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Thread: Kiwi speak

  1. #1
    Join Date
    May 2010
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    NZ
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    Default Kiwi speak

    I know this kinda goes with several posts but to me, this is the hardest part of understanding what is being said in a conversation. I am fairly good at picking up accents but it is the terminolgy that gets me. Some words just dont mean the same thing to me. A friend sent me this link and I thought it was worth sharing.

    http://nzguide.newzealand.co.nz/kiwispeak/

  2. #2
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    Poole, UK to Chch, NZ
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    Default

    The difference between Britsh and Kiwi English isn't huge, but even after 10 years hubby and I occasionally have translation problems

    (of course, I've picked up some of his phrases too, which confuses friends and colleagues.. oops?)

  3. #3
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    To some of us even the British accent is hard to understand let alone the terminology! lol I was asked if I like to tramp and I was almost offended but the expression on the face of the person asking me let me know that it meant something very different to them than to me!
    My husband tells a story about asking for a napkin in England shortly after his arrival in a restaurant. Needless to say, it meant something very different there too.
    I am looking forward to all the new sayings and terms. This should be a fun adventure!

  4. #4
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    Wellington
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    Default

    Kiwi terms appear to be a mixture of British slang ( Bollocks) and Aussie (Barbie) slang, with some Maori and of course a few originals (Jandals, Hokey Pokey)

    In general there appear to be very few American terms except through "Yoof" speak!

  5. #5
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    My husband tells a story about asking for a napkin in England shortly after his arrival in a restaurant.
    He must have asked an ignorant waiter. A napkin means a napkin in the UK, as well as a diaper.

  6. #6
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    Quote Originally Posted by JandM View Post
    He must have asked an ignorant waiter. A napkin means a napkin in the UK, as well as a diaper.
    Nope! Although the precise term may be napkin, nobody uses that term for diaper. The used term is nappy!

    Napkin is a perfectly accepted term for the cloth used to protect clothes at a meal.

  7. #7
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    Well the waiter must have been ignorant because he was told it meant a feminine hygiene product. Of course this was back in 1996. Or maybe the waiter was just playing with him and making fun him for being American.

  8. #8
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    Quote Originally Posted by Mickfin View Post
    Well the waiter must have been ignorant because he was told it meant a feminine hygiene product. Of course this was back in 1996. Or maybe the waiter was just playing with him and making fun him for being American.
    You got a strange waiter!

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Napkin_(disambiguation)

  9. #9
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    Jun 2010
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    Ōtepoti, Aotearoa
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    Default more words - missing expressions

    jafa = slang term (acronym, usually offensive) for a resident of Auckland (I even got it once to read in business email!)

  10. #10
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    Quote Originally Posted by Mickfin View Post
    Well the waiter must have been ignorant because he was told it meant a feminine hygiene product. Of course this was back in 1996. Or maybe the waiter was just playing with him and making fun him for being American.
    He was having him on - must've been.

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