American, British and Australian "Englishes"

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In New Zealand, English is spoken natively as their first tongue. However, Maori culture and its language have predominated for most of New Zealand’s history of human habitation; these Polynesian people reached the islands about 1280. That is why the language spoken today in this country is the fusion of the Maori culture and the European influence (they were ruled by Britain from c. 1855). Thus, New Zealand English differs from AuE because New Zealand English adopted words from the Maori language.

Australian English vocabulary

In Australian or "Aussie" English, slang (a lexicon of non-standard words and phrases) is used a lot. The reason could be that it is informal, less pretentious, so it reflects the Australian love of egalitarianism. It also reflects Australia's classless society.

The shortening of words, or diminutive, is characteristic of Australian slang. A distinctive way of making new terms is by taking the first part of the word and substituting an -ie, -o or -y for the rest. For example, "satty" stands for "Saturday". In all, about 5,000 diminutives have been identified in AuE. An explanation for their creation in Australia is that they harmonise many of English words with Aboriginal words that are common in the place naming of rural Australia.

Other examples are vego = vegetarian, Arvo = Afternoon, Brekkie = Breakfast, Chewie = Chewing gum

The rhyming slang is a notable method of concealment. It works by replacing the word to be "obscured" with the first word of a phrase that rhymes with that word. For example, "Adam and Eve" stands for "Believe", as in "Would you Adam and Eve it"? "To have a Captain Cook" is a uniquely Australian rhyming slang for "To have a look". Other examples are:

Almond Rocks = Socks

Brass tacks = Facts

Duke and Kent = Rent

Dog = dog and bone = Phone

Jugs = jugs of beer = Ears

North and South = Mouth

Sky = sky rocket = Pocket

Another linguistic marker of the Australian "classless" society is that the use of titles (Mr, Mss, Mrs) is rare. Bosses and workers are usually called by their first name the same as students and professors at universities.

Australia has several terms that are not used in either of the other English-speaking countries, such as "bloke" (man), "seachange" (A significant change of lifestyle, especially one achieved by moving from the city to a seaside town), as well as the following greetings and expressions:

G’day mate: Hello

How yogoin?: How are you?

Catcha later: See you later

Banzer: Great

Dead set: incredible, excellent

Cracker = Something that’s great

Dear = Expensive

Flat white = Coffee with milk or cream

Get stuffed = Piss off, go away.

Going off = Something that’s going extremely well

Good on ya = Great job, well done

Heaps = A lot (thanks heaps)

No Dramas = No problem. They do say this and often, it generally means "don’t worry about it".

Sanger = Sandwich

Also, Australians use some phrases that are combinations of British and American terms, such as "rubbish truck." "Rubbish" is commonly used in the UK and "truck" is commonly used in America.

US and NZ Vocabulary

AmE vs. New Zealand

Hood boonet

Trunk boot

Truck ute

Diaper nappy

Pacifier dunny

Gas station Service station

Cup of tea cuppa

Thanks tha/ta

Australian Aussie

AuE had to borrow words from indigenous languages for phenomena in nature which they did not know from Europe, thus AuE incorporated words such as koala, kangaroo (coming from North of Queensland); Boomerang, Wombat, (from Sidney area); Bung, which means "broken" and it comes from Brisbane region; Billabong (A billabong is an Australian name for a dead-end channel, or a stagnant pool.)

Differences between British and American Vocabulary

In the United Kingdom, word use and accents vary between England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales, but also within them. Similarly, regional dialects in the United States reflect some elements of the language of the main immigrants groups in any particular region of the country, especially in terms of pronunciation and vernacular vocabulary.

There are many British words which are different from AmE equivalents, for instance:

BrE - AmE

Trousers – pants

Glue - gum

Break time – recess

Petrol – gas/gasoline

Chemist – drugstore

Cafe – diner

Biscuit – cookie

Sweets – candy

The toilet – bathroom

Garden – backyard/yard

Wardrobe – closet

Football – soccer

Autumn – fall

Queue – line