Tag: language

The changes are said to be among the most significant in the Adult Migrant English Program’s history.

SPECIAL FEATURE: Not to put a damper on things, but Australian food hasn’t always made us happy little Vegemites.

SPECIAL FEATURE: Let’s stop spreading nonsense about how lazy Australian accents are and all these cultural cringe-tinged myths.

Why would anyone 'shiver their timbers'? There’s no shortage of special days throughout the year. Some, like International Literacy Day, speak to important issues in society. Others, like Speak Like a Pirate Day, speak to our inner dag.

SPECIAL FEATURE: So, what are the difficulties English speakers face when learning other languages? Here are a few of the basics.

If a thong-clad bogan from woop-woop sold you a goon-bag for for a few bucks would it make you a dag if you said yes?

SPECIAL FEATURE: Australian slang such as ‘budgie’, ‘greenie’, ‘pollie’, ‘surfie’, and even ‘mozzie’ are now also making appearances in global English.

The changes to the citizenship tests aren’t wholesale, but they have raised the bar for an English speaking skills-set.

OPINION & ANALYSIS: Tough English language tests will be used to decide Australian citizenship. Does this new policy look and feel like Australia’s old White Australia Policy?

You might know what flip flops are, but do you know what they call undies? LAURENCE DRISCOLL helps us traverse those first few months in the UK when you come from the land down under.

Call yourself a traveller? But you've been saying these place names wrong the whole damn time!

But don't just think the expat affliction of acquiring an English accent is necessarily about contracting posh, clipped tones and a habit of saying yo-gurt, instead of yogurt.

Work out if you’ve made the transition from Aussie ocker to English blue blood with this essential expat's checklist.

Sadly, I fall into the category of typical Aussie who speaks no other languages. So my first tour of Europe was certainly an eye (and ear) opener...

Fair dinkum; who better to explain some ripper Aussie vernacular to the world than the delightful Margot.

I’d managed to negotiate the fruit and vegetable aisle - where capsicums are peppers, eggplants are aubergines, mandarins are clementines or satsumas, snow peas are mange tout and zucchini are courgettes - but earned ‘The Look’ at the checkout when I asked for ‘cash out’.

You couldn't make this up, even if you were writing 'In The Thick Of It'.

WATCH: What's a "bee's wanger"? Only an Aussie could decipher this interview with Australian rugby player, Nick Cummins. The rest of the world is completely baffled.

Yeah, nah. If you aren't using most of these #AussieSayings in your every day life, you're doing it wrong.

Australian English has an amazingly rich seam of vocabulary. In its latest update, OxfordDictionaries.com has added more than 500 Australianisms.

Sign language interpreter Mark Cave possibly gave the best warning for the approaching storm, to deaf and hearing viewers alike. You just have to watch his energetic performance.

The British accent has been crowned as the 'most dateable' in the Time Out Global Dating Survey 2015. But is there even such a thing as a 'British' accent?

Zoe Sugg and Marcus Butler collapse into fits of giggles over "typically Australian" slang.

‘Shirtfront’ muscles out ‘Team Australia’, ‘man-bun’, ‘Ned Kelly beard’, and ‘coward punch’ to claim Word of the Year title.

Completing the guide to speaking ‘Strayan. We conclude the list of fair dinkum Aussie slang terms and phrases. Have a stickybeak.

Can you speak ‘Strayan? Fair dinkum, have a gander at this list of Aussie slang terms and phrases and see if you get the lingo.

Online reports say that Apple is looking for language engineers who are experts on ‘Australian English’ (or Strine - as we like to call it) to assist with the programming of their voice activated application Siri.

Linguistic experts believe Britons are turning up their noses at typical Australian slang like barbies, tinnies and sunnies.

Australians need to be careful when speaking around our American friends. Our lingo can be the same, but different

There are many reasons why you should travel, including to develop skills, see the world and form long-lasting relationships with people from different cultures and backgrounds. We explore the top seven reasons to travel the world.

GO HARD OR GO HOME | I refuse to give in to the taunts. I’ll continue to talk the Australian way, because calling White Out 'Tipp-Ex' is just not cricket.