Planning a trip to New Zealand? If you're like us, it's going to take you a while to get used to the language. There's not only a bit of an accent to contend with, but heaps of new words.
Here's a round up of our favourites and what (we think) they mean. (If you're a Kiwi, please feel free to leave a comment and let us know if we've misinterpreted anything! Or let us go on embarrassing ourselves – it's up to you.)
- how you going? – common Kiwi greeting
- jandals – flip flops
- toilet – even in a fancy restaurant, it’s perfectly appropriate to ask where the toilet is. I still have a hard time with this one.
- wee squiz – quick look, as in “I’ll just need to take a wee squiz at your report before sending it to the boss.”
- as you do – used when you’re joking that something out of the ordinary is actually common: “We were drinking wine out of a two-litre bottle … as you do … because we forgot to bring cups to our campsite.”
- sorted – figured out, as in “no worries bro, it’s sorted.”
- suss – similar to sorted, as in “I’ve got it sussed.”
- dodgy – bad, unreliable
- cardie -- cardigan
- jersey -- sweater
- jumper – also sweater
- eh? – pronounced “ay”, to be added to the end of certain sentences whether or not you’re asking a question. “He was pretty pissed last night, eh?” or “I'll take some tomato sauce, eh.”
- fizzy drink – soda
- happy – this is my new favourite word that I use several times a day. As in "are you happy to meet for a drink?" "I'm happy to schedule a meeting" and "please advise if you're happy for me to proceed."
- flat tack – full speed, as in “we were going a flat tack on the jetboat before he pulled a 360”
- good on ya -- well done; good for you
- heaps -- lots
- reckon – this does not have the slightly redneck connotation it has in the States, and is perfectly appropriate to use in a professional setting: “I reckon the business requirements specification document is ready for the executive team’s review.”
- long drop – outdoor toilet built over a hole in the ground
- knackered – exhausted
- right – as explained to me by a colleague: you'll hear this after there's been discussion followed by a pause, then someone sighs and says "right" with a certain amount of emphasis. It indicates "okay let's make a decision" or "okay let's get started."
- bugger – exclamation similar to damn
- pissed – not mad, simply drunk
- pissing down – raining hard, pouring
- fillet – same steak, but the “t” is no longer silent
- ta – thanks, most commonly used for simple things such as when someone holds a door
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