Tag: australian national dictionary centre
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Oxford Word of the Month: May – Smashed avo
noun: (also thongaphone, thong-o-phone) a percussive musical instrument formed by a series of hollow PVC pipes of varying lengths, the ends of which are struck with a rubber clapper such as a thong. THE STORY BEHIND THE WORD OF THE MONTH In a 2014 posting on the video-sharing website YouTube a man can be seen…
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Oxford Word of the Month: April – Thongophone
noun: (also thongaphone, thong-o-phone) a percussive musical instrument formed by a series of hollow PVC pipes of varying lengths, the ends of which are struck with a rubber clapper such as a thong. THE STORY BEHIND THE WORD OF THE MONTH In a 2014 posting on the video-sharing website YouTube a man can be seen…
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Oxford Word of the Month: March – Corflute
noun: a temporary sign or poster made of corrugated plastic sheeting. THE STORY BEHIND THE WORD OF THE MONTH Another election and another spate of corflute crimes in Gladstone. (Gladstone Observer, 31 May 2016) 2016 was a year of elections, here and elsewhere. It was also a year in which the corflute gained extra traction…
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Oxford Word of the Month: February – Black Caviar odds
noun: very short odds; strong favouritism. THE STORY BEHIND THE WORD OF THE MONTH Black Caviar odds first appears in print in 2011 referring to a possible Reserve Bank cut in the official interest rate on Melbourne Cup Day: We are now headed for a Cup Day official interest rate cut and the banks will pass…
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Oxford Word of the Month: January – turbo chook
noun: a jocular name for the Tasmanian native hen, Tribonyx mortierii. THE STORY BEHIND THE WORD OF THE MONTH The Tasmanian native hen is a flightless moorhen endemic to the island of Tasmania. Although it is unrelated to the domestic hen, it was named a ‘native hen’ by the early European settlers, who applied the…
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Australian Word of the Year 2016
Democracy sausage has been named Australian Word of the Year 2016. Democracy sausage: A barbecued sausage served on a slice of bread, bought at a polling booth sausage sizzle on election day. The Australian National Dictionary Centre, based at The Australian National University, selected democracy sausage because of its increased prominence in Australia in a…
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Oxford Word of the Month: December – koala diplomacy
noun: Australia’s use of koalas as diplomatic gifts to other countries; a form of Australian soft power diplomacy. THE STORY BEHIND THE WORD OF THE MONTH In May 1994, Australia arranged for a koala called Blinky Bill (named after a famous koala in Australian children’s fiction) and his younger half-brother, Kupala, to spend some time…
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Oxford Word of the Month: November – Melbourne Cup field
noun: 1. a very large and open field of applicants for a job, contract, etc. 2. a pool of highly-qualified competitors. THE STORY BEHIND THE WORD OF THE MONTH The Melbourne Cup is Australia’s most famous horse race, run annually on the first Tuesday in November at the Flemington Racecourse in Melbourne. The large amount…