Aussie Slang Starting with 'B': From Barbie to Bonzer

Australian English loves abbreviation, irony, and vowel shifts. Here’s a ‘B’ sampler:

• Bach (also crib, shack) – simple holiday house, often near beach/bush.
• Barbie – barbecue. “Throw a snag on the barbie.”
• Billabong – oxbow lake, waterhole. From Wiradjuri bilabang.
• Bloke – man, guy. “He’s a good bloke.”
• Bonzer (or bonza) – excellent, great. “A bonzer day.”
• Bottle-o – liquor store (bottle shop). “Run to the bottle-o.”
• Brekkie – breakfast. “Brekkie at the café.”
• Brissie – Brisbane. “Flying to Brissie tomorrow.”
• Budgie – budgerigar (small parrot). Also “budgie smugglers” = Speedos.

These reflect the “-ie/-o” diminutive pattern (barbie, brekkie, bottle-o, Brissie) and Indigenous borrowings (billabong, budgie).

Fair dinkum? Too right.