector (for return and re-use)
- Bottle-o, a bottle shop or alcohol store
- Bowlo, a lawn bowls clubhouse
- ‡Brekkie or Brekky, breakfast
- Brissy (alternate spellings Brizzy, Brissie or Brizzie), Brisbane, the capital of Queensland
- ‡Brickie, a bricklayer
- Broadie or Broady, Broadmeadows in Victoria, Broadbeach in Queensland
- Brushie, a brushtail possum
- ‡Budgie, a budgerigar, a parakeet. Male swimming briefs are called budgie smugglers.
- Bundy, Bundaberg, Queensland, Bundaberg Rum
- Bushie, one who is competent to live away from civilization (from bushman)
C
- Cab Sav, Cabernet Sauvignon wine
- ‡Cardie, a cardigan
- Cauli (pron. "collie"), cauliflower
- Ceno or Cenno , the Centrelink office. Also used to refer to a weekly payment (pension or otherwise) from the Centrelink office.
- Chalkie, a teacher. From chalk used on blackboards. Once also applied to employees of the Australian Stock Exchange who wrote stock prices on chalk boards prior to computerisation.
- Champers, champagne
- Chardy, chardonnay wine
- Chewy, chewing gum
- ‡Chippie, a carpenter. From wood chips
- Chockers, full to overflowing, derived from "chock-a-block"
- Chockie, chocolate
- Chocko (from chocolate soldier), a member of the Australian Army Reserve
- Chrissie or Chrissy, Christmas
- Chuck a u-ey, do a u-turn (when driving a vehicle)
- ‡Ciggie, a cigarette
- Cockie, a cockatoo. Commonly a sulphur-crested cockatoo. By extension, a farmer, e.g. "cow cockie" for dairy farmer. Also slang for cockroach
- Coldie, a cold can or stubby of beer, as in "crack a coldie"
- Connie, a bus or train conductor, a condom
- Coota, Cootamundra, also barracouta
- ‡Compo, compensation for being injured at work. Generally not used for other forms of compensation.
- Corro, corrugated iron
- ‡Cossies or Cozzies, a bathing costume
- Cow Bombie, Cowaramup Bombora
- Cranie, a crane driver
- Croc, a crocodile
- Crownie, variously refers to Crown Lager or a Crown Prosecutor, the latter popularised by the televisions series Crownies.
- ‡Cuppa, a cup of tea or coffee
D
- Dandy, Dandenong
- ‡Deli, a delicatessen
- Dero or derro, a derelict, a poor (often homeless) person, or location or building; also used as an adjective
- Devo, devastated, very upset over some event
- Deso, a designated driver
- Doco, a documentary
- Dodge, dodgy or suspicious
- Doughie, the doughnut driving manoeuvre
- Druggie, illicit drug user
E
- Eckies, ecstasy. From the street name for MDMA.
- Erko, the Sydney suburb of Erskineville
- Esky, a portable insulated container. From the Eskimo brand, which was later shortened to esky.
- Exy, expensive
F
- Falsies, a heavily-padded brassiere
- Firie, a firefighter
- Flannie, flannelette shirt
- Flatties, flat-soled (women's) shoes
- Flatty, a flat tyre, or a Flathead (fish)
- ‡Footy, football, which may refer to the sport of football, the ball itself, or a specific game. Generally, footy refers to Australian Rules Football in Southern and Western States or Rugby league in Queensland and New South Wales. Association football is either called football or soccer, but never footy. Rugby Union is called rugby, never footy. The Nine Network runs two longstanding variety television shows called The Footy Show; one for Aussie Rules, and the other for Rugby League.
- Franga, Frankston, Victoria; a condom
- Freo, Fremantle, Western Australia
- Freshie, a freshwater crocodile, as opposed to a saltie - a saltwater crocodile. Also Freshwater Beach in Sydney
- Forkie, a forklift operator
G
- The G, Melbourne Cricket Ground. An abbreviated version of the already short initialism used for the M.C.G.
- G-town (or G-troit, which is a play on Detroit), referring to the Victorian city of Geelong
- The Gabba, The Brisbane Cricket Ground. Located in the suburb Woolloongabba.
- Garbo, a garbage collector
- Gero, Geraldton.
- Geo, to be of the Geologist profession.
- Gladdy, the gladioli family of plants. The term was popularised by Barry Humphries in character as Dame Edna Everage.
- Glenny, short for Glen Waverley, a suburb in Victoria, Australia Glen Waverley.
- The Gong, Wollongong, New South Wales
- Greenie, an environmentalist, from the green movement; usually pejoratively
- Goss, rumours, latest stories amongst friends gossip
- Gossie, Gosford
H
- Homo, homosexual (offensive)
- Housos, (pron. –z–) residents of public housing
- Hypo, hyperactive
I
- Indro, Indooroopilly, a suburb in Brisbane.
- Iso, isolation, gained popularity during the COVID-19 pandemic
J
- Jocks, men's briefs (underwear), esp. in phrase "socks and jocks"; from the brand name "Jockey"
- ‡Journo, a journalist
- Jindy, short for Jindabyne
K
- Kanga, a kangaroo
- Kero, kerosene
- Kindy, Kinda or Kinder, kindergarten
L
- Lebo, or Leb, for Middle Eastern immigrant, specifically from Lebanon, sometimes pejorative.
- ‡Leftie, a person with left wing views
- Lezzo, a lesbian
- Liftie, a ski lift operator
- ‡Lippy, a lipstick
- Lappy, a laptop computer
M
- Maccas, McDonald's fast food restaurants This is also reflected in McDonald's corporate branding.
- Maggie, Australian magpie
- Melbs, Melbourne
- Metho or meths, methylated spirits; also Methodist
- Middy or middie, a mid-sized beer (half-pint).
- Mo, a moustache Contributed to the portmanteau "Movember".
- ‡Mong, an insult for someone implying that they are a mongoloid
- ‡Mozzie, mosquito
- Murbah, Murwillumbah
- Mushie, mushroom
- Muso, a musician
- Muzzies or muzzos, a term for Muslims, sometimes pejorative.
N
- Nasho, a conscript in the army. Derived from national service. Used especially around the Vietnam war. In the Army it was used in a derogatory sense. The term has fallen out of use as conscription in Australia ended in the 1970s. Common use is now Nationality
- Newie or Newy, Newcastle
P
- Parra, Parramatta
- Parma, Parmi or Parmy, chicken parmigiana, a pub food staple
- Paro, Paranoid. Also, extremely drunk (from paralytic).
- Pav, pavlova
- Pinky, a young, hairless brushtail possum that still resides in its marsupial mother's pouch, newborn rats and mice
- Pokey, pokies, (mostly as plural), a poker machine
- Pollie, a politician
- Pommie (adjective or noun), English or English person (may be derogatory) also Pom (noun)
- ‡Postie, a postman or postwoman
- Povvo or Pov, a poor or cheap person. From poverty
- Preggo or ‡preggers, pregnant
- ‡Prezzies, gifts, presents; use widespread outside Australia
- Probs, probably, also used for problem in the phrase "no probs"
- ‡Prozzies, prostitutes
- Pushie, pushbike, a bicycle
Q
- Quazza, quarantine
R
- "R"ie, also rissole, RSL clubhouse
- ‡Ref, referee (noun), or to referee a game (verb)
- Reffo, a pejorative term for a refugee
- Rego, a vehicle registration
- Reso, a reservation
- Ressie or Ressy, the Melbourne suburb of Reservoir
- Rellie or Relo, a relative
- ‡Rents, parents
- Reo, reinforcing steel, rebar
- Rocko, Rockingham
- Rocky, Rockhampton
- Rollie (from roll-your-own, pron. ROHL-ee), handmade cigarette
- Roo, a kangaroo
- Rotto, Rottnest Island
S
- Saltie, a saltwater crocodile, as opposed to a freshie, a freshwater crocodile
- Salvos, Salvation Army. The term is used officially by the Salvation Army in Australia.
- Sanga or Sanger, a sandwich. Originally sango, but evolved to its current from by the 1960s.
- Sanny, hand sanitiser
- Sav, saveloy, especially battered sav, a showtime treat
- Savvy B, Sauvignon Blanc wine
- Scarn on, A shortened, colloquial term for 'what's going on' (a term used when greeting others)
- Scomo or Scotty From Marketing, Scott Morrison, 30th prime minister of Australia
- Selfie, a self-shot photograph. This term originated in Australia and has been adopted worldwide via the internet. It became The Oxford Dictionary's 2013 word of the year.
- ‡Semi, a semi-trailer truck, also a semi-final
- ‡Seppo, a pejorative term for an American. Seppo is a diminutive of septic tank which is in turn rhyming slang for yank, which is a diminutive of yankee.
- Servo, a petrol station, service station
- ‡Shottie, a shotgun; also the act of riding in the front passenger seat of a vehicle, sometimes announced as "I call shotgun/shottie", to indicate that a person has claimed this seat.
- ‡Sickie, a sick day, often with a connotation of there being insufficient medical reason for missing work
- Smoko, a smoking break while at work. Since smoking has been banned in many workplaces, a smoko has come to mean any rest break at work.
- Snag, Sausage
- ‡Spag bol, Spaghetti Bolognese
- ‡Sparkie, an electrician. From sparking, electric arcing
- Spenny, expensive
- Straya, Short for Australia
- Stubby or Stubbie, a small, wide bottle of beer
- Subi or Subie, a Subaru car Also the suburb of Subiaco, in Perth
- ‡Sunnies, sunglasses
- Super, superannuation. In Australia, all employers are obliged to set aside a percentage of a worker's wages in a superannuation fund.
- Surfie, a surfer
- Susso, from sustenance payments, a form of welfare during the Great Depression in the form of food coupons. The word has fallen out of use.
- ‡Suss, suspicious.
- Swaggie, a swagman
T
- Taz or Tassie, Tasmania or Tasmanian
- Techo, technician, technical (adjective)
- ‡Tellie or Telly, a television
- ‡Tinnie, historically referred to a beverage can (usually a beer can) but today generally refers to an aluminium flat-bottomed boat. From tin can
- Tradie, a tradesperson
- ‡Trackies, track pants or a tracksuit. Track pants are also known as trackie dacks, dacks being a colloquial word for trousers.
- Toonie, Toongabbie, a historic suburb in Western Sydney
- Towie, tow truck or a tow truck driver
- Townie, townsperson, as distinct from bushie, so not to be trusted
- Trannie or Tranny, offensive word for a transgender person; also outdated slang for radio, stemming from the word "transistor radio"
- Troppo, from "tropics" as in "gone troppo", unhinged mentally (orig. army slang)
- Truckie, a truck driver
- ‡Turps, alcohol, from turpentine, a toxic solvent historically used to adulterate gin. Usually used to say a person is "on the turps" (drinking heavily).
- ‡TV, a television, a common word outside of Australian English
- ‡Typo, a typographic error
U
- U-ey ,U'ie (you-eee) To turn 180 degrees when driving a vehicle, U-Turn.
- Ump or Umpie, an umpire at a sporting game See also Ref
- ‡Undies, underwear. This word is used widely outside Australian English.
- ‡Uni, university
- Ute, an abbreviation of "utility"; a passenger vehicle with a cargo tray in the rear. Festivals that involve gatherings of utes are popular in rural areas and are called ute musters.
V
- ‡Veggie or vegie, vegetables, generally not a vegetarian
- Veggo, a vegetarian, never a vegetable
- Vic, Victoria
- Vinnies, Society of Saint Vincent de Paul. The term is used officially by the society in Australia. Commonly runs "op shops" (opportunity shops)
W
- Westie, resident of a western suburb (several capital cities)
- Wharfie, a docks worker
- Wheelie, several car and bike manoeuvres — wheelstand or wheelspin; meaning found from context
- Winnies, Winfield (brand) cigarettes, esp. "Winnie blues", a low-tar variety
- ‡Wino, an alcoholic who subsists on cheap, probably fortified, wine
- ‡Woolies, Woolworths supermarkets
- Woollies, especially Winter woollies, woollen garments
See also
References
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So in Australia, 'mo' is slang for mustache, so we renamed the month of November 'Movember'.
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