“ad fontes!”
Ireland, 1891—used in negative contexts to denote rejection, especially in ‘not for all the tea in China’, meaning ‘not in any circumstances’—refers to China as a major producer of tea, and to tea as a commodity of great value
Read MoreAustralia & New Zealand, early 1970s—‘Pommy’: a British immigrant to Australia or New Zealand; a British (especially an English) person—‘-bashing’: the activity of abusing or attacking the people mentioned just because they belong to a particular group or community
Read MoreAustralia & UK—denotes physical ugliness; also used of temporary states such as tiredness, hangover, anger, etc. (Australia, 1946)—also denotes rapidity (Australia, 1947)
Read MoreAustralia & New Zealand—a person who exploits the system of unemployment benefits by avoiding gainful employment—first used in 1974 by the Australian Minister for Labor and Immigration Clyde Cameron in reference to young people who migrated to the Gold Coast
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also ‘to throw a wobbler’—New Zealand, 1964—to lose one’s self-control in a fit of nerves, temper, panic, etc.—‘wobbly’, also ‘wobbler’, denotes a fit of temper or panic
Read Moreto attack or punish someone with great vigour; to reprimand someone severely—USA, 1862; New Zealand, 1863
Read Morevery cunning—New Zealand, 1908—‘Māori dog’: a dog of Polynesian origin; also any mongrel dog associated with Māori settlements or living in a wild state
Read Morecharacterises a person who has an insatiable appetite for something—especially in ‘tiger for work’ (Australia, 1857) and ‘tiger for punishment’ (New Zealand, 1911)
Read Moreexclamation of surprise, regret or disgust—New Zealand and Australia, early 20th century—one of several similar phrases, such as ‘starve the rats’, expressing those feelings
Read Morea brave Māori female warrior; by extension, any strong or brave woman—New Zealand—in Māori, 1873—in English, 1902—from ‘wahine’ (a Māori woman or wife) and ‘toa’ (a brave Māori male warrior)
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word histories 