The official language of New Zealand is English, but even a native English speaker can be taken by surprise by the locals‘ language which is sometimes a bit different. So you might need a couple of weeks getting used to it. For a simple start, we have 30 popular slang expressions for you to learn. Many expressions are shared by Australia.
All good - everything is all right
"I forgot to come today" - "That's all good, mate."
arvo – afternoon
"Let's meet this arvo."
bach – hut
"We have a bach in mountains."
banger and mash - sausage with mashed potatoes
"What's for lunch"? - "Bangers and mash."
barbie - barbeque
"There's barbie going on at my place."
bloke – man,guy
"Did you see the bloke over there?"
bring a plate - bring some food to share
"There's barbie in my house tonight, so come over and bring the plate."
bro – buddy, mate, friend
"Hey bro, how‘s it going?"
can‘t be bothered - I don’t want to
"I can´t be bothered doing the shopping today."
good on ya, mate – good for you, friend
"I just got pay rise," - "Good on ya, mate!"
heaps - lots of, many
"We have heaps of time."
chilli bin - cooler, portable cooler
"Bring the chilli bin over to the beach, mate."
chips – fried chips
"Let's have fish n‘ chips."
choice - the expression of pleasure, thanks
"I got you a beer." - "Choise bro!"
chur – thanks
"Chur bro."
jandals – flip-flops
"You can´t wear jandals here."
kiwi - New Zealand Inhabitant / flightless bird species
"There were some tourists, but mostly kiwis."
L&P - popular NZ lemonade
"Let's grab some L&P."
loo – toilet
"I need to use a loo."
macca´s - McDonald´s
"Let's get a macca's."
mate – Budy, friend
"Cool mate."
mint – super
"I´ve got new job." - "Mate, it's mint!"
not even - no way
"Could you lend me some money?" - "Not even, mate."
a piece of piss - (piece of cake) easy to do
"Did you pass the exam?" - "Sure, it was a piece of piss."
pissed - drunk
"I was so pissed last night."
reckon - I think that,…
"Are we going to ski tomorrow?" - "Yeah, I reckon the weather will be great."
sweet as - super!
"Our team won the match." - "Sweet as, mate."
taking the piss - Are you kidding me?
"Can you work overtime today?" - "Are you taking the piss?"
togs – swimming trunks
"Let's go to the beach, get your togs bro."
yeah nah bro - určitě jo kámo sure my friend
"Are you coming today?" "Yeah nah bro."