Travelers to New Zealand might be surprised to find that while most Kiwis (the local slang term for New Zealanders) do speak English, there will still be quite a few terms that may prove puzzling. Here’s a small selection of Kiwi slang, with a handy translation for those who aren’t from Godzone (New Zealand).
Anklebiter: small child (“How’s the anklebiter these days?”)
Aotearoa: New Zealand, literally “land of the long white cloud” (“It’s another beautiful day in Aotearoa.”)
Bach: holiday beach house (“The whole family is staying at the bach over summer.”)
Bludge: sponge off others (“Pay for your own stuff, don’t bludge off me.”)
Campervan: RV, motorhome (“There’s nothing like a family campervan trip.”)
Carked it: died (“The van carked it halfway up the hill.”)
Chilly bin: cooler, esky (“The chilly bin’s full of beer, so we’re sorted.”)
Chocka: totally full (“The garage is chocka, we should clear it out.”)
Cuppa: hot beverage, usually tea (“Come out of the cold, I’ll make you a cuppa.”)
Dear: expensive (“It’s a nice jacket but it’s much too dear.”)
Eh: isn’t that right (“It’s freezing out there, eh?”)
Flat out: very busy / very fast (“I’ve been flat out lately, it’s really stressful.” “I ran flat out to catch the train.”)
Footpath: sidewalk (“Cyclists need to stay off the footpath.”)
Hard case: A joker or roguish troublemaker (“Did you hear what Murray got up to on Friday? He’s a hard case…”)
Jandal: flip flops, thong sandals (“I can’t believe you didn’t bring your jandals to the beach.”)
Jumper: sweater (“I keep finding holes in my jumper.”)
Kai: food (“Kai’s ready, dig in.”)
Kia ora: hello (“Kia ora bro, how are you?”)
Loo: toilet, bathroom (“I’ll just use the loo before we leave.”)
Mint: perfect or very good (“I bought a mint phone on the weekend.”)
No worries: that’s fine / easy (“No worries, I’ll get that done for you.” “We’ll beat them no worries.”)
Pack a sad: to become moody / break (“Cheer up, don’t pack a sad.” “The fridge packed a sad and leaked everywhere.”)
Serviette: napkin (“Can you pass the serviettes, please?”)
She’ll be right: it’ll be okay (“Don’t worry about it, she’ll be right.”)
Skint: broke (“I can’t afford it this week, I’m totally skint.”)
Squizz: look, examine (“Hey, take a squizz at this!”)
Stoked: very pleased (“I’m stoked I got the job.”)
Suss / suss out: fishy / investigate (“I don’t trust him, he seems a bit suss.” “I’ll suss out the situation and let you know.”)
Sweet as: brilliant, fantastic (“Let’s catch up soon.” “Sweet as.”)
Togs: bathing attire (“Get your togs on, the waves are perfect.”)
Whanau: extended family (“We’ll have the whanau around for a BBQ.”)
Wop wops: remote wilderness (“I was stranded way out in the wop wops.”)
Yeah nah: implies hesitation (“Yeah nah, I’m not sure I want to do that.”)
