Guide to New Zealand/Kiwi Slang
My husband and I chose New Zealand as our first world travel stop because English is spoken throughout New Zealand. We thought it would be a great way to transition into world travel. Even though English is the dominant language spoken by most New Zealanders, there are many words and phrases that are unfamiliar to Americans. Many words and phrases listed here are common to New Zealand, Australia and Great Britain. It may help to become familiar with some of these words/phrases before you visit New Zealand. For example, it would have been good for us to know that their tomato sauce is our ketchup. Our ketchup and noodles weren’t very good, haha!
| Bonnet/Boot – hood/trunk of a car |
| Cam belt – timing belt for a car |
| Capsicum – bell pepper |
| Car park – parking lot |
| Cheers – thanks |
| Chemist – pharmacy/drug store |
| Chillybin – cooler |
| Dairy – small convenience store |
| Dear – expensive |
| EFTPOS – Electronic Funds Transfer at Point of Sale; It means that the business accepts debit and credit cards. |
| Feijoa – a popular garden tree; the fruit is green and has a tangy flavor |
| Heaps – a lot |
| Jandals – flip flops |
| Jelly – jello |
| Jersey or Jumper – pull over/fleece/sweater |
| Kiwi – can refer to a New Zealander or the country’s national bird |
| Knackered – exhausted/tired |
| Kumara – sweet potatoes/yams |
| L&P – Lemon & Paeroa, sweet soft drink, Paeroa is the town where they originally manufactured the drink |
| Mate – friend |
| Metal road – gravel road |
| Op Shop – thriftshop |
| Petrol – gasoline |
| Pip fruit – stone fruit |
| Pram – stroller |
| Rubbish – trash |
| Sealed road – paved road |
| Spade – shovel |
| Sweet as – cool/awesome |
| Togs – swimsuit |
| Toilet – bathroom |
| Tomato sauce – ketchup |
| Torch – flashlight |
| Tramping – hiking |
| Trolley – shopping cart |
| Zed – the letter “Z” |
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