It has been a while since I did a language post. I am not sure if there is any significance to be attached to it, but I have not been scribbling nearly as many notations over language differences lately. Today, however, I did pause for a moment after speaking with the secretary at Cameron's school. I had mistakenly given her the incorrect expiration date of our credit card when paying for his winter uniform, and she had rung up to get the correct date. After I supplied it, she replied, "Thank you. That's gorgeous."
Gorgeous is a term that some might say gets a good workout down under. I have yet to be weary of it, but I do find it curious how many different ways it is used. Very young children are often greeted with a cheery, drawn out, "Hello, GOORrgeous!" I have heard it used to refer to physical appearance, but more often it seems to address one's character. It seems that being called gorgeous means you have a kind, pleasant, considerate personality. Gorgeous also is frequently employed for food, which as I'm sure I have mentioned previously, is an incredibly important part of life in Melbourne and is taken very seriously indeed. One might rave that the soup was just gorgeous, referring more to its taste I believe than to its presentation.
Speaking of food I was quite proud of myself a couple of weeks ago when a friend mentioned over coffee that on a particular day of the year she generally prepares spag bol or a similarly easy dish. I think that would have passed completely over my head a few months ago. It is short for spaghetti bolognese, a popular main dish for the evening meal, which, by the way, can be called tea or dinner, but never supper. I can't seem to give up using supper, and am frequently corrected by my eldest child. It is a fairly important term to get right. For example, I invited a friend and her three children over for supper before going for a swim, and my usage of the word caused some confusion. In Australia, supper is similar to a bedtime snack such as popcorn and milk. It is something you eat fairly late at night to tide you over until morning, and never applies to a substantial meal.
The phrase "going for a swim" could very well be used in the U.S., but I think the more common phrase would be "going swimming." It reminds me of another feature of language down under that I picked up unconsciously right from the start, namely the phrase "having a (insert a word that can function both as noun and verb)" My kids might be invited over to "have a play." I might, on the other hand, be invited out for coffee to have "a gossip" or "a chat." Cameron wrote a persuasive piece for school this week arguing that plastic bags should be banned. He urged his readers to "have a think" about the information that he would be presenting in the coming paragraphs. There are more, but my memory has failed me, in spite of having a good, long think about it over afternoon coffee and chocolate just now. Edit: Ross reminded me tonight that I missed the obvious one: to have a go at something.
This morning, over tea and biscuits at our weekly Ladies Bible Study, I clarified a couple of words that have puzzled me of late. I had overheard our landlord in Port Douglas explaining over the phone that due to our missing luggage, we were without our "cozzies." This, I was told, is the term used in New South Wales for swimming costumes. Normally it would not be used in Queensland, where they prefer to use the word "togs," while bathers, of course, is what we have learned to say in Victoria. In the midst of this discussion, one of the ladies exclaimed over the biscuits we were rather rapidly consuming, "They are so moreish." That means something like delicious, or so good that you keep eating more of them. My last query was over the phrase "dinki di." Like fair dinkum, it means "true blue" (that didn't really help me) or "the genuine article," "the real thing."
I think I like the phrase "dinki di." It is a worthy aspiration, and one that seems especially appreciated in Australia.
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