This blog goes out to all the accident-prone people of the world, our fellow uncos. Unco or The Man from Unco means awkward or clumsy. Typically used by schoolkids, unco is a shortened version of uncoordinated.  That was an unco thing to do You're so unco Aussie slang is chockers with great and hilarious terms for the uncoordinated among us. Captain coordination is - ironically - as clumsy as a duck in a ploughed paddock. If you find yourself chewing on word salad in social situations, you could be described as a dorba or dorb: a stupid person, especially someone who is clumsy or socially inept. Back in Australia's convict days a clumsy person was called a galoot, an awkward, silly fellow. A great clumsy oaf. The origin of this one is a bit of a mystery. It was originally used by sailors to refer to soldiers or marines, and is first recorded in a glossary of Australian convict slang back in 1812. Its history before this is unknown. Each week, we have a look at a slang word from Australian English. You can see other Aussie Word of the Week posts from the Macquarie Dictionary here.

One-pub town is a way to describe those small Australian country towns you drive through on a road trip. They often sit on a crossroads with one pub, one church and a hand full of scattered houses or homesteads marking them out from the surrounding landscape.  One-pub towns lie even further out of our urban centres than the backblocks we discussed in a recent blog post.  Coined by no less than Australian literary icon, Henry Lawson, one-pub town carries a similar meaning to one-horse town, though with perhaps less sting than the latter, which means an insignificant, unimportant, or backward town. As the nation reopens, we hope to be stopping in a few one-pub towns as we move from motel to motel across the land.  Each week, we have a look at a slang word from Australian English. You can see other Aussie Word of the Week posts from the Macquarie Dictionary here.  

We all know on person who specialises in ruining our fun. A wowser is slang name for a prudish teetotaller; a killjoy, spoilsport or nark; a person who doesn't know how to have fun and wishes to prevent others from doing so. Wowser first appeared in the 1890s in the Sydney Truth newspaper and was later claimed by the editor John Norton to be of his own coinage, supposedly an acronym of the slogan We Only Want Social Evils Remedied. Wowsers and other negative Nancies opposed to the enjoyment of life's pleasures can be described as wowserish.  Of course, we couldn't finish this week's blog without a shout out to the opposite of a wowser: the relentlessly positive optimist, for whom everything is endlessly fantastic. Unfortunately, there is no obvious slang term for people with an overly sunny disposition. If you think of one let us know if the comments below.  Each week, we have a look at a slang word from Australian English. You can see other Aussie Word of the Week posts from the Macquarie Dictionary here.

By the time you reach retirement age, you have earned the chance to wander. Grey nomads are as much a part of the Australian landscape as eucalyptus trees and red dirt. A grey nomad is a colloquial name for an older person, often retired from full-time work, who travels around the country, living in a caravan or motorhome. Drive down any highway or pass through any country town and you are likely to see at least one campervan loaded with travelling essentials and captained by retirees.  Travelling around Australian in your campervan, caravan or motor home has become somewhat of a tradition, a rite of passage into the later stages of life. Perhaps your grandparents are grey nomads. Maybe your parents have itchy feet and are gearing up for a bit of cross country dalliance.  Travel has been somewhat curtailed of late. We are hoping to see the grey nomads back on the road soon, alongside backpackers, fruit pickers and travellers of all kinds.  Each week, we have a look at a slang word from Australian English. You can see other Aussie Word of the Week posts from the Macquarie Dictionary here.  

We've got you pegged with this week's Aussie Word of the Week. Commonly used in New South Wales and Queensland, peg is an adaptable piece of Aussie slang that means to toss or throw something. In use since at least the 1940s, peg has a few other meanings you are likely to hear around Australia. Peg can mean to watch or observe, as in I've got you pegged, which is similar to number, as in, I've got your number, meaning to have someone's measure. Peg also means to have a look, as in have a peg at this. Finally, peg can refer to a degree, as in from our standpoint we went up a peg tonight. Really, this is one of the most flexible pieces of Aussie slang that has featured on this blog. Which meaning is most used in your state?  Each week, we have a look at a slang word from Australian English. You can see other Aussie Word of the Week posts from the Macquarie Dictionary here.      

Trackies, a staple of Australian fashion since the glorious 1990s, have had a resurgence in recent years...

Recent events have led to an upsurge in suburban gardeners across Australia planting their own little veggie patches. We can't talk about growing our own food without mentioning the choko, the pear-shaped, light-green, fruit of a South American vine, often grown in backyards and eaten as a vegetable. The choko vine was once ubiquitous to Australian backyards. They were especially widespread during the Great Depression as they took little, if any, looking after (except perhaps for cutting back) and thus provided a cheap source of food. Tenacious and fast-growing, the plant commonly spread from its source over and along fences, trellises, sheds and carports. Outside dunnies proved a particularly popular location. Someone who is totally useless couldn't train a choko vine to grow up a dunny wall. So while tending your veggie patch, be sure to add 'planting choko' to your list of jobs for the weekend.  Each week, we have a look at a slang word from Australian English. You can see other Aussie Word of the Week posts from the Macquarie Dictionary here.

This week's Macquarie Word of the Week is dedicated to all Ned Flanders fans. A mollydooker is a slang term for a left-handed person. In use since the 1930s, mollydooker probably came from British dialect brought to Australia in the early twentieth century.  Left-handed people sometimes get a bad rap in Australian English. For instance, left-handed can mean doubtful, clumsy or awkward. Other slang phrases such as cack-handed, which can either refer to a clumsy person or a left-handed person, sound just a bit unpleasant.  Southpaw, on the other hand, is a word commonly used to describe left-handed boxers. And don't forget that all the best musicians are left-handed. So to the mollydookers reading this post, get yourself down to the Leftorium and get yourself a left-handed guitar.  Each week, we have a look at a slang word from Australian English. You can see other Aussie Word of the Week posts from the Macquarie Dictionary here.

This week we are travelling over topography, out of our dense city centres to the backblocks. Part of Aussie slang since the 1860s, backblocks is a term for the outer suburbs of a city...

Every so often a new piece of slang gains momentum in our culture. Thanks to a recent popular song, smoko became one such piece of slang propelled from hazy beginnings into the spotlight...  

Every year on April 25th, Australians pause to commemorate ANZAC day and all those who served their country in armed conflict...

Did you know you can see Madonna's bra from office buildings in Sydney? You can even drive under it! Madonna's bra is a cheeky nickname for the ANZAC bridge, coined for the bridge's supposed resemblance to the pointy bra formerly worn by the pop star Madonna. (Not to be confused with the 'bra or Maroubra in Sydney's south.) Though not a tourist attraction like the Sydney Harbour Bridge, we think the ANZAC Bridge is pretty special in its own right, especially when viewed at sunset from up high. Opened in 1996 to replace the former Glebe Island Bridge, the ANZAC Bridge spans a bay in the western part of Sydney Harbour. It's the gateway to the west, as well as being the longest cable-stayed bridge in Australia.  For those curious bridge aficionados among you, the Sydney Harbour Bridge is nicknamed the coathanger.  Each week, we have a look at a slang word from Australian English. You can see other Aussie Word of the Week posts from the Macquarie Dictionary here.