British expat's shock at common Aussie phrase: 'Never heard it'

Aussie phrases continue to be a confusing and often comedic talking point for people who either visit or move to the country, with one British expat detailing slang words that she's "never heard of in (her) life".

Having moved to Sydney from London in November last year, 25-year-old Charlee is getting used to the Aussie lingo but is still perplexed by a few words she hears on a "daily basis".

Taking her curiosity online, Charlee has now gone viral for humorously navigating her culture shock Down Under.

"I’m quite aware that I'm an uncultured British person, which is why I moved to the other side of the world, to see the sights, and quite frankly, England’s just a bit too s**t," she says in her TikTok.

"First thing: 'esky'. An esky is a cool box. I don’t understand. I do actually quite like the word, it sounds better than cool box. But still, never heard it in my life."

In the comments, people explained that an esky is a generic term for portable coolers or ice boxes, originating from the Australian company that owns the brand of the same name.

"Esky is a brand of ‘cooler’ so now we just call it a esky even if it’s not an esky brand," one person commented on TikTok.

"In NZ we call an Esky a Chilly Bin," another said.

Another phrase that confused Charlee was 'doona'. "A doona is a duvet," she explained. "I don’t understand why you would just change the last three letters of the word. It sounds nice..but it's just a bit of strange word."

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Though what especially baffled her was the phrase 'scull it' (meaning to finish an alcoholic drink very quickly), given its "very not British" nature.

"'Scull it', which means ‘neck’ your drink. Never heard that in my life. I quite like the word," she said.

The term 'singlet' also made her list, which in the UK is called a vest. "One of those awful things you see gym rats wearing, especially walking down Bondi Beach – they’re called singlets," she joked.

Other confusing slang included 'arvo' meaning afternoon, thongs (a common point of confusion for Brits) and 'footy' meaning rugby.

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