2.

Linguistic features of Australian English

Generally speaking, Australian English takes features from both British and
American English, so it is sometimes considered a combination of the two
variations. However, it is important to understand that there are a number of unique
features as well, including exclusive vocabulary.
Learning the specific features can be beneficial to anyone planning on travelling to
the country, or anyone hoping to find work in the country in future. So, with that in
mind, here is our quick guide to Australian English.

3. Grammatical features of Australia English

Australian English’s reputation as an amalgam of British and American
English can be understood more clearly when you look at its grammatical features.
For example, in terms of spelling, Australian English most closely
resembles British English. The ‘u’ is retained in words like ‘colour’ and the ‘ise’
ending is used instead of the Americanised ‘ize’ suffix on words like
‘realise’/’realize’.
Yet, there are plenty of exceptions to this. The word ‘inquire’ is often used instead
of ‘enquire’, which resembles American English, while the word ‘program’ is used
instead of the British English ‘programme’. Furthermore, even though the British
English spelling of ‘labour’ is most common, the Australian Labor Party’s name
has an Americanised spelling instead.
Much like with British English, Australian English has irregular past tense and
past participles of verbs like ‘spell’ and ‘smell’, so they become ‘spelt’ and ‘smelt’,
respectively. However, like with American English, Australians are more likely to
say numbers like 1,100 as “eleven hundred”, rather than “one thousand, one
hundred”.
When dealing with collective nouns, Australian English has more in common with
the American version of the language. For example, both Australians and
Americans would say “the football team has scored a goal”, whereas in British
English, they would say “the football team have scored a goal”.
4.
Interestingly, the naming of rivers follows either American or British conventions,
depending on where in the country you are. For most of Australia, the American
naming convention is used, so the word ‘River’ appears last, as with the Hudson
River or the Mississippi River. To give an Australian example, it would be the
Darling River.
Yet, in Southern Australia, the British naming system is used, with the word
‘River’ appearing first, as with the River Thames. Therefore, the river mentioned
above would be called the River Darling.

5. Pronunciation in Australia
Australian English vs American English truly takes on a life of its own when it
comes to the pronunciation of words and this is why most people with
Australian accents sound so distinctive. One of the most noticeable features is the
different sound for the ‘i’ in words like ‘night’ and ‘like’. Instead, it sounds like a
less pronounced ‘oi’, (e.g. ‘noight’).
The soft ‘a’, which can be heard in words like ‘cat’ and ‘hat’, is usually
pronounced similar to ‘eh’. As such, this means that the word ‘cat’ sounds like
‘ceht’, while the word ‘hat’ sounds like ‘heht’.
Likewise, a similar phenomenon can be observed with the hard ‘a’ sound, which
features in words like ‘day’, ‘way’ or ‘mate’. In this instance, the ‘a’ is pronounced
somewhat similar to how a British English person might say the word ‘aye’.
Therefore, the word ‘mate’ becomes ‘m-aye-te’.
In most cases, the ‘ing’ ending is not pronounced in full, meaning words like
‘singing’, ‘jumping’ and ‘catching’ are pronounced ‘singin’, ‘jumpin’ and
‘catchin’. This is a trait that is sometimes seen in informal English in both
the United States and Great Britain as well, but it is more common in Australian
English.
Finally, Australian English is said to be a non-rhotic variation of the language,
which means that the /r/ sound is not pronounced if it is after a vowel and not
immediately followed by another vowel. For instance, the word ‘card’ is
pronounced ‘caːd’, with the /r/ sound being dropped. Meanwhile, the ending of
words like ‘better’ and ‘wetter’ is lowered, to sound similar to ‘ah’. This means
you would say ‘bett-ah’, ‘wett-ah’, ‘riv-ah’, and so on.

6. Australian English Vocabulary

Let’s look at Autralian English vs American and British English words more
closely: As far as everyday vocabulary is concerned, Australian English once again
shares words and phrases with both British and American English, but also has
some terminology of its own.
Perhaps the most obvious examples of Australian words which are now recognised
in other variants of the language are ‘outback’, used to describe a remote location,
and ‘barbie’, used instead of the noun ‘barbecue’. An example of an Australian-
only expression, meanwhile, would be ‘doona’, which is used instead of the word
‘duvet’,
Like in British English, Australians say ‘aluminium’ rather than ‘aluminum’ and
‘mobile phone’ instead of ‘cell phone’. Australian English also utilises the words
‘anti-clockwise’ instead of the American ‘counter-clockwise’ and ‘petrol’ instead
of the American ‘gasoline’. The cover on the front of a car is called a ‘bonnet’,
rather than a ‘hood’, while an Australian will typically say ‘holiday’ instead of
‘vacation’.
Nevertheless, Australian English vocabulary differs from British English in many
ways and Australians sometimes use American English words instead. For
instance, Australians will usually say ‘soccer’ instead of ‘football’ and ‘overalls’
instead of ‘dungarees’. A ‘lorry’ is referred to as a ‘truck’ and the word ‘pants’ is
used in place of ‘trousers’.
Moreover, there are some phrases which are common in both British and American
English, but which very rarely feature in Australian English, if they are used at all.
These include the word ‘abroad’, where an Australian would usually say
‘overseas’, and ‘village’, as even small settlements in Australia are usually called
‘towns’.

7. Australian slang words

Last, but not least, it is important to learn a few slang words that are widely used in
Australia. Below, we have listed fifteen of the most common Australian slang
words and phrases, along with a quick description of what they mean, or how they
are utilised in conversation. A little English to Australian dictionary if you will:
1. Amber – Beer or lager.
2. Aussie – An Australian person.
3. Drongo – Used in place of words like ‘idiot’ or ‘moron’.
4. Fair Dinkum – True, or genuine.
5. Gander – To have a look at something.
6. G’Day – Literally means ‘good day’ but is used as a general greeting.
7. Give It A Burl – Give it a try, or have a go.
8. Hooroo – Goodbye.
9. Oldies – Parents.
10.Pom/Pommie – A British person (be warned: this word can cause offense
as it is generally used in a derogatory manner).
11.Reckon – Used similar to ‘absolutely’.
12.Ripper – Similar to words like ‘great’, ‘fantastic’ and ‘awesome’.
13.She’s Apple – It is fine / It will be okay.
14.Tucker – Used to describe food of any type.
15.Yabber – Talk, or chat.