# Ozzy dialect question **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [August 4, 2002, 4:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ozzy-dialect-question/122260 "2002-08-04T04:05:08Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Burnt\_Sugar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ee59a6/32.png) [@Burnt\_Sugar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Burnt_Sugar)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2002, 9:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ozzy-dialect-question/122260/21 "2002-08-05T09:25:55Z")
I probably speak Aussie lingo - but I don’t know because it seems natural to me! One funny thing - root = have sex oh and - fanny = female’s private parts so when you guys say “I’m rooting for the US”, or “Got your fanny pack?” it sounds funny! ---
**Author:** ![pldennison](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/9fc29f/32.png) [@pldennison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pldennison)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2002, 12:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ozzy-dialect-question/122260/22 "2002-08-05T12:58:47Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by TheLoadedDog \* > \*\*Strewth mate . . . \*\* I’m now stricken with an image of Graham Chapman sitting up suddenly in his chair and [keeling over dead . . .](http://www.montypython.net/scripts/famdeath.php) **mangeorge** : My mother’s family, from West Virginia, used “fist city” a lot. I grew up around it, and I head it so rarely anymore, it always brings a smile. Amazingly, the “raining/cow” one migrated over from French; they have a phrase, _“Il pleui comme une vache qui pisse”_ (It’s raining like a pissing cow.) ---
**Author:** ![Aro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b3f665/32.png) [@Aro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aro)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2002, 3:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ozzy-dialect-question/122260/23 "2002-08-05T15:52:46Z")
Just check out this site for [Aussie slang](http://www.koalanet.com.au/australian-slang.html) Or here for [Northern Ireland slang](http://speaknorniron.8m.net/) Or here for [American slang](http://www.manythings.org/slang/) There are a lot of lists out there. I think colloquialisms are great!!! ---
**Author:** ![VOW](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/vow/32/3043_2.png) [@VOW](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VOW)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2002, 4:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ozzy-dialect-question/122260/24 "2002-08-05T16:08:37Z")
US-isms: BATT-try (for “battery”) ve-HICK-le (for “vehicle”) GARN-tee (for “guarantee”) SORE-ee (for “sorry”) I, of course, don’t use any of those pronunciations. I’m \ from California, where we have no accent. \ ~VOW ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2002, 7:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ozzy-dialect-question/122260/25 "2002-08-05T19:21:48Z")
For what it’s worth, at least PART of the time, Steve Irwin is obviously doing a schtick. When he’s not on camera, he’s a bit softer spoken, and much of his trademark accent fades. On one hand, he’s a serious zoologist, but… he’s also in show biz, and he knows very well that audiences around the world eat up that “Crocodile Dundee” persona he adopts. The guy you see on TV is partly the real Steve Irwin and partly a larger-than-life character he’s elected to play for entertainment value. ---
**Author:** ![VOW](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/vow/32/3043_2.png) [@VOW](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VOW)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2002, 9:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ozzy-dialect-question/122260/26 "2002-08-05T21:46:47Z")
Gosh, you mean the clown on the Fed Ex commercial is…\ just a caricature? ~VOW ---
**Author:** ![wyldelf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/4491bb/32.png) [@wyldelf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wyldelf)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2002, 10:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ozzy-dialect-question/122260/27 "2002-08-05T22:41:27Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by mangeorge \* > \*\*Do you mean, **TLD** , phrases such as; > [ul] > [li]“Rainin’ like a cow pissin’ on a flat rock”.[/li][li]“Goin’ to fist city”.[/li][li]“Hide behind a shade tree and watch”.[/li][li]“Bring a lunch”. (Going to take a long time).[/li][li]"\_\_\_\_ this" (Said while indicating one’s private parts).[/li][/ul] > Stuff like that? \*\* Or: “Handy as back pockets in a pair of undies” (not very handyat all) “Scarce as rocking horse shit” (pretty damn scarce) “Useless as tits on a bull” (pretty damn useless) “As welcome as a fart in a bathtub” (not very welcome) “Going to see a man about a dog” (taking a leak) (going to the loo) “A bum like two bulldogs in a hessian sack” (pretty large/wobbly backside) 😃 ---
**Author:** ![TheLoadedDog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/35a633/32.png) [@TheLoadedDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TheLoadedDog)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2002, 11:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ozzy-dialect-question/122260/28 "2002-08-05T23:42:32Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by mangeorge \* > \*\*Do you mean, **TLD** , phrases such as; > [ul] > [li]“Rainin’ like a cow pissin’ on a flat rock”.[/li][li]“Goin’ to fist city”.[/li][li]“Hide behind a shade tree and watch”.[/li][li]“Bring a lunch”. (Going to take a long time).[/li][li]"\_\_\_\_ this" (Said while indicating one’s private parts).[/li][/ul] > Stuff like that? \*\* Yep. Them’s the ones! 😃 Some other Australian ones I just remembered: “Crook as Rookwood” - Very sick or _crook_ (Rookwood is a big cemetery in Sydney). “Tight as a fish’s arse swimming upstream -and THAT’s watertight!” - runs a strict personal fiscal policy (for some reason it sounds funnier if you add the redundant “and THAT’s watertight!” with emphasis). “Dry as a nun’s \_\_\_\_” -Yes, we _could_ do with some rain", or “Yes, I believe I would accept a beer were you to offer one”. “To bung it on” - To lie, attempt to lie, to bullshit, or otherwise exaggerate. “Mum, I’m sick, I can’t go to school today” = bunging it on. Steve Irwin bungs the accent on just a bit too much. “To shoot through (like a Bondi tram)” - to leave in a hurry. “Arse” - a cheeky form of luck. If you sink five balls off the break in a game of pool, your opponent might say, “That was arse!” It’s “ass” as well, of course, but y’all knew that. “No mate, I came in 'ere for a haircut” - reply to a bartender’s “Would you like a beer?” “It’d be a good place for a pub here!” - a way to get a bartender’s attention. “Chasing after a woman is like chasing after a Bondi bus / tram” - there’s always another one coming along. ---
**Author:** ![Richard\_Pearse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/richard_pearse/32/13144_2.png) [@Richard\_Pearse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Richard_Pearse)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2002, 12:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ozzy-dialect-question/122260/29 "2002-08-06T00:15:44Z")
Am I right in thinking that “strewth” is originally from “God’s truth” or is that just a UL? One thing I’ve noticed about Aussie-speak is that there is a lot of cockney style rhyming slang. NZ doesn’t seem to have any of this (I attribute this to NZers having a heritage of high class people rather than convicts and the like :)). ---
**Author:** ![Aspidistra](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aspidistra/32/3894_2.png) [@Aspidistra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aspidistra)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2002, 1:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ozzy-dialect-question/122260/30 "2002-08-06T01:01:12Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by mangeorge \* > One phrase you’ve surely heard in a popular song, “losing my religion”, is actually pretty rarely used. Do you mean that “losing my religion” actually is a slang phrase somewhere? As in, it means something different to “I used to believe this religion but now I don’t”? What does it mean? ---
**Author:** ![Flamsterette\_X](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/41988e/32.png) [@Flamsterette\_X](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Flamsterette_X)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2002, 2:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ozzy-dialect-question/122260/31 "2002-08-06T02:43:56Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Aspidistra \* > \*\* > > Do you mean that “losing my religion” actually is a slang phrase somewhere? As in, it means something different to “I used to believe this religion but now I don’t”? > > What does it mean? \*\* “Losing my temper,” basically. F\_X ---
**Author:** ![mangeorge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d78d45/32.png) [@mangeorge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mangeorge)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2002, 3:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ozzy-dialect-question/122260/32 "2002-08-06T03:15:06Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Flamsterette\_X \* > \*\* > > “Losing my temper,” basically. > > F\_X \*\* Or patience. Getting ‘fed-up’ with a situation. Peace, mangeorge ---
**Author:** ![Princhester](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3e96dc/32.png) [@Princhester](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Princhester)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2002, 4:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ozzy-dialect-question/122260/33 "2002-08-06T04:16:42Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by auliya \* > \*\*How about “flat out like a lizard drinking” ? I think that means not very busy. \*\* No, the opposite I think. ---
**Author:** ![ninevah](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/46a35a/32.png) [@ninevah](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ninevah)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2002, 10:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ozzy-dialect-question/122260/34 "2002-08-06T10:03:25Z")
Incidentally, I’ve recently wondered why Colin Powell, US Secretary of State, prefers his name to be pronouced as COL-ON. Do all Yanks named Colin prefer to have their names pronounced like this or is just a rare occurance? Is it a dialect thing? Why on earth would you want to have people think of the section of the large intestine extending from the cecum to the rectum when they pronounce your name? ---
**Author:** ![tavalla](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tavalla/32/89_2.png) [@tavalla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tavalla)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2002, 10:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ozzy-dialect-question/122260/35 "2002-08-06T10:25:44Z")
‘Flat out like a lizard drinking’ - literally, busy, but often used in that charming ‘opposite’ thing we do. “Yep, mate, flat out like a lizard drinking” while doing bugger-all. ---
**Author:** ![TheLoadedDog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/35a633/32.png) [@TheLoadedDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TheLoadedDog)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2002, 1:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ozzy-dialect-question/122260/36 "2002-08-07T01:00:48Z")
Powell actually pronounces his name COAL-in. I’m not a Yank, but I’m pretty sure it’s only him. ---
**Author:** ![wyldelf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/4491bb/32.png) [@wyldelf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wyldelf)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2002, 10:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ozzy-dialect-question/122260/37 "2002-08-08T10:25:04Z")
Just as a little aside I would like to add that for a great book that pokes fun at our Aussie language and our euphamisms then **Terry Pratchett’s - The Last Continent** sums it all up so damn well. ---
**Author:** ![amanset](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/8dc957/32.png) [@amanset](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amanset)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2002, 11:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ozzy-dialect-question/122260/38 "2002-08-08T11:01:05Z")
Slightly back on topic, “(dis)orientated” is the preferred British use as well. > **[Oxford Languages | The Home of Language Data](https://languages.oup.com)** > > Explore Oxford Languages, the home of world-renowned language data. ---
**Author:** ![Wendell\_Wagner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/8491ac/32.png) [@Wendell\_Wagner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wendell_Wagner)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2002, 1:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ozzy-dialect-question/122260/39 "2002-08-08T13:21:07Z")
Colin isn’t nearly as common a name in the U.S. as it is in Australia or the U.K. Most people in the U.S. pronounce the name in the same way as it’s pronounced in Australia or the U.K., with a short “o”. Colin Powell pronounced his name with a short “o” up until the time he joined the army. There was a famous World War II hero named Colin Kelly who pronounced his name with a long “o”, and someone in the army began pronouncing Colin Powell’s name that way and it stuck. ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2002, 2:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ozzy-dialect-question/122260/40 "2002-08-08T14:17:04Z")
On the subject of Austeralian slang… I came across this question in a puzzle magazine recently, and while I managed to solve the puzzle as a whole, I never found the answer to this individual question: Is there an Australian slang term for a dish, plate or utensil that’s only slightly used, and is therefore put back in the cabinet or drawer without being washed? As a “hint,” the word or phrase is also the name of an American appliance manufacturer. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ozzy-dialect-question/122260.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ozzy-dialect-question/122260.md?page=3)