Learn Australian English

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About Australian English

Australian English is a dialect of English spoken in Australia and is the most used language in the country. The country has no official language. Australian English shares the majority of its words with other English dialects - and is easily understood by them - but there are some differences in spelling and vocabulary. The language originated in Australia more than 250 years ago after settlers arrived from the British Isles and Ireland. It is a language rich in humour - if an Australian says something is ‘as straight as a dog’s hind leg’, for instance, they means it’s anything but straight!

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Planet Earth

Where is it spoken?

Australia

People Talking

Number of speakers

16,500,000

Family Tree

Language family

Indo-European

Germanic

West

Fun facts — English (Australian)

  • Australian English has some unique vocabulary- for example, 'lollies' are sweets, a 'doona' is a duvet, and a 'barbie' is a barbecue.
  • Long words are often shortened after the second syllable and the ending is replaced with an ‘i.e.’ or ‘o’. For example, a refugee will be referred to as a reffo and a truck driver as a truckie.
  • Aboriginal words have been adopted into the language, mainly for place names, wildlife and local culture. These include the city name Canberra, dingo - a wild dog - and boomerang.

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