asparagus roll

Yet while those clingfilm-wrapped platters of asparagus rolls, savoury cheese balls and Anzac biscuits have gone out of style, they haven't been totally scorned.

2002, Craig Dowling, Insight Guide New Zealand, →ISBN, page 89:

People had brought food: whitebait patties, cheese Scones, asparagus rolls, Smoked mussels, Cold meats, Salads, garli bread and scallop pies.

2013, Henriette Fleischer, Back to Anatori: One Woman's Experience of a Small, Rural Town in New Zealand, →ISBN:

I told her it would be no trouble for my housekeeper, Mrs Murphy, to make cucumber sandwiches and asparagus rolls for twentyfive.

2014, Clive Thomas, Thursday's Child : Journeys Far and Wide in the Australian Outback, →ISBN:

(Australia, New Zealand) A finger food made by rolling a spear of asparagus in a slice of buttered bread with the crust cut off.


homekill

(New Zealand, chiefly attributive) The slaughter of one's own animals on one's own property.


book token

book tokens (plural)
booktoken (alternative)
book-token (alternative)

I got a Dunnes jumper and a twenty euro book token from Dad, and luckily he left the tag on the jumper, so I can bring it back after school tomorrow and swap it for something that doesn't look like it was bought by someone who has NO IDEA what thirteen-year-old girls are wearing these days.

2013, Roisin Meaney, Don't Even Think About It, →ISBN:

(UK, Australia, New Zealand) A voucher that can be redeemed in the purchase of a book.


chookyard

The chooks ran free in the paddock behind the chookyard, where the house cow also grazed.

2002, Susan Hawthorne, Wild Politics: Feminism, Globalisation, Bio/diversity, →ISBN, page 177:

I walked over to the chookyard, where my dad's voice had come from.

2013, Yasar Duyal -, Paper Clips, →ISBN, page 141:

Oblivious to the scorching heat and rising wind she turned her tear-stained face towards the pigsty and chookyard, setting off at yet another frenzied pace.

2018, The Outback: Anthology of Short Stories, →ISBN:


cool store

(Australia, New Zealand) A building or room that is kept cool for the storage of perishables (such as apples).


san fairy ann

A homophonic translation of French ça ne fait rien (“it doesn’t matter”), probably originating among British and ANZAC army soldiers during World War I (1914–1918).

bor

“[…] It seems scrounging for fuel ’ad reached such a pitch in the village […] But our washing ’ad to be done, ’an I thought if I got the whole of this football team scrounging they might find something as everyone else ’ad overlooked.[…]” / “‘Very well,’ says I, ‘San fairy ann. Napoo [i.e., n’y a plus] washing—napoo ball.’[…]”

1920 March 10, “Won on the Posts. (With the British Army in France.)”, in Punch, or The London Charivari, volume CLVIII, London: […] Bradbury, Agnew & Co., […], →OCLC, page 185, column 1:

‘Very well,’ says I, ‘it doesn't matter. No more washing—no more ball.’

We said he were wonderful brave dog about Upstart, which me and Slippers would not have taken on. He said: "Fairy Ann! Fairy Ann!" But he were most-happy dog.

[1930 October, Rudyard Kipling, “Toby Dog”, in Thy Servant a Dog […], London: Macmillan and Co., […], published October 1931, →OCLC, pages 87–88:

We stood to attention for a seeming eternity while the Adjutant, a runt-like little Guards captain, proceeded at a snail's pace along the ranks, closely attended by the dreaded R.S.M. Copp. […] His [Copp's] choicest utterance was 'I've had enough of your San-Fairy-Ann [ça ne me fait rien] attitude!' – was this an echo of 1914-18 or of our earlier wars against the French?

1997, Christopher Hurst, “A Taste of Hell”, in The View from King Street: An Essay in Autobiography, London: Thalia Press, →ISBN, book I (The Pre-history of a Publisher), page 123:

Occasionally, when he has had too much to drink, he'll give voice to his disappointments, but Sarah only smiles at that and blows him a kiss and says, San Fairy Ann, dear, San Fairy Ann, and he will give up trying to explain.

2002, Melanie McGrath, chapter 1, in Silvertown: An East End Family Memoir, London: Fourth Estate, HarperCollinsPublishers, →ISBN, page 10:

[G]oo-on, he says, goo-on, I'll give you 'alf, Morris, he says if she [a racehorse] romps home, romp, did she bloody romp, she ran like the clappers out of hell, dropped dead two hours after in her trailer but san-fairy-ann, what's that to me, and where's my fiver?

2005, Hilary Mantel, Beyond Black, London: Fourth Estate, HarperCollinsPublishers, →ISBN, page 164:

‘Ça ne fait rien.’ / ‘San fairy Ann,’ she laughed. ‘Well, I suppose that’s English now, in a way.’ / ‘That’s what some of the soldiers say, san fairy Ann,’ one of the children piped. ‘What does it mean?’ / ‘Eet doesen’t matair.’

[2007, Annie Wilkinson, For King and Country, London: Simon & Schuster, →ISBN, page 232:

As Mrs. Jarvie loves to say "San fairy ann," or in other words, fuck it.

2023, Natali Clark, “San Fairy Ann”, in Staring at Medusa, Altona, Man.: FriesenPress, →ISBN, page 275:

(Australia, New Zealand, UK, military slang, humorous, obsolete) It doesn't matter.


lineflow

(New Zealand) perforated paper supplied in continuous connected sheets, designed for use with line printers


spit tacks

en-verb

spit tacks (third-person singular simple present spits tacks, present participle spitting tacks, simple past and past participle spat tacks or spit tacks)

spits tacks (present singular third-person)
spitting tacks (participle present)
spat tacks (participle past)
spat tacks (past)
spit tacks (participle past)
spit tacks (past)

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-spit tacks.wav

(slang, New Zealand, Australia, intransitive) To be angry.


mission station

en-noun

mission station (plural mission stations)

Stockbridge lay in the direct route, and it was constantly feared that the French and Indians would be down from the north, and sweep the little mission station before them; but the tide divided, and passed to the east and west of us, the hostile not daring to encounter the friendly Indians.

1854, Electa Fidelia Jones, Stockbridge, Past and Present, Or, Records of an Old Mission Station:

We wanted to remain on the land and make our living however we could. But, no; the Board would not have that; we must live on the mission station.

1934, Anna Morgan, “Under the Black Flag”, in Heiss & Minter, editor, Macquarie PEN Anthology of Aboriginal Literature, Allen & Unwin, published 2008, page 29:

(Australia, New Zealand) A reserve or other tract of land administered by religious missionaries for the spiritual and material welfare of Aboriginal people.


tupakihi

(New Zealand) The tutu, a shrub of New Zealand.


toot plant

(New Zealand, obsolete) The tutu, a shrub of New Zealand.


big bikkies

Rob has been doing brilliant things for me on a sub-development case. Very big bikkies. Very big bruisers.

1986, Thomas W. Shapcott, Hotel Bellevue, page 88:

It was the hint of big bickies to be had from big mining that did that.

2006, Alexis Wright, Carpentaria, Giramondo, published 2012, page 52:

(Australia, New Zealand) A lot of money.


choom

(New Zealand, Australia, dated, informal) An Englishman.


reserve grade

(sports, Australia, New Zealand) A second division in a sporting league or competition.


reserve grader

(sports, Australia, New Zealand) A player in the reserve grade.


lawyer vine

When we got there, Chillagoe turned out to be a single chimneystack sticking up out of acres of ruins under waist-high lawyer vines.

2005, David Malouf, A First Place, Vintage, published 2015, page 75:

(Australia, New Zealand) Any of various chiefly climbing plants of coastal Australia, especially of the genus Calamus, with strong curved hooks.


cockabully

Probably from Maori kōkopuruao (“banded kokopu”), with alternation of the ending after bully (“goby of the genus Gobiomorphus”). Compare kokopu.

We knew the plants on its banks and in the creek the rocks, cockabullies, eels and the old weighted shredded sacks of drowned kittens and cats.

1982, Janet Frame, An Angel at my Table, Virago, published 2024, page 30:

(New Zealand) Any of various small, blunt-nosed freshwater fishes, especially gobies of the genus Gobiomorphus.

(New Zealand) Any of various marine fishes of the family Tripterygiidae, found in rockpools and coastal waters.


my learned friend

(law, Australia, British, Hong Kong, New Zealand, Canada) A barrister on the opposing side of a dispute; a member of opposing counsel.


Noo Zillun

Pronunciation spelling
pronunciation spelling

Pronunciation spelling of New Zealand, representing New Zealand English.


Marmageddon

Prime Minister John Key is among thousands of Kiwis having to ration their Marmite, as 'Marmageddon' enters its second day.

2012 March 20, Alan Gibson, “Marmageddon': There's always Vegemite, says PM”, in New Zealand Herald:

First it was "Marmageddon" as Marmite vanished from shop shelves - now Vegemite has been hit by supply problems.

2012 July 11, Christopher Adams, “Fears spread of Vegemite shortage”, in Otago Daily Times:

Following the 2011 Christchurch earthquakes, Marmite fans faced 'Marmageddon' with the Sanitarium factory forced to cease production of the well known condiment due to extensive renovations of its earthquake damaged factory.

2013 September 30, “Marmite returns to shelves post Christchurch earthquake”, in Marketing magazine Australia:

The Marmageddon reaction seemed entirely out of proportion to the problem.

2018 July 19, Jennifer Bowden, “Remember Marmageddon? It could be the key to your food cravings”, in Stuff:

(New Zealand) A national shortage of Marmite in New Zealand from early 2012 until late 2013, following damage in the 2011 earthquake to the Christchurch factory that produced the product.


sheepo

(New Zealand) A person who keeps sheep pens filled with fresh unshorn sheep in a shearing shed as shearers remove other animals to be shorn.


ponger

(UK, Australia, New Zealand, informal) Anything that has a bad smell.


how are you going

how are you doing
how are you doing#English

(Australia, New Zealand) Alternative form of how are you doing.


job's a good 'un

Attested in 1968, but probably popularised by footballer Robbie Fowler who, after scoring four goals in a Premier League match against Middlesbrough on 14 December 1996, revealed a T-shirt with the phrase written on it in marker pen. He explained to the press that it was Happy Mondays percussionist Bez's catchphrase in his segment "Science with Bez" on BBC Two's The Sunday Show (1995–97).

job's a good'un (alternative)
job's a goodun (alternative)
the job's a good 'un (alternative)

We've cracked it Ginge! Showed out for a cock and hen and drew for a flag. There’s one born every minute. Let this one go for now and the job’s a good un. Hello, there’s a jam role there. And diamonds is a roles best friend. They love em! See me cop off this.

1968, Robert Roberts, Imprisoned Tongues, Manchester University Press, page 210:

‘The job’s a good ’un. Ahm getting a word put in and it’ll all be fixed up.’

1975 August, Michael Foley, “The Wrassler: A Bit of Strange”, in Fortnight, number 109, →JSTOR, page 14:

‘Well, if that's what you want,’ he says, sounding a touch ratty, ‘I’ll stop everything else and you can have the entire A350 budget to turn up at the bookshop tomorrow.’ ‘Job's a good ’un,’ I tell him. ‘Oh, and one other thing. Cash, please.’

1998 October 16, "Darren Tackle" [Jim White], “Brought to book by the Fraud squad”, The Guardian, page 16

A traffic jam made up of normal cars will be twice as long as one made up of these Japanese “kei” cars. And a kei jam will clear more quickly, because in a car the size of a bacterium you don’t have to drive round and round the block looking for somewhere to park. You just pop it in your pocket and the job’s a good ’un.

2008, Jeremy Clarkson, “The problem is ... it's out of this world”, in The Sunday Times, page 20:

‘What do you need new stuff for? Just do the stuff you did on The T Factor – that had them rolling in the aisles! Bish bash bosh! Job’s a goodun’! You get paid! And more importantly so do I!’ said Dickie with a smirk.

2018, Harry Hill, Matt Millz Stands Up!, Faber & Faber:

(British, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, colloquial) Expresses satisfaction that a task has been or will be carried out successfully, often suggesting that the task is simple, or ironically implying that it has been completed in a cursory or slapdash manner.

BBC Two
Happy Mondays
Premier League
Robbie Fowler
Sunday Mirror
The Sunday Show


vollie

From volunteer + -ie (“diminutive suffix”).

We’d have better seed corn for future paramedics in the BLS crews, by virtue of them handling more patient care and the rural vollie squads would get regular education and mentoring.

2017 March 9, Kelly Grayson, “Re-inventing EMS with a BLS intercept”, in EMS1, archived from the original on 2019-03-08:

"Over the course of 12 months the brigade responds to dozens of fires and other safety related incidents, so the funding support is greatly appreciated by the vollies," Mr Fishwick said.

2019 August 20, “Maintenance boost for fire brigade”, in Harvey-Waroona Reporter:

In the first winter, we probably had about 20 peeps showing up for kai. Then in 2018, we had a solid team of nine vollies and a maximum of 60 people coming for food. We could handle the jandal.

2017 August 26, Emma Houpt, “More people, more need in Tauranga”, in SunLive:

(Australia, New Zealand, informal) A volunteer.


typiste

The only appointment of a typiste that has been made in this Department under the present Government is that of a fully qualified shorthand-writer and typiste […]

1912, New Zealand. Parliament, Parliamentary Debates: Legislative Council and House of Representatives, volume 160, page 41:

(Australia, New Zealand) Archaic form of typist.


crook as Rookwood

(Australia, New Zealand, slang) Extremely unwell.


koaro

(New Zealand) The freshwater fish Galaxias brevipinnis.


hard out

en-adj

hard out (comparative more hard out, superlative most hard out)

more hard out (comparative)
most hard out (superlative)

Had it been hard out? Extremely hard out, they assured him, laughing, still bleary, still grainy-faced— and they thanked him again for the gift.

2023, Eleanor Catton, Birnam Wood, page 321:

(Australia, New Zealand, slang) Impressive; awesome.


en-verb

think<,,thought> the sun shines<shines,shines,shone:shined> out of someone's arse

think the sun shines out of someone's arse (third-person singular simple present thinks the sun shines out of someone's arse, present participle thinking the sun shines out of someone's arse, simple past and past participle thought the sun shone out of someone's arse or thought the sun shined out of someone's arse)

(UK, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, vulgar, figuratively) To think so well of someone that one cannot imagine anything wrong with them.


chuck off

chuck off (third-person singular simple present chucks off, present participle chucking off, simple past and past participle chucked off)

chucks off (present singular third-person)
chucking off (participle present)
chucked off (participle past)
chucked off (past)

(slang, Australia, New Zealand) To insult or verbally abuse (someone); to tease, sneer at or demean (someone).


blodger

He was the leader of what were scornfuiiy called the "high souls" against the "blodgers."

Tearing herself away irritably, Maureen said abruptly: 'That he's a skite, a larry, a blodger and a drongo all rolled into one.

1966, Colin MacInnes, All Day Saturday, page 97:

In fact, all the executives who'd seen that Joe Moran was "really a bit of a blodger," in Jack Kelly's words, the ones who still owned copies of early white papers that revealed Moran's recent policy flip-flops, had been moved far away from him now.

1988, Donald R. Katz, The big store: inside the crisis and revolution at Sears, page 156:

Am I such a callous blodger, then? You can't imagine that I might feel bad about the way we've invaded your life?

2008, Donna Kauffman, The Royal Hunter: A Novel, page 115:

Officers and noncoms did not wear insignia of rank. “Nobody put up stripes in our outfit, that was for base blodgers,” one man remembered.

2012, David Hackett Fischer, Fairness and Freedom: A History of Two Open Societies:

(Australia, New Zealand) Alternative form of bludger.


rowi

(New Zealand) The Okarito brown kiwi, Apteryx rowi.


red-zone

red-zone (third-person singular simple present red-zones, present participle red-zoning, simple past and past participle red-zoned)

red-zones (present singular third-person)
red-zoning (participle present)
red-zoned (participle past)
red-zoned (past)

From the system of classifying areas of Christchurch, New Zealand as red zone (irreparable), green zone (reparable), or orange zone (more investigation needed) after the earthquakes of 2010 and 2011.

And in the event their land is red-zoned, at least they know they will ultimately get a new house under their AMI insurance policy.

2013, Rebecca Macfie, Report from Christchurch, page 26:

As a result of severe and recurrent liquefaction damage, and the infeasibility of timely and effective land repair, more than 7000 residential properties in Christchurch were red-zoned (designated as currently uneconomic to repair) and purchased by central government at a cost exceeding NZ$1.6 billion.

2016, James Goff, C. R. de Freitas, Natural Hazards in Australasia, page 133:

His house in the Loop was red-zoned.

2017, Gerald Murnane Fiona Farrell, Decline and Fall on Savage Street, →ISBN, page 336:

(Christchurch, New Zealand) To categorize as too damaged to repair, and requiring the owners to vacate (a property).


kopapa

"The whole gang does this nationwide," said Mason. "That's our kopapa and we want to help, but there are a lot of us out there and not everyone's angels."

2014 September 24, Sue Fea, “Mongrel Mob seeks redemption”, in Stuff:

"And turning it into something that's really beautiful and really meaningful is a real testament to the Mamas and their kopapa and what they're doing in terms of thinking about future generations and passing on knowledge," she said.

2019 May 24, Christine Rovoi, “Pacific Mamas drape Auckland Town hall with gift of love”, in RNZ (Radio New Zealand):

"Tipene and I were really close. He was just a happy fella. Very kopapa driven. He lived hard and worked hard."

2019 October 6, Matt Shand, “Matakana Island reeling from the sudden deaths of three”, in Waikato Times:

(New Zealand) Set of operating principles and ground rules.


suicide squad

In reference to the councillors' mission to abolish their appointed office and position.

Prime Minister Sidney Holland is New Zealander of the Year for appointing a parliamentary suicide squad to abolish the undemocratic upper house, the Legislative Council.

1950 October 17, “1950, Sydney Holland: Honourable suicide squad”, in New Zealand Herald:

Popularly known as the suicide squad, they accepted office on the understanding that they would do away with it.

1999, Lord Cooke of Thorndon, “Unicameralism in New Zealand: Some Lessons”, in Canterbury Law Review, volume 7, page 233:

It was decided that twenty-six councillors be appointed for this purpose’, but before the Cabinet could discuss the mechanics of the very political act of appointing the ‘suicide squad’ the Cabinet Secretary was asked to absent himself from this crucial meeting.

2010, H. Kumarasingham, “Unicameralism: The Strange Eventful Death of the Legislative Council of New Zealand”, in Australasian Parliamentary Review, volume 25, number 2, page 73:

When National came to power in 1949, it restacked the Council — this time with the ‘suicide squad’. These members would accept a law to end the Council altogether.

2016 January 21, “Legislative Council”, in Parliament of New Zealand:

(New Zealand, historical, informal) a group of legislative councillors appointed by Prime Minister Sidney Holland to abolish the New Zealand Legislative Council (upper house)


Anzac wafer

(Australia, New Zealand, military, slang) Hardtack.


RNZAF

Royal New Zealand Air Force
w:Royal New Zealand Air Force

(New Zealand, military, aviation) Initialism of Royal New Zealand Air Force.


spag bog

en-noun

spag bog (usually uncountable, plural spag bogs)

Once the furore had been dampened, the minuscule snick on Billy's knee covered in a Superman plaster, black marks placed on Mabel's Consequences Chart, and spag bog placed in their stomachs, I found my mind flashing through multiple matters, like that of a drowning person, only more optimistic.

2013, Helen Fielding, Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy, →ISBN:

(Australia, New Zealand, UK, Ireland, South Africa, slang) Alternative form of spag bol.


pissedness

(UK, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Canada, colloquial) Drunkenness.


up the boohai

(New Zealand, informal, idiomatic) Utterly and completely lost; lost in a remote location.


woolly nightshade

woolly nightshade (plural woolly nightshades)

woolly nightshades (plural)
wooly nightshade (alternative)

(especially New Zealand) Solanum mauritianum, a pest plant native to South America.


Steinie

“Fish and chips and a Steinie, please. Make that extra chips. Oh yeah, and calamari rings, too. And tell Wiremu I'll come back there and cook it myself if it's more than ten minutes. Okay?”

2005, Jennifer Fulton, A Guarded Heart (Moon Island Series; 4), Bold Strokes Books, published 2017, →ISBN, page unknown:

(informal, New Zealand) A bottle or serving of Steinlager beer.


woolly woofter

“Eddie Stone junior is the other side of the coin, when it comes to violence he's a woolly woofter, you know bent like a nine-bob note”.

2012, Linda Pye, Joseph Pye, The Steven Price Mysteries Part 3: The Murder in the Red Jacket, Xlibris, →ISBN:

Cockney rhyming slang
Cockney rhyming slang

(UK, Australia, New Zealand, Cockney rhyming slang) A male homosexual; poofter.

MediaWorks said ‘Woolly woofter’ is a term typically used colloquially in New Zealand as a mild and light-hearted insult for a cowardly or simpering person.

2019, New Zealand Law Society, ‘Woolly woofter’ not offensive says broadcasting watchdog, NZ Law Society

(UK, Australia, New Zealand) A cowardly or foolish person.


pippie

Likely borrowed from Maori pipi (“Paphies australis”).

By the way, the common "pippie” contains it in small amounts, so does shark liver oil, if you like it.

1937, New Zealand Dental Journal - Volume 33, page 167:

Sieni came running from behind a fallen coconut tree beside the lagoon with her skirt gathered up in her hands, and full of pippies and sea eggs.

1959, Marie Maddox, Children of Samoa: A True Story of the Children of Western Samoa:

Our beaches have always been a tremendous tourist attraction to surfers and fishermen, but with the spoliation of some of them and the destruction of pippie beds there has been a continual outcry against the mining companies—so much so that the companies themselves have attempted to allay the outcry and create a better public image for themselves.

1968, New South Wales. Parliament, Parliamentary Debates, page 311:

Down on the beach, we'd all gather and load pippie and oyster shells, to be burnt then added as lime to the sandy soil.

2013, Sandy Thorne, Old-Timers: Magnificent Stories from Mighty Australians, page 4:


town belt

(New Zealand) An area of undeveloped land around an urban area that is protected from large-scale housing; green belt


gumland

(New Zealand) A kind of infertile, acidic terrain yielding kauri gum.


gumdigger

gumdiggers (plural)
gum-digger (alternative)

(New Zealand, historical) A person who dug for kauri gum, a fossilised resin, in the old kauri fields of New Zealand in the late 19th or early 20th century.


gumbuyer

(New Zealand, historical) A person who purchased kauri gum from the gumdiggers.


gumfield

(New Zealand, historical) A site where kauri gum was dug up by the gumdiggers.


motorcamp

motorcamps (plural)
motor camp (alternative)

(New Zealand) A campground for people arriving in a motor vehicle.


flagfall

(Australia, New Zealand) A fixed fare charged at the beginning of a taxi ride


mullocker

This clause shall be satisfied as to such of the employees as are contract miners, or fillers, or truckers, or mullockers, by adding 1s. to the amount which they are to be respectively set to earn.

1920, The New South Wales Industrial Gazette, volume 17, page 106:

(New Zealand, mining) A worker who clears waste material from a mine.


dog shot

dog shots (plural)
dog-shot (alternative)

Probably related to the slang term dog (“coward”). Compare cheap shot (“deliberate, unsportsmanlike, and potentially illegal act of aggression”).

Sam Burgess was sensationally accused of a "dog shot" by Mitchell Pearce as the South Sydney and Newcastle top-four clash erupted into the Friday night fights.

2019 June 7, Christian Nicolussi, “Friday night fights as Sam Burgess accused of 'dog shot' by Pearce”, in The Sydney Morning Herald:

Leilua will spend four weeks on the sideline after his late high tackle on Penrith fullback Dylan Edwards that has been widely hailed a “dog shot”.

2020 July 7, Matt Logue, “NRL 2020: Emotional Joey Leilua to bounce back from ‘dog shot’”, in The Daily Telegraph:

(Australia, New Zealand, slang) A sudden blow, especially when delivered without warning; a king hit; (rugby) a deliberate and potentially illegal late tackle.


dog shot

en-verb

dog shot (third-person singular simple present dog shots, present participle dog shotting, simple past and past participle dog shotted or dog shot)

dog shots (present singular third-person)
dog shotting (participle present)
dog shotted (participle past)
dog shotted (past)
dog shot (participle past)
dog shot (past)
dog-shot (alternative)

"There were four separate spot-fights going on, [another staff member] got dog-shotted and then another security guard from the Criterion came over to help us too."

2016 November 6, Eliza Wheeler, “NIGHTCLUB BRAWL: Staff say drugs were to blame”, in Fraser Coast Chronicle:

“Players don’t deserve to be dog shot in the back when they’re not looking,” Johns said.

2018 June 1, “NRL greats unite to slam 'dog shot' tackles on playmakers”, in The Guardian:

All four players were sent to the sin-bin before an angry Pearce was overhead telling referee Grant Atkins: "Sam Burgess has come in and dog-shotted from behind when nobody was looking. Our blokes are only trying to break it up. One of them [Burgess brothers] has to be sent off. If it's a headbutt they have to go, sir."

(ambitransitive, Australia, New Zealand, slang) To deliver a dog shot to (someone); to hit (someone) suddenly and without warning; to king hit.


LMVD

(New Zealand) Initialism of licensed motor vehicle dealer.


defibre

defibre (third-person singular simple present defibres, present participle defibring, simple past and past participle defibred)

defibres (present singular third-person)
defibring (participle present)
defibred (participle past)
defibred (past)

(UK, Canada, Australia, New Zealand) Alternative spelling of defiber.


know whether one is Arthur or Martha

know<,,knew,known> whether one is<is,is,was> Arthur or Martha

know whether one is Arthur or Martha (third-person singular simple present knows whether one is Arthur or Martha, present participle knowing whether one is Arthur or Martha, simple past knew whether one was Arthur or Martha, past participle known whether one was Arthur or Martha)

knows whether one is Arthur or Martha (present singular third-person)
knowing whether one is Arthur or Martha (participle present singular third-person)
knew whether one was Arthur or Martha (past present singular third-person)
known whether one was Arthur or Martha (participle past present singular third-person)

His impression was that practically everyone at the party had been drinking on the night in question, and 'wouldn't have known whether they were Arthur or Martha.

2007, Helen Garner, The First Stone: 25th Anniversary Edition, Picador Australia, →ISBN:

'For an hour or two after he's had that, he doesn't know whether he's Arthur or Martha.'

2012, Dawn Eagle, Eliza and the Blue Rose, Xlibris Corporation, →ISBN, page 266:

The poor little darling had so many mothers; she didn't know whether she was Arthur or Martha!

2012, Marie-Therese Gould (Stein), Dirt to Scratch and Eggs to Lay: A Journey From Mitchell to Ma’s, Xlibris Corporation, page 241

(colloquial, chiefly Australia, New Zealand) To be in a clear state of mind.


ziff

The building style can be described as Stalinist Ceremonial at its most relaxed. That is, the external visual impression is as if some comedian had memorialised the moral fixities of Sir Henry Bolte and decorated the result with the late lamented Joe Stalin's ziff.

1973, Max Harris, The Angry Eye, Sydney, N.S.W.: Pergamon Press, →ISBN, page 116:

(Australia, New Zealand, slang, dated) A beard.

Now he wanted to use electric heat, and electricity was found wanting, and he couldn't understand the difference. Surely if a thing would do all that he had made it do, it should be able to boil water—it was hard to think that "stuff" which some old "ziff" had discovered over a hundred years ago was still better for some jobs than electricity.

1936 February, “Certain Things for Certain Jobs”, in American Gas Association Monthly, volume XVIII, number 2, New York, N.Y.: American Gas Association, →OCLC, page 61; republished from Australian Gas News, n.d.:

(metonymic) Someone with a beard, especially an old man.


yeah, nah

yeah nah (alternative)
yeah-nah (alternative)

(Australia, New Zealand) A polite expression of either agreement or disagreement (clarified by following speech): can be used to denote conclusion of cursory difference(s) of opinion between speakers ("yeah-nah, he's a top bloke at the end of the day"), and/or perceived escalations of discord ("yeah-nah, I can, however, see where you're coming from").


RCEP

(East Asia, trade, law, Hong Kong, Southeast Asia, Singapore, Malaysia, Philippines, Australia, New Zealand) Abbreviation of Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership.

East Asia; trade; Southeast Asia; East Asia; trade; Southeast Asia


Unicef

(UK, Australia, New Zealand) Alternative letter-case form of UNICEF (not used in North America)


caliber

en-noun

caliber (countable and uncountable, plural calibers)

tlb

(British spelling, Australia, Canada, New Zealand)

→ Irish: calabra

→ Welsh: calibr

From French calibre (“bore of a gun, size, capacity (literally, and figuratively), also weight”), from Italian calibro.

der

A nominal name for a cartridge type, which may not exactly indicate its true size and may include other measurements such as cartridge length or black powder capacity. Eg 7.62×39 or 38.40.


berley

Another artificial bait can be made by mixing up a berley, savoury in smell to the piscine race, but somewhat obnoxious to the olfactory nerves of human beings, of rotten herrings or tinned fish, bran and flour, into a tough paste and putting it into little bags of mosquito net or fine muslin.

1895, Charles Thackeray, The Amateur Fisherman's Guide, page 34:

In Australia, live baits or strip baits in a berley trail produce the big fish and a lot of anglers specialise in using this technique.

1988, Richard Allan, Go Fish Australia: All You Need to Know about Freshwater and Saltwater Fishing - a Comprehensive Guide for Everyone, page 45:

Apart from its use as bait, bread is an essential berley for many fish. All of the above species are attracted by bread berley as are many others.

2007, Julie McEnally, Complete Book of Fishing Baits and Rigs, page 18:

A few larger black petrels and flesh-footed shearwaters land close by and pick away at scraps of berley.

2013 May, Chris Gaskin, “Lost & Found”, in New Zealand Geographic, number 121:

(New Zealand, Australia) Material (frequently rancid) used as bait to attract fish or other organisms.


blimey Charlie

(Australia, New Zealand) Synonym of blimey.


barracouta loaf

en-noun

barracouta loaf (plural barracouta loaves)

After the regional name for a thin, metre-long fish, from the shape of the loaf and its rough crust, thought to resemble the back of the fish.

Alice was making water-cress sandwiches. She had a lump of butter on the table, a barracouta loaf, and the cresses tumbled in a white cloth.

1918, Katherine Mansfield, “Prelude”, in Bliss and Other Stories, Toronto: Macmillan, published 1920, page 53:

As Clarry remembered we were a big family—a twenty-five double barracouta loaves and fifteen pints a week family.

2000, anonymous author, “Home Town”, in Gordon McLauchlan, editor, Morrieson’s Motel, Auckland: Tandem Press, page 199:

(New Zealand) A long, narrow loaf, often indented in the middle so that it can be broken in two.


swagwoman

(Australia, New Zealand, historical) A woman who travels around with a swag (“bundle of personal items”).


billyful

(Australia, New Zealand) As much as a billy will hold.


zhooshy

en-adj

zhooshy (comparative zhooshier, superlative zhooshiest)

zhooshier (comparative)
zhooshiest (superlative)
jujy (alternative)
zhoozhy (alternative)
zhushy (alternative)
zhuzhy (alternative)

First to catch out eye are the zhooshy ombre coloured cushions, Stravklint, and duvet set, Pipstakra but that's just the tip of the flatpack iceberg.

2019 July 31, Kylie Klein-Nixon, “Ikea: Five things in the 2020 catalogue we hope to buy in New Zealand”, in Stuff:

(originally Polari, British, Australia, New Zealand, slang) Showy, flashy, ornate.


poroporo

(New Zealand) The plant Solanum aviculare.


watersider

(New Zealand) A loader and unloader of a ship's cargo.


Tories on bikes

So-called due to bicycles being commonly prescribed as an environmentally friendly form of personal transportation.

The only viable alternative for decades has been The Australian Greens, formerly a protest party, but now a progressive middle-class party. It’s a coalition of Tories on bikes, socially conscious baby boomers who live in architect-designed homes, and millennials who haven’t yet graduated from edgy liberalism to socialism.

2018 September 7, Ivan Mitchell, Daniel Lopez, “The Immodest Victorian Socialists”, in Jacobin, retrieved 2021-04-01:

A derogatory name for the Greens is "Tories on bikes"; they also oppose building on green belts around cities, and thus inadvertently encourage car commuting, with its attendant car pollution.

2019, Danny Dorling, Rule Britannia: Brexit and the End of Empire, Biteback Publishing, →ISBN, retrieved 2021-04-01:

But lest we forget the Green Party’s concern for the workers who make these cheap clothes in counties such as Bangladesh, the reality is that when it comes to employees’ rights they are merely Tories on bikes.

2020 September 11, Pat Flanagan, “Green Party out of touch with ordinary people and seem to like punishing poor”, in Irish Mirror, retrieved 2021-04-01:

(politics, derogatory, UK, Canada, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand) Members or supporters of a Green Party who are politically conservative.


kotare

(New Zealand) The kingfisher Halcyon sancta


kotuku

(New Zealand) The white heron Egretta alba.


kuaka

Limosa lapponica
Limosa lapponica#Translingual

(New Zealand) The bar-tailed godwit, Limosa lapponica.


weeness

(Scotland, Ireland, Northern England, New Zealand) smallness


usehold

(New Zealand) The socialist policy of replacing freehold tenure by a system of perpetual lease from the state, with all land transfer conducted through the state.


aeroplane mode

en-noun

aeroplane mode (countable and uncountable, plural aeroplane modes)

(UK, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, Hong Kong, Singapore, India, Canada, South Africa, Malaysia) Alternative form of airplane mode.


caravanist

(UK, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa) One who travels in a caravan (towed furnished vehicle).


toodlum buck

doodlem-buck (alternative)
doodle-em-buck (alternative)
toodlembuc (alternative)
toodlembuck (alternative)
toodlumbuck (alternative)
toodle-em-buck (alternative)

toodle-em-buck, the game of crown and anchor

1933, Slang To-Day and Yesterday, Eric Partridge, London: Routledge & Kegal Paul, page 294

TOODLUM BUCKS: A Crown and Anchor game, 10/6 for 7/6.

1941 (July 11), “Whitcombes Sale” advertisement, The Press, Christchurch, New Zealand, page 1

(New Zealand, Canada, obsolete) The game of crown and anchor.

(New Zealand) A carnival game in which marbles were thrown at holes or at buttons on the ends of sticks.


kaiwhiria

(New Zealand) Parsonsia capsularis, a climbing plant endemic to New Zealand.


playlunch

(Australia, New Zealand, informal) A snack eaten by school pupils during morning recess.

(Australia, New Zealand, informal) The morning recess at a primary school.


gumdigging

(New Zealand, historical) The work of a gumdigger, digging for kauri gum.


Yankland

(slang, Australia, New Zealand, Ireland, Canada, UK, sometimes derogatory) The United States.


blue metal

(Australia, New Zealand) Hard dark stone crushed into small pieces used in surfacing roads, for ballast in railway tracks, etc; gravel; road metal.


Toi

en:Toi (Polynesian name)
en:Toi (disambiguation)

From Maori Toi, Samoan Toi, and other Polynesian languages.

A male given name from the Polynesian languages.

(New Zealand) A male given name from Maori.


driver licence

(New Zealand, Australia) An official identification document which states the recipient may drive a motorized vehicle.


too right

(informal, UK, Australia, New Zealand) Used to express complete agreement with a previous statement by the interlocutor.


goashore

(New Zealand) A three-legged cooking pot.


Mondayised

Boxing Day is a Mondayised holiday

(New Zealand, of a holiday) Observed on the following Monday if it occurs on a weekend.


Mondayisation

(New Zealand) The observation of a public holiday on a Monday when the holiday falls on a weekend.


Pakeha

Borrowed from Maori pākehā (“stranger”).

They were the kind of Pākehā who, in the eyes of the Protestant missionaries, set a bad example to Māori.

2003, Michael King, The Penguin History of Aotearoa New Zealand, Penguin, published 2023, page 134:

Henry asked if missionaries were now active on the Chathams at which Mr Evans & Mr D’Arnoq exchanged looks, & the former informed us, ‘Nay, the Maori don’t take kindly to us Pakeha spoiling their Moriori with too much civilization.’

2004, David Mitchell, Cloud Atlas, London: Hodder and Stoughton, →ISBN:

(New Zealand) A non-Maori, especially a European New Zealander.


health stamp

(New Zealand, philately) Any of a long-running series of postage stamps of New Zealand whose price includes a premium for charitable causes in addition to the usual charge for postage.


anti-jabber

To me, two things are obvious. First, those of us who get the jab should not be held hostage by those who refuse it. The anti-jabbers do so at their own risk, and once we get to the point where all those who actually want the jab in Australia have received it, then it should be game on.

2021 May 23, Peter FitzSimons, “I’ve got a plan to get all the anti-jabbers to get their shots”, in The Sydney Morning Herald:

(British, Australia, New Zealand, informal, neologism) A person who opposes vaccination or refuses to be vaccinated (especially against COVID-19).


Shitney

(Australia, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Singapore, colloquial, vulgar, humorous) Derogatory name for Sydney: a major city in New South Wales, Australia.


MIQ

managed isolation
managed isolation#English

(New Zealand, epidemiology) Initialism of managed isolation and quarantine (facilities).


Douglas Score

(Australia, New Zealand) a system for measuring and evaluating antlers, horns and tusks of big game animals


tosserish

en-adj

tosserish (comparative more tosserish, superlative most tosserish)

more tosserish (comparative)
most tosserish (superlative)

Clearly, there are many ways of being less tosserish in life. But, surely, one of those ways involves not farting on and on about how much your standard of living has improved since you 'cut out all the crap and left all that mess behind'.

2011, Steve Lowe, Alan McArthur, The Best Of Is It Just Me Or Is Everything Shit?:

'He is unfortunately developing tosserish elements,' she said into his ear.

(UK, Australia, New Zealand, slang, vulgar) Like a tosser (obnoxious person).


cricket score

The better teams were beginning to run up cricket scores thanks to the advent of short passing, so eventually this system, shown in Figure 5-2, was introduced to counter it.

2010, Scott Murray, Football For Dummies, John Wiley & Sons, →ISBN:

International Rugby League winger Noel Pidding – "Football's Bradman" – piled up a cricket score, 34 points, against America yesterday.

2013, Gavin Willacy, No Helmets Required, eBook Partnership, →ISBN:

2–0 is a cricket score in Italian football.

2014, Phil Shaw, The Book of Football Quotations, Random House, →ISBN, page 508:

(British, Australia, New Zealand, sports apart from cricket) A very high score.


cuzzy

We're just cuzzies from down at the marae down the road that are trying to be proactive and look after our whenua, look after our stories, and look after the mauri of our awa, our river.

2021 January 1, “Local hapū to watch over dangerous Omanawa Falls near Tauranga”, in Stuff NZ:

(New Zealand, Bradford UK, colloquial) A close friend; mate.


poofterism

(UK, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, slang, offensive) homosexuality


wowserdom

(Australia, New Zealand) The realm or sphere of wowsers (moral crusaders).


wowserian

(Australia, New Zealand) Of or relating to wowsers (moral crusaders).


wowserish

wowserish (comparative more wowserish, superlative most wowserish)

more wowserish (comparative)
most wowserish (superlative)

(Australia, New Zealand) Resembling or characteristic of wowsers (moral crusaders).


wowsery

wowsery (comparative more wowsery, superlative most wowsery)

more wowsery (comparative)
most wowsery (superlative)

(Australia, New Zealand) Synonym of wowserish.


poofterhood

(UK, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, derogatory, slang) The state of being a poofter.


arsewash

From arse + wash, possibly based on hogwash or eyewash.

I take it you people are just taking the piss and really aren't as dumb as you convey yourselves. Micro$oft great?!? Arse-wash. And turpentine.

1998 July 24, Damien Joyce, “I Think Microsoft Is Just Dandy! What's All The Fuss About?”, in comp.os.ms-windows.advocacy (Usenet), retrieved 2022-02-20:

What a load of unctuous arsewash! He may well choose to argue that the moon is made of green cheese. If he did my disagreement would hardly indicate a failure to understand his argument - it would indicate that it was a jar of mouldy old cock.

2001 October 14, Mr Q. Z. Diablo, “Does Death deter?”, in alt.activism.death-penalty (Usenet), retrieved 2022-02-20:

General rule is, if me or I works, use them. Try changing the person in the sentence.
Examples.
"They very kindly invited his sister and himself to the inuaguration"
"He himself doesn't like a heavy meal at lunchtime."
Both clearly complete arsewash.

2004 February 18, Alex, “Here's a question”, in alt.babylon5.uk (Usenet), retrieved 2022-02-20:

(UK, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, vulgar, slang) Nonsense.


come down in the last shower

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-come down in the last shower.wav

Compare French ne pas être né de la dernière pluie.

cog

be born yesterday
be born yesterday#English

(Australia, New Zealand) Synonym of be born yesterday.


Wogland

(Australia, New Zealand, offensive, ethnic slur) The Mediterranean Region.


land acknowledgement

en-noun

land acknowledgement (plural land acknowledgements)

land acknowledgements (plural)
land acknowledgment (alternative)

(Australia, Canada, New Zealand) A formal statement that a public event is taking place on land originally inhabited by indigenous peoples.


Ngapuhi

Ngapuhi (plural)
Ngapui (alternative)
Nga Puhi (alternative)

The loss of the Nga Puhi in a battle of 1807 or 1808, which killed two of his brothers and many chiefly kin, was a formative moment in his life.

2020, Sujit Sivasundaram, Waves Across the South, William Collins, published 2021, page 71:

(New Zealand) A member of a Maori people (or iwi) of the Northland region of New Zealand.


toatoa

Haloragis erecta (shrubby haloragis, erect seaberry).

Phyllocladus alpinus (mountain celery pine).

(New Zealand) Any of various plants:
Phyllocladus toatoa.

(New Zealand) Any of various plants:
Phyllocladus trichomanoides (tanekaha)


A variant of the British 999, originally selected as an appropriate number for rotary-dial telephones and adapted in New Zealand because the formatting on its pulse-dial system made 1 equivalent to 9 as processed by its British-made telecommunications equipment.

When you call 111 in New Zealand, the Spark operator usually answers the phone with "111 Emergency. Do you require fire, ambulance, or police?"

The telephone number for emergency services in New Zealand and Nauru.


tupara

(New Zealand, historical) A double-barrelled gun.


American hot dog

American hot dog (plural American hot dogs)

(New Zealand) A sandwich comprised of a bun, a wiener, and sauce.


riroriro

[…] riroriros would be twittering overhead, with a shy weka peeping round a tree trunk. Wekas were very common then; they were our weather forecasters. Before rain their calls were always louder and repeated more frequently.

1964, Forest and Bird (issues 151-170, page 15)

(New Zealand) A grey warbler, of the species Gerygone igata.


three-strikes law

three-strikes law (plural three-strikes laws)

See three strikes and you're out § Etymology.

(US, New Zealand, criminal law) A criminal-sentencing structure under which the third conviction results in a mandatory life sentence.


Tassie devil

(slang, Australia, New Zealand) The Tasmanian devil (marsupial native to the island of Tasmania).


Black Caps

(plural only) The New Zealand national cricket team.


clubbie

(Australia, New Zealand) A surfing lifeguard.


ansafone

(British, New Zealand, colloquial) Alternative form of answerphone.


whapuku

(New Zealand) Alternative form of hapuku.


crimo

From crime + -o (“person with characteristic”).

suffix

; See also Thesaurus:criminal

(New Zealand, slang) A person with multiple criminal convictions; a career criminal.


illitisation

en-noun

illitisation (countable and uncountable, plural illitisations)

UK, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa spelling of illitization.


restructurisation

restructurisation (countable and uncountable, plural restructurisations)

UK, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa spelling of restructurization.


a bob each way

A phrase from gambling. See bob (“shilling”) and the gambling sense at each way.

Of course the member for St. Albans says, both. He likes to have a bob each way, which is in keeping with the statement he made the other day in this debate.

1965, New Zealand. Parliament, Parliamentary Debates. House of Representatives, page 577:

(colloquial, UK, Australia, New Zealand) A situation of hedging one's bets, refusing to commit to either side of a question.


droppie

(rugby, Australia, New Zealand, slang) A drop goal.

(Australia, New Zealand, slang) A drop kick.


incline lift

incline lifts (plural)
inclined lift (alternative)

(UK, Australia, New Zealand) A cable railway on an incline; especially one which operates with one vehicle on a single track.


dunger

From the "dung" sound often made by a worn-out engine.

I got a free loaner. And this was quite a new car, too. Not like the clunky old dunger without a working heater I had to battle with on a previous occasion in the dead of winter.

2007, Martz Witty, Ian McBride, Hit the Road Running:

(Australia, New Zealand) An old, worn-out machine, especially a car.


duckshove

en-verb

duckshove (third-person singular simple present duckshoves, present participle duckshoving, simple past and past participle duckshoved)

duckshoves (present singular third-person)
duckshoving (participle present)
duckshoved (participle past)
duckshoved (past)

Some of the best duckshoving and waltzing around the issue ever witnessed in this Chamber over the past few years has emanated from the Minister for the Arts.

1987, Victoria Parliamentary Debates (Hansard): Legislative Assembly, page 358:

(Australia, New Zealand) To dodge responsibility; to pass something on to another so that they take the blame.


hot bread shop

'I have a job in hot bread shop. In a hot bread shop. I think I have enough English for the hot bread shop. You think?'

1994, Amy Witting, A Change in the Lighting, Sydney, page 157:

This type of modest-sized operation has reappeared in recent decades in the form of the franchised 'hot-bread shop,' often located in shopping centers. In this type of bakery, all goods are baked within the bread shop […]

2015, Colin W Wrigley, Harold Corke, Koushik Seetharaman, Encyclopedia of Food Grains, page 340:

The two of them walk side by side down the street until they come to the hot bread shop. At the hot bread shop the fat guy goes in while Snatch waits outside and when he comes out he's carrying a paper bag.

2018, Albert Trajtsman, Faraway Places, Australia:

(Australia, New Zealand) A small bakery, typically a local family-run establishment.


pack a sad

pack a sad (third-person singular simple present packs a sad, present participle packing a sad, simple past and past participle packed a sad)

packs a sad (present singular third-person)
packing a sad (participle present)
packed a sad (participle past)
packed a sad (past)

(New Zealand, colloquial) To break down, to stop working.

Some people invoke change by packing a sad and having a fight with their boss so they get sacked. They haven't got enough guts to do it themselves.

“I'd like to learn how to function in a proper relationship so I can stop packing a sad,” I said.

2022, Larry Darter, The Chinese Tiger Ying:

(New Zealand, colloquial) To be negative or depressed.


blokette

(Australia, British, New Zealand, informal) A woman (female bloke).


shockie

(Australia, New Zealand, automotive, slang) A shock absorber.


porotiti

(New Zealand) A kind of pump drill used in the Maori culture.


meat sceptre

Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, South Africa, and UK standard spelling of meat scepter.


aweto

(New Zealand) A parasitic fungus of the genus Ophiocordyceps.


dragon's teeth

en-noun

dragon's teeth pl (normally plural, singular dragon's tooth)

The new line markings – known internationally as dragon's teeth – are designed to make sure motorists know they are entering a 40kmh school zone. […] "It's our aim to get these new dragon's teeth out on our streets as quickly as possible, which is why we'll be enlisting the help of several different crews around the state to get started on this massive rollout."

2009 May 24, Lisa Carty, “Dragon's teeth to guard school zones”, in The Sydney Morning Herald:

Dragon's teeth are distinguished by a stretch of road marked by triangles on each side of the lane and have been used in Australia for over a decade, while they can also be found in places like New Zealand, the UK and Spain. (...) In a 2021 Qatar University report, researchers said that visual road markings like dragon’s teeth are one of the most effective road safety measures due to their “perceptual road-narrowing effect” that “stimulates drivers to reduce their speed limit”.

2025 January 30, Ethan Cardinal, “‘Never seen them before’: The little-known road marking found in Australia”, in drive.com.au:

(UK, Australia, New Zealand, road transport) A series of triangular road surface markings painted on each side of a traffic lane, used for traffic calming or to alert drivers to a speed limit.


Oxford scholar

(rhyming slang, now Australia, New Zealand) A dollar.


tuatua

(New Zealand) One of the species Paphies subtriangulata of edible bivalve clams.


skody

en-adj

skody (comparative skodier, superlative skodiest)

skodier (comparative)
skodiest (superlative)

That restaurant was so skody; I will never go there again.

(New Zealand, slang) very dirty and unpleasant; grody


shut one's gob

en-verb

shut one's gob (third-person singular simple present shuts one's gob, present participle shutting one's gob, simple past and past participle shut one's gob)

shuts one's gob (present singular third-person)
shutting one's gob (participle present)
shut one's gob (participle past)
shut one's gob (past)

Why don't you just shut your gob? I'm tired of listening to you.

(idiomatic, UK, Australia, New Zealand, Ireland) To stop talking; to be quiet.


hokey tokey

(New Zealand) Synonym of Hokey Cokey (“dance”).


hard word

The other thing that happened in 1969 was that José put the hard word on his brother again. This time José wanted him to join his slate for the elections to the local leadership of the metalworkers' union.

2003, Peter Robb, A Death in Brazil, Bloomsbury, published 2005, page 97:

What do we do? We go and see them. Put the hard word on Glasgow's so-called hard men.

2022, Liam McIlvanney, The Heretic, page 125:

(UK, Australia, New Zealand, colloquial) A persistent or rude request, especially for money.


armourplast

Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, South Africa, and UK spelling of armorplast.


stop-work

stop-works (plural)
stopwork (alternative)
stop work (alternative)

From stop (“to cease; to cause to cease”, verb) + work (noun). Attested from the 20th century.

compound

a stop-work meeting

41. No stop-work meeting shall be held at the mine without the permission of the manager.

1942, New Zealand Department of Labour, Awards, Agreements, Orders, Etc., page 1213:

MORE than 4000 NZ Post workers will begin a series of nationwide stop-work meetings today to discuss what their union has said is privatisation by the back door.

1999 April 13, “NZ Post staff to hold stop-works”, in Dominion, Wellington, page 7:

Train drivers across Adelaide will walk off the job today to attend a stop-work meeting about their enterprise bargaining negotiations.

2016 September 14, “Adelaide train strike to hit network as drivers stop work”, in ABC Premium News, Sydney:

Workers at Cleanaway do not make the decision to take stop work action lightly and are aware of the unfortunate impact this will have on the community.

2022 April 11, Kieran Rooney, quoting Mike McNess, “Bins set to overflow as Cleanway waste workers vote to go on strike”, in Herald Sun, Melbourne:

State schools will be closed until 10.30am on Wednesday due to a decision by the Australian Education Union to call a two-hour stop-work meeting involving both teachers and teacher assistants.

2022 September 27, David Killick, Bob Inglis, “Tasmanian child care services experiencing demand spike as teachers prepare industrial action”, in The Mercury, Hobart:

(usually attributive) A temporary cessation of work.

(chiefly Australia, New Zealand) Temporary cessation of labor as a form of protest.


SOOB

[…]in private premises where up to four sex workers may work together in a small owner-operated brothel (SOOB) or independently.

2021, Jeanett Bjønness, Lorraine Nencel, May-Len Skilbrei, editors, Reconfiguring Stigma in Studies of Sex for Sale, Routledge, →ISBN:

(New Zealand) Initialism of small owner-operated brothel.


sneaker sock

(US, Canada, Australia, New Zealand) A short sock that covers the foot and beyond that not essentially more than the ankle.


tumatukuru

(New Zealand) Alternative form of tumatakuru.


big-noter

(Australia, New Zealand, informal) One who big-notes; a boaster.


compulsory acquisition

(law, Australia, New Zealand) The power of a state to expropriate private land within its jurisdiction for public use.

onteigening

government's right to expropriate private land

expropriation pour cause d'utilité publique


tino rangatiratanga

Borrowed from Maori tino rangatiratanga.

(New Zealand, Maori) self-determination; absolute sovereignty (of the Maori people)


stock pot

In this country, the product - a concentrated stock sold in a four-pack of small tubs, each of which makes three and a half cups of broth - is called Knorr Homestyle Stock. Other names in markets around the world include Knorr Stock Pot, Knorr Marmite de Bouillon and Knorr Bouillon Pur.

2011 September 12, Stuart Elliott, “Unilever Tries to Corner 'Stock' Market”, in NYTimes.com, archived from the original on 2011-09-25:

In order to show customers that the product is presented in a wet format, Coley Porter Bell has added a stock pot shaped cut out to reveal the actual product.[…]Having recently redesigned the core Oxo Cubes packaging to be more modern and iconic, we wanted to take the essence of that work into the new Oxo Stock Pot design.

2015 September 15, Tony Corbin, “New Coley Porter Bell-designed Oxo range unveiled”, in www.packagingnews.co.uk, archived from the original on 2015-09-20:

Continental stock pot - chicken: One unit contains four handy pots, each one making 2 cups of stock.

2017 May 14, Bronwen King, “Is packet stock as good as homemade?”, in stuff.co.nz:

[…] a quick Twitter survey reveals the Michelin-garlanded Marco Pierre White is not alone in his devotion to jellied stock pots, while I prefer organic cubes (won't someone think of the chickens?).

2017 October 9, Felicity Cloake, “Can't be bothered to make stock? Here are the ways to keep cooking simple”, in TheGuardian.com, archived from the original on 2017-10-09:

(cooking, British, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand) A mass-produced plastic container of a standard size and shape containing a gelatinous bouillon.


arse-up

(UK, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, slang, vulgar) A mistake or blunder; a cock-up.


fair suck of the pineapple

fair suck of the sauce bottle
fair suck of the sauce bottle#English

(Australia, New Zealand, colloquial, informal) Synonym of fair suck of the sauce bottle.


hooer

(Australia, New Zealand, informal, derogatory) An unpleasant or contemptible person (especially a man).


ansaphone

When I get home there are two ansaphone messages, one from Laura’s friend Liz and one from Laura.

1995, Nick Hornby, High Fidelity, London: Victor Gollancz, →ISBN, page 60:

(British, New Zealand, colloquial) Alternative form of answerphone.


parareka

(New Zealand) Synonym of king fern (“the plant Ptisana salicina”).


rousie

The aim of the rouser is eventually to become a shearer via the medium of the learner’s pen, and in fact the rousie is really an apprentice shearer; but there is certainly a great gulf between the accomplished prince of the board and the miserable rouseabout in the strange new world of his first shed.

1967, Graham Jenkin, Two Years on Bardunyah Station: Being an Account of the Experiences of a Jackaroo, Together with Some Poems, etc., Seacombe Heights, South Australia: Pitjantjara Publishers, page 66:

“[Y]ou ever try shearing sheep? Unwilling sheep?” “I’ve worked as rousie, never shearer, but I’ve seen them carry on.”

1983, Keri Hulme, The Bone People, Baton Rouge, La., London: Louisiana State University Press, published 1985, →ISBN:

Kate, their young rousie, threw the fleece up and over the table.

2011, Fiona Palmer, Heart of Gold, Michael Joseph, →ISBN:

(Australia, New Zealand, colloquial) A rouseabout.


swamp harrier

Other than the usual clamour of seabirds, ravens and swamp harriers, the only other birds of note in this area are orange-bellied parrots […] and a few black-faced cormorants that venture up from the tannin-stained waters of Bathurst Harbour.

2018, Robbie Arnott, Flames, Text Publishing, published 2023, page 95:

Circus approximans
Circus approximans#Translingual

(Australia, New Zealand) A large hawk, Circus approximans, of Australia, New Zealand, and several Pacific islands.


no, yeah

(emphatic, colloquial, especially Australia, New Zealand and California) Used sarcastically to answer "yes" to a question where the positive answer should have been obvious.


placegetting

(Australia, New Zealand) Placing among the top three (or other number) in a race or competition.


flat stick

en-adj

flat stick (comparative more flat stick, superlative most flat stick)

more flat stick (comparative)
most flat stick (superlative)
flatstick (alternative)

I've been digging around for some stuff for you. Unfortunately we're a bit pushed for time at the moment as we're heading back to the homeland—New Zealand—via Britain & Europe—so what with packing our stuff up and getting that off and trying to make the odd arrangement for travel we've been "flat stick."

1970 September, Peter Hansen, “Summer in Fort Resolution”, in Whole Earth Catalog, Point Foundation, page 24, column 2:

"Only thing is, I'm flat stick. Can't get onto it until the end of the month. You wanna courtesy car?"

2010, Michael Brown, Finding the Field: An Adventure of Body, Mind and Spirit, →ISBN, page 142:

You start your career through sevens. It's such a great way to learn the game. It's flat stick and you have to make decisions under pressure. It's a fast-track to becoming a very good rugby player.

2017 January 21, George Gregan, quotee, “Rugby: Gregan sticks with Cheika”, in The New Zealand Herald, Auckland: NZME, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 2023-08-11:

At 9am on a Wednesday morning it's flat stick at Jet Patel's cafe, Kanteen. It's the second rush of the morning – a bunch of Wellington office workers already got their fix a few hours before.

2022 August 6, Bess Manson, “Hospo workers busting a gut to keep our public living rooms open”, in Stuff, archived from the original on 2022-09-01:

(Australia, New Zealand) Extremely busy or fast-paced.


flat stick

Wade placed him in a large plastic rubbish bin full of sea water and off we went flat stick back to the El Torito near the Sand Garden. Howard tagged Sammy and let him go in this alien world, Walt filming the reactions of the other males to this stranger.

1975, Wade Doak, Sharks and Other Ancestors: Patterns of Survival in the South Seas, Auckland […]: Hodder and Stoughton, →ISBN, page 303:

He then drives us flat stick into the setting sun to home.

2012, Gail Brenssell-Rakuraku, Go Kick Arse Ma!, Xlibris, →ISBN, page 69:

(Australia, New Zealand) As quickly as possible; at top speed.


double appointment

en-noun

double appointment (plural double appointments)

It would help if patients who know they have a difficult problem could book a double appointment, […]

1998 March 4, [anonymous], “In the surgery: cutting down on those waiting times”, in The Burton Mail, page 8:

“Because I have to get multiple prescriptions, it’s often a double appointment, which is $160,” [Kathy Barr] said. About $80 of that is refunded via Medicare.

2022 August 13, Clay Lucas, “Vulnerable patients asked to cough up as more GPs shun bulk billing”, in Brisbane Times, retrieved 2023-08-30:

general practitioner
general practitioner

(healthcare, British, Australia, New Zealand) An appointment with a GP (general practitioner) which is allocated twice much time as usual.


karuhiruhi

(New Zealand) The Australian pied cormorant.


parataniwha

(New Zealand) The herbaceous plant Elatostema rugosum, endemic to New Zealand.


putangitangi

paradise shelduck
paradise shelduck#English

(New Zealand) Synonym of paradise shelduck.


common mallow

common mallow (countable and uncountable, plural common mallows)

Any of locally common species of mallow plants:

(Australia, New Zealand) blue mallow (Malva preissiana)

cheeses, forest mallow, tall mallow, high mallow


combination fried rice

special fried rice
special fried rice#English

(Australia, New Zealand) Synonym of special fried rice.


dockie

From dock + -ie (forming colloquial nouns signifying the person associated with the suffixed noun).

suf

Longley once told me that in the late 1960s Murphy parked his car down at the docks while he was talking to Dougie Sproule and Putty Nose. Some young dockies who didn't know better broke into his car and stole his nice new golf clubs.

1992, Mark Brandon Read, Chopper 2: Hits and Memories, Kilmore, Vic.: Floradale Productions, →ISBN, page 170:

(chiefly Australia, New Zealand, colloquial) A dockworker.


DipLang

en-noun

DipLang (countable and uncountable, plural DipLangs)

(Australia, New Zealand) Abbreviation of Diploma of Languages.


Special Air Service

(British, Australia, New Zealand, military) An elite unit of the British army. Similar units operate in the Australian and New Zealand armies.


snow daisy

snow daisies (plural)
snow-daisy (alternative)

As he walks he spies a snow-daisy to one side of the pad.

1999, Julia Leigh, The Hunter, Faber & Faber 2012, p. 90

(Australia, New Zealand) Any of various perennial herbs chiefly of the genus Celmisia, especially Celmisia asteliifolia, growing in high ground in southeastern Australia (including Tasmania) and New Zealand.


nose beer

nose beer (countable and uncountable, plural nose beers)

I loved Pierogi Night because our dishwasher, and my hero, Jesse B. Harris would boil and fry all the pierogis while I took part in the festivities by doing everything I could get my little hands on. Nose beers, wink.

2018, Matty Matheson, Matty Matheson: A Cookbook, New York, N.Y.: Abrams, →ISBN, page 213:

'He must put in a lot of overtime. What was wrong with him?' ¶ 'I don't know. He just seemed jumpy.' ¶ 'Too much nose beer, maybe.'

2021, Colin Falconer, Angels Weep, London: Constable, →ISBN, page 121:

A nose beer is the perfect pre for this gym

2023 August 14, shans.bruh, Instagram, archived from the original on 2023-12-19:

(slang, chiefly Australia, New Zealand) Cocaine.


Gisborne cockroach

Gisborne cockroach (plural Gisborne cockroaches)

While native to Australia, in New Zealand this insect was first discovered in the city of Gisborne.

(New Zealand) A cockroach of species Drymaplaneta semivitta.


pikau

(New Zealand) A makeshift knapsack or pack.


in the dogbox

(New Zealand, South Africa, informal) Synonym of in the doghouse (“subjected to someone's anger or disapproval”).


sharebroking

(especially Australia, New Zealand) stockbroker


oyster blade steak

oyster blade steak (plural oyster blade steaks)

(Australia, New Zealand) Synonym of flat iron steak.


bush-bash

en-verb

bush-bash (third-person singular simple present bush-bashes, present participle bush-bashing, simple past and past participle bush-bashed)

bush-bashes (present singular third-person)
bush-bashing (participle present)
bush-bashed (participle past)
bush-bashed (past)

It is easier to move on the road than to 'bush-bash' – the path of least resistance being the easiest way to travel.

2006, Trevor Carnaby, Beat about the Bush: Mammals, page 53:

The hut was a good six-hour tramp south of hte pass, but he remembered that for the first hour or so, the track traversed the ridge above the township, and he figured that if he left the trail before it reached the edge of the Korowai Basin and cut west, then he could bush-bash down the hill and approach the Darvish property from the rear.

2023, Eleanor Catton, Birnam Wood, page 155:

Then there was the case of the heavily 'bubbly' (Pijin for pregnant) woman. Kastom (custom) dictated that she must not walk on the same track as we men; instead, she bush-bashed beside the track and made as good progress as the rest of us.

2023, Mark Otter, Slips, Trips and Stumbles:

(Australia, New Zealand) Alternative form of bushbash.


chemist's shop

In British, Australian, and New Zealand English chemist is a synonym for pharmacist.

(British, Australia, New Zealand) Synonym of pharmacy, especially when run as a small standalone general store.


Five Power Defence Arrangements

en-proper noun

the Five Power Defence Arrangements pl (plural only)

the Five Power Defence Arrangements (canonical plural)
FPDA (alternative)

(British, UK, Australia, Malaysia, New Zealand, Singapore, politics, military) the British-backed multilateral joint armed force between the British commonwealth countries in Southeast Asia and Oceania (mainly Australia, Malaysia, New Zealand, Singapore, and the United Kingdom).


FPDA

Five Power Defence Arrangements
Five Power Defence Arrangements#English

(British, UK, Australia, Malaysia, New Zealand, Singapore, politics, military) Initialism of Five Power Defence Arrangements (“British-backed multilateral joint armed force between British commonwealth countries in Southeast Asia and Oceania”).


blockholder

blockholders (plural)
block holder (alternative)
block-holder (alternative)

[…] an extensive flaxmill in the neighbourhood increases the blockholder’s opportunities for obtaining employment and for selling his produce. Thus the settlement appears to be making progress, and the degrees of that progression on the various blocks are an instructive illustration on the difference in individuals having the same opportunities to secure success.

1891 April 28, W. Copley, M.L.C., Commissioner of Crown Lands, South Australia, “Report on the Village Homestead Special Settlement System in New Zealand.”, in Proceedings of the Parliament of South Australia: With Copies of Documents Ordered to be Printed, volume 2, Second Session of the Thirteenth Parliament, number 19, Adelaide: C.E. Bristow, Government Printer, North Terrace, page 11:

(Australia, New Zealand, historical) One who resides on a block of farmland assigned by the government for cultivation and, except for rates and taxes, exempt of seizure.


not for

He is not for resuscitation.

After discussion with her family, she was deemed not for ICU admission.

(medicine, UK, Australia, New Zealand) Not to be subjected to (a procedure); indicates that the patient, or relevant carers or next of kin, have specifically requested that the procedure not be carried out.


cost base

(finance, accounting, UK, Australia, New Zealand) The fixed costs, and sometimes all other costs as well, involved in running a company or producing a product.


mairehau

(New Zealand) The plant Phebalium nudum.


small bikkies

"The figures quoted of savings made and unpaid tax that could have been paying for public infrastructure is small bikkies compared to what the big corporations are avoiding," wrote in another.

2019 September 27, Peter Ryan, “ATO ramps up warnings about audits and potential big fines for dodgy tax return claims”, in ABC News:

(Australia, New Zealand) Not much money.


spank out

en-verb

spank out (third-person singular simple present spanks out, present participle spanking out, simple past and past participle spanked out)

spanks out (present singular third-person)
spanking out (participle present)
spanked out (participle past)
spanked out (past)

He spanked out of town.

(intransitive, dated, UK, New Zealand) To depart.


ken oath

(Australia, New Zealand, colloquial, minced oath) Clipping of fucking oath.


get down on

get down on (third-person singular simple present gets down on, present participle getting down on, simple past got down on, past participle (US) gotten down on or (UK) got down on)

gets down on (present singular third-person)
getting down on (participle present)
got down on (past)
gotten down on (US participle past)
got down on (UK participle past)

(slang, Australia, New Zealand) To acquire or obtain (something), usually illicitly; to steal (something).


deal to

deal to (third-person singular simple present deals to, present participle dealing to, simple past and past participle dealt to)

deals to (present singular third-person)
dealing to (participle present)
dealt to (participle past)
dealt to (past)

(slang, transitive, New Zealand) To beat up (someone); to destroy, attack or defeat (someone).


flag away

flag away (third-person singular simple present flags away, present participle flagging away, simple past and past participle flagged away)

flags away (present singular third-person)
flagging away (participle present)
flagged away (participle past)
flagged away (past)

(New Zealand) To abandon; to give up on; to avoid continuing with.


fluff about

fluff about (third-person singular simple present fluffs about, present participle fluffing about, simple past and past participle fluffed about)

fluffs about (present singular third-person)
fluffing about (participle present)
fluffed about (participle past)
fluffed about (past)

(slang, New Zealand, intransitive) To waste time.


Seppoland

(Australia, New Zealand, colloquial, derogatory) the United States


lair it up

lair it up (third-person singular simple present lairs it up, present participle lairing it up, simple past and past participle laired it up)

lairs it up (present singular third-person)
lairing it up (participle present)
laired it up (participle past)
laired it up (past)

(slang, Australia, New Zealand) To behave flamboyantly; to act out; to be showy.


lamb down

lamb down (third-person singular simple present lambs down, present participle lambing down, simple past and past participle lambed down)

lambs down (present singular third-person)
lambing down (participle present)
lambed down (participle past)
lambed down (past)

(slang, Australia, New Zealand) To spend all one's money; to induce someone to spend all their money; to take all of someone's money when gambling.


godmum

(UK, Ireland, Canada, New England, South Africa, India, Singapore, Australia, New Zealand, informal) Godmother.


godmummy

godmummies (plural)
godmommy (alternative)

(UK, Ireland, Canada, New England, South Africa, India, Singapore, Australia, New Zealand, colloquial, usually childish, less common) Godmother.


en-proverb

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-no matter how much milk you put in coffee, it's still coffee.wav

There’s a saying among blak mob, ‘It doesn’t matter how much milk you put in tea, it’s still tea'.’ I am a descendant of genocide survivors, a child of the oldest living culture on Earth. Nothing, no amount of milk, can change that.

2021 November 7, Claire [G.] Coleman, “Not quite blak enough: ‘The people who think I am too white to be Aboriginal are all white’”, in The Guardian:

(Australia, New Zealand) One's blood quantum (percentage of person's ancestors who are full-blooded indigenous people) does not negate indigenous identity.


$2 shop

$2 shops (plural)
two-dollar shop (alternative)

You know how when you walk into a $2 shop, you feel both a sense of possibility and dismay?

2018 November 24, Amelia Lester, “How a chain store captures the essence of a country's everyday life”, in The Age:

Starting out as a typical $2 shop way back in 1999, our store continues to keep customers at the forefront of our minds, constantly changing to keep up with trends and needs.

2024 October 12 (last accessed), RetPro Pty Ltd, Keilor Central:

The man who founded former bargain powerhouse Clint’s Crazy Bargains has warned the days of the humble $2 shop are over.

2015 November 22, Frank Chung, “The long, slow death of the $2 shop”, in news.com.au:

(Australia, New Zealand) A shop where many small and inexpensive items can be bought.


two-dollar shop

en-noun

two-dollar shop (plural two-dollar shops)

(Australia, New Zealand) Alternative form of $2 shop.


pack shit

en-verb

pack shit (third-person singular simple present packs shit, present participle packing shit, simple past and past participle packed shit)

packs shit (present singular third-person)
packing shit (participle present)
packed shit (participle past)
packed shit (past)

(slang, vulgar, idiomatic, New Zealand) To talk nonsense.


boganism

(Australia, New Zealand) The act of being a bogan

(Australia, New Zealand) The measure of how bogan something or someone is


shitcuntery

(chiefly Australia, New Zealand, slang, vulgar) Synonym of shitfuckery.


southern sushi

I heard a radio announcer talking about these and he referred to them as......Southern Sushi!!! I thought this was quite delightful!!

2006 August 13, Diana, "Re: cheese rolls" [comment], in Foodlovers, archived from the original on 2024-12-07:

That’s how Gareth Hamilton and Kate French serve "southern sushi" (as cheese rolls are known by many) at the Batch, a cafe in Invercargill.

2022 June 3, Ben Mack, “Can southern sushi glow up? The cheese roll debate dividing New Zealand’s deep south”, in The Guardian:

(New Zealand, humorous, slang) An alternative name for cheese rolls.


hupiro

(New Zealand) The stinkwood, Coprosma foetidissima.


lilipi

(New Zealand) A type of porridge prepared by boiling flour and water.


for all money

From betting, suggesting that something would be at very short odds and that few would bet against it happening.

Sydney, meanwhile, looked gone for all money against Geelong but a freak Nick Davis goal in the last minute, plucking the ball out of a crowded ruck, got them through to a preliminary final with St Kilda, which Sydney won comfortably.

2010 November 1, Ben Cousins, Ben Cousins: My Life Story, Macmillan Publishers Aus., →ISBN, page 175:

In Adelaide in the second Test, England batted first and reached 551 for six[…] Australia managed 513 in reply – a draw, then, for all money.

2018 July 12, Simon Barnes, Epic: In Search of the Soul of Sport and Why It Matters, Simon and Schuster, →ISBN:

Nicko looked in fine fettle with not one drop of sweat. Thankfully, Stilts was dripping profusely and looked for all money like he was about to faint. At least I'm not alone.

2024 November 28, Peter Dickson, The Embedded Lie, BookLocker.com, Inc., →ISBN:

(Australia, New Zealand, UK, informal) Very probably; almost certainly; in all likelihood.


creaming soda

en-noun

creaming soda (usually uncountable, plural creaming sodas)

/ˈkɹiːmɪŋ ˌsəʊdə/

/ˈkɹiːmɪŋ ˌsɐʉdə/

(Australia, New Zealand) Synonym of cream soda.


cough lolly

Senator OAKES.—I am not prepared to eat the honorable senator. He would be a very bad cough lolly.

1913, Commonwealth of Australia, Parliamentary Debates: Session 1913 (First Session of the Fifth Parliament), volume LXXI, page 2863:

Veronika takes a gulp of her wine while still chewing on her cough lolly. Sophie winces. It is doubtful that the cough lolly is contributing much to the chardonnay’s buttery undertones.

2007, Liane Moriarty, The Last Anniversary, page 208:

(New Zealand, Australia, informal) Synonym of cough drop.


two-minute noodle

two-minute noodle (plural two-minute noodles)

(chiefly in the plural, Australia, New Zealand) Synonym of instant noodle.


public licence

UK, Canada, Australia, South Africa, Ireland, New Zealand, Malaysia, and Singapore standard spelling of public license.


RONZ

(New Zealand, informal) Abbreviation of rest of New Zealand (beyond Auckland)


bush-basher

(Australia, New Zealand) One who bushbashes.


bush sickness

(New Zealand, historical) An illness of cattle caused by a deficiency of cobalt salts in the volcanic soil.


grog shanty

grog shanties (plural)
grog-shanty (alternative)

(obsolete, Australia, New Zealand) A groggery.


Stewart Island shag

Stewart Island shag (plural Stewart Island shags)

Other birds are beating in an ungainly way against it, getting nowhere fast. […] “Stewart Island shags, and I don't know the Maori for that…kawau rakiura, perhaps?”

1983, Keri Hulme, The Bone People, Penguin, published 1986, page 168:

Leucocarbo chalconotus
Leucocarbo chalconotus#Translingual

(New Zealand) A species of shag, Leucocarbo chalconotus, endemic to New Zealand's South Island and Stewart Island.


e hoa

From Maori e (“vocative particle”) + hoa (“friend, companion”).

“I wouldn't know, e hoa, I truly wouldn't know.”

1983, Keri Hulme, The Bone People, Penguin, published 1986, page 205:

(New Zealand, as a form of address) Mate, friend.


lolly cake

lolly cake (countable and uncountable, plural lolly cakes)

(New Zealand) A treat consisting of marshmallows or similar sweets baked inside a cake made of malt biscuits.


tikanga Maori

The major points of Christian belief that would contrast with tikanga Māori were the notions that natural man was a fallen creature needing to be redeemed by Christ's suffering and death; and that every human life […] was of equal value in the eyes of Te Atua and those who ackowledged Him.

2003, Michael King, The Penguin History of Aotearoa New Zealand, Penguin, published 2023, page 128:

(New Zealand) Maori customs and values, considered as a collective body of belief and behaviour.


Pakeha Maori

Pakeha Maori (plural Pakeha Maoris or Pakeha Maori)

Pakeha Maoris (plural)
Pakeha Maori (plural)
Pākehā Māori (alternative)

Borrowed from Maori pākehā Māori, itself made of pākehā (“a foreigner, a European”) and Māori.

Of the original Pākehā Māori, Thomas Taylor was one of four crew members who ran away from the Sydney-based vessel Hunter in the course of a timber-gathering expedition up the Waihou River in 1798.

2003, Michael King, The Penguin History of Aotearoa New Zealand, Penguin, published 2023, page 105:

(New Zealand, now historical) Someone of European descent who has adopted a Maori way of life.


wharepuni

wharepuni (plural wharepuni or wharepunis)

The dwellings of the chiefs are surrounded with enclosures of pole-fences; and the Whares and Wharepunis, some of them exhibiting very fine specimens of the Maori order of architecture, are ornamented with grotesque wood-carvings.

1867, Ferdinand von Hochstetter, translated by Edward Sauter, “Ngawhas, and Puias; boiling springs, solfataras and fumaroles”, in New Zealand: Its Physical Geography, Geology and Natural History […], Stuttgart: J. G. Cotta, →OCLC, page 423:

A notable recent event was the construction of a fourth wharepuni. These wharepuni are in themselves fully fledged meeting-houses, although the decoration inside is simple, in accordance with their function as dormitories.

1954, Forefront: A Monthly Survey of New Zealand Affairs, volumes 1–5, London: High Commissioner for New Zealand in the United Kingdom, page 19, column 3:

Wharepuni increased greatly in size to the kinds of dimensions that would become common in the twentieth century.

2003, Michael King, The Penguin History of Aotearoa New Zealand, Penguin, published 2023, page 231:

(New Zealand) A large building in Maori communities for communal sleeping or for group meetings; a meeting house.


wax-eye

[T]he world being My Place by the fallen birch log, with the grass, the insects in the grass, the sky, the sheep and cows and rabbits, the wax-eyes and the hawks – everything Outside.

1982, Janet Frame, An Angel at my Table, Virago, published 2024, page 11:

(Australia, New Zealand) A bird of the genus Zosterops; a silvereye.


NZDF

New Zealand Defence Force
w:New Zealand Defence Force

(New Zealand, military) Initialism of New Zealand Defence Force.


RNZN

Royal New Zealand Navy
w:Royal New Zealand Navy

(New Zealand, military, nautical) Initialism of Royal New Zealand Navy.


shypoo

... He circulated freely ' mong the diggers on the U. Paddy Grady's " Hessian Palace " was a scene of wild delight, And we drank the shypoo deeply, till the lateness of the night suggested a ...

1901, Alfred George Stephens, The Bulletin Reciter, a Collection of Verses for Recitation From "The Bulletin":

It was difficult to brew in the heat, without proper equipment or materials, and for most of the nineteenth century beer was known by a variety of colourful nicknames such as squirt, sheep wash, stringy-bark, shypoo and shearer's joy- ...

2011, Pete Brown, Three Sheets To The Wind: One Man's Quest For The Meaning Of Beer:

(Australia, New Zealand) Second-rate liquor; beer.


shypoo

en-adjective

shypoo (comparative more shypoo, superlative most shypoo)

more shypoo (comparative)
most shypoo (superlative)

(Australia, New Zealand) Second-rate, inferior.


duck-shover

(Australia, New Zealand) One who dodges responsibility or passes something on to another so that they take the blame.


go to ratshit

en-verb

go to ratshit (third-person singular simple present goes to ratshit, present participle going to ratshit, simple past went to ratshit, past participle gone to ratshit)

goes to ratshit (present singular third-person)
going to ratshit (participle present)
went to ratshit (past)
gone to ratshit (participle past)

(slang, vulgar, Australia, New Zealand) Of a person, object, or situation that has deteriorated, failed, or become worthless.


tirairaka

(New Zealand) The New Zealand fantail (Rhipidura fuliginosa).