Confused Canadian Investigates KIWI ENGLISH

[@allanlank]

I once asked a Kiwi what part of Australia he was from. He replied, "I'm from New Zealand. You Yanks always get that wrong". I'm Canadian and he knew that. Touché.

[@olajong2315]

Trust me, most people when you tell them you're Canadian, they just say 'same difference'. Some Americans don't even know Canada is a different country lol

[@kainewhiteway5756]

This happened to me but the bloke asked me if I was kiwi. It was at HKG airport and I could see his Canadian passport, I asked him if he was from the US after I corrected him.

[@allanlank]

@@olajong2315 Well there is this old joke. Q: How do you tell if a tourist is an American or a Canadian? A: The Canadian has only one Maple Leaf on his backpack.

[@Roosvelen]

I lived with a kiwi family for 8 month, I am a Swiss French-speaker. And everytime they called me french, I did the same with Oz :)

[@davidmacfarlane1763]

Thats my go to reply for Canadian's who do that to me :)

[@thehound510]

As a kiwi living in Australia, I can't talk about my "deck" without people laughing.

[@TheMatadrum]

Walk into Bunnings and ask them for some oil for your deck?

[@AurinneA]

I'll never forget my first year of teaching (primary school first year students) when a kid behind me said to another kid "Have a look at my deck!" but he was from NZ and I couldn't see that he had a deck of Pokemon cards...Boy, did I quickly turn around in a panic!! 😳🤣

[@SeanGaladar]

Certainly don't talk about playing sax on the deck!

[@thehound510]

@@SeanGaladar 😂 that's all I talk about

[@lukewilki6343]

I know, even if you say it in their accent, they insist you're saying it wrong!

[@KauriTearaura]

"Sus" can also be used as a verb to the effect of "to organise" or "to check something out" e.g. "I've got our plans sussed for the weekend" and "That looks fun, I'm gonna go suss it out"

[@alphabettical1]

We have that in Canada and America too, as suss out or short for suspicious, which makes me wonder if we had the other meaning (organize) and dropped it

[@pannekook2000]

@@icancu9680 yeah, I agree. In my experience in NA English “to suss (it) out” is sorta like “to figure (it) out”

[@r0b0coffee]

Going on a mish.

[@gracegunn1]

Yeah we have that in the uk, and if someone is good at something or figured something out we can say “that persons sussed it out”

[@thehound510]

let's go sus that house out haha those days are passed me.

[@heartofdawn2341]

favourite word: munted - an adjective meaning badly broken, usually beyond repair. "a lot of houses were munted after the quakes". It's not a verb. You don't munt something- you might smash, break, or wreck it, but afterwards you could call it munted "yeah, nah" is another one. it's basically a contraction of "yeah (I understand you), no (I don't like it)"

[@randomname4726]

Can also mean stoned af.

[@markstorey4243]

I was working with some Americans and had to label some non- functioning equipment. I wrote 'bung' on a piece of tape and stuck it on. I think they kinda understood.

[@randomname4726]

@@heartofdawn2341 I disagree. Ai believe you can munt something. "I f'n munted my car last night"

[@heartofdawn2341]

@@randomname4726 My point exactly- you didn't munt your car, you munted it

[@randomname4726]

@@heartofdawn2341 Hmmm, you may be right! Lol

[@Charlux]

In New Zealand we say 'us' alot but we really mean 'me'. For example "Can you give us a ride?". It sounds like we mean us as a plural but it's actually singular.

[@uasj2]

It's in Australian English too. "Hey mate, can ya give us a lift into town. I just missed the bloody bus."

[@rachelcookie321]

It’s the royal “we”

[@syntaera]

I've found that the "royal we" version of "us" has an unvoiced "U" which makes it sound more like "iss" as in "hiss". "Can you give iss a ride" means to ask for yourself, where if you voice the "U" more ("us" as in "thrust"), it means the plural "we". I wonder if this could derive from Te Reo Maori, where many nouns have a more stressed vowel to indicate they are plural.

[@jollyollybolly6250]

Especially "chuck us" when asking someone for something

[@risvegliato]

Very common here in England too - 'lend us your pen' for example.

[@pualamnusantara7903]

Those sax sex six differences are kinda scary

[@SnarkNSass]

And hilarious!😂✌

[@simontollin2004]

Don't worry to much about it, in swedish the number six and the word sex is exactly the same, you just have to figure out what is what depending on context

[@enigmaster84]

There's a Viva La Dirt League video in which they talk about playing with their decks (of cards) in their kiwi accent ;p

[@enigmaster84]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/bn6Td5WpjNNmf7s

[@kungfutzu3779]

@@enigmaster84 well that was well OTT

[@bloodgazm8891]

I know im late to the party, but honestly bro, thank you for the amount of effort you have put in to your Māori pronunciation. Means a lot for someone outside of our culture to put so much effort into our language

[@KristovMars]

Really glad to hear that @Langfocus was diligent on this element - as an Aussie I've got no real experience with that (I love me some kiwi fillums, but movies is just movies). If I wasn't so ancient I reckon I'd love to live and work in NZ for a year or two (or 50). Weather seems nice, people too. Love to all my cousins across the Tasman!

[@iallso1]

In NZ and Australia bugger is not considered taboo and is part of normal speech, "he's a good bugger" meaning he's a good person, or simply bugger as an expression when something went wrong or didn't work out as expected, and is acceptable in the office.

[@fishnutter5219]

Always confused me growing up - bugger as used in the Ad was considered a terrible word, but someone could be a good bugger and that was perfectly fine.

[@kayleighhooper7021]

there's a cafe called bugger cafe

[@andrewcourt5156]

To be called a “good bugger” or a “good bastard” is a real compliment.. it is a rank that many NZ or Aussie men spend a good part of their life to reach.. A “silly old bugger / bastard” is also good !!

[@recko1269]

Actually in NZ bugger become considered a swear word in schools around 24 years ago when i was in high school. This was because of the Toyota Hilux bugger add and every kid in NZ saying bugger all the time

[@FitzgeraldStanburyWeissV]

We're more likely to call people good c*nts, than buggers now. I don't really know anyone that regularly uses that any more.

[@newton983]

Paul: Thanks for making us aware of so many language variations and cultural nuances! Greetings from Colombia! 🇨🇴

[@Langfocus]

It’s my pleasure, Mario!

[@42069TV]

@@Langfocus Thanks indeed.

[@Atabanza]

Sumerce ¿Que hace por acá :0?

[@danielyruby8696]

Hola de barrio Bosa

[@elhermeneutico]

@@alguien31415, qué interesante sería un vídeo comparando el español hablado en Colombia con el peninsular.

[@SilverPoseidon]

Kiwi here. Surprised you didn't mention "Chur" (a word for expressing agreement) or "cuz" (originally from "cousin" but used generally for relatives or even just friends). Also, we use the word "mean" a lot in place of "cool", such as "mean as bro!"

[@kirstinerapson8630]

Chur is a big one. And Chur to the Chur is almost the ultimate way to say "Yeah dude, hard out."

[@alexp2859]

Chur is very North of the North Island in my experience, and also used much more by younger generation.

[@SilverPoseidon]

@@alexp2859 I've heard it all over, though more so up north. I'm from Canterbury myself and have definitely heard it used around there, in and out of Christchurch

[@jhndijkman]

Or chur is used as a yes or agreed with or nice one. Chur is an abbreviation of choice.

[@sagethedemonking3992]

And then there's "Chh"

[@TyrkiaGunnar]

When I visited NZ in 2019 I noticed one particular expression being used everywhere, NO WORRIES! When I asked about something, the anwser was always NO WORRIES! Nothing was a problem in NZ. :)

[@glenmorrison8080]

I'm a Californian, and I say "No worries" _constantly_. Although, it is generally to dispel any signs of actual worries, even minor, but not as a response to any kind of statement.

[@RJM56]

@@glenmorrison8080 An expression that started in Australia, went to NZ and then reversed the direction of migration back to the UK and US.

[@Doing_Time]

way back in the 1990s I observed the word "cool" (pronounced "kl") used about every 40 words (as often as Canadian saying "eh?")...I was told it was because 90210 was popular in NZ

[@XaviRonaldo0]

"No worries" is Australian too. Usually used in place of "you're welcome". Similar to "no problem"

[@HigesoriHanzo]

People in the US didn’t used to say “no worries.” I moved abroad and when I came back 12 years later in 2017, everyone was saying it.

[@lizcaldwell3978]

A kiwi here, I’m laughing at this thinking how crazy we must sound to others. Also I will never forget coming home to NZ after living overseas for six years, when I heard an announcement at Auckland airport, and said to my husband far out is that what we kiwis sound like to others, it sounded so strange to hear a broad kiwi accent again.

[@dougiesview1619]

Canadian having lived in NZ for 21 years here! “Far out” is also definitely a kiwi saying as well!!

[@michaelladerman2564]

@@dougiesview1619 "Far out" is 1960s slang for "great!" in the U.S. It was still used in the early 70s but was getting old (I was born in 1965 in New York).

[@sahulianhooligan7046]

@@michaelladerman2564 I heard it on Sesame Street once, although probably because the writer was old

[@BradLad56]

If you said to someone feel a box of birds in England, they might think you've gone a bit mad haha

[@nikoramuriwai-ihimaera2518]

@@michaelladerman2564 far out in aotearoa(new zealand). kinda means like fuck😭

[@losangsangpo]

Rumor has it that somewhere along the Tasman Sea, there's an invisible line that separates the fish from the fush.

[@pequenaudtekno2909]

Don't you mean separates the feesh and fush 😂

[@MarcelPolman]

Poetry

[@Tsass0]

@@pequenaudtekno2909 Nah, i think he means some bit of land east of Tasy

[@bazza945]

Aksulie, it's called the Middleton Reef, mate. Apeerentlie the Aussie claim it's theirs. They do a lot of claiming that stuffs "theirs", like "pavs" and "lammingtons"' also a long dead racehorse called "Phar Lap". Phar Lap was so good that when it raced in the USA the nag was murdered.

[@shushia1658]

Seperates the fish and the feesh you mean?

[@eturnerx]

Kiwi english tends to be understated and playfully sarcastic. A dog named "Lucky" probably has three legs, one eye and half an ear missing.

[@jurgentreue1200]

Australia also. We nick name guys with red hair Bluey.

[@pensiveboogie]

Aussies too. My dad was bald but he was nicknamed “Curley”. A redhead is “bluey”, a tall bloke is “shortie”

[@greasylimpet3323]

@@pensiveboogie and a little bloke is 'Lofty'

[@greasylimpet3323]

@@jurgentreue1200 - We're blokes, not guys!

[@satoapendragon1257]

Or the only one to not get squashed by the mother dog.

[@samdoates7042]

From my experience, as a Kiwi of Maori descent and coming from the West Coast of the South Island: I have never spelt it as 'eh', only ever as 'ay' which I suppose is more phonetically accurate to our speech. The West Coast is also the only region of NZ which historically had majority Irish settlement

[@samdoates7042]

'Sweet as' is also short for 'sweet as a nut' btw

[@samdoates7042]

Favourite expressions include: Sick as a dog = Crook/unwell Top notch/bloody good = very good Too good = Excellent Hard case = Very funny (can apply to a person or to a joke) "Yeah he's a hard case." Staunch = Tough or upright (person) Absolutely chuffed = Very happy/satisfied Stoked = Very happy/excited Rapt = Very happy/excited Cobber/cobbah = Friend/mate Bloke = Man Smash it out = Get it done Crack on = Get on with it Do the mahi = Get the work done We also use what Americans/Canadians refer to as the 'C' word VERY casually here. NSFW Good person = Good cunt We refer to someone with a good perverse sense of humour or who likes to push thing to the extreme as a 'sick cunt' (this is most often a positive term) Someone who crossed the line or who subverts social norms is a 'fucked cunt' (again, not an inherently negative term in my experience) A 'hard cunt' is a strong or staunch person who does not take any grief/trouble from others.

[@jimcarroll9738]

As a Canadian with a Kiwi wife, I tend to agree. The Kiwi "eh" sounds more like a statement and less like a query, ie, usually falling intonation. I've even heard it led with an "h", ie, "hey". In Canada, the "eh" tends to be rising terminal, so it sounds more like a query or looking for casual validation/confirmation.

[@YogZab]

In Alberta, the locals use 'hey', also without the terminal rise but more as a statement. And it's tacked on to statement after statement by the same speaker!

[@daddymuggle]

I knew a guy in high school who spelled it 'ah'. We realised this because he used it liberally in his written notes. Very confusing at first.

[@h3ll0gudbye]

An alternative for howlybag is sook. "Stop being such a sook."

[@13lizby85]

As someone who was brought up by a kiwi mom I'll take your word for it. I thought it was a way of saying "you big softy" as my mom would call her cats "big sooks" She'd also call them a "skite" when they were showing off. Never heard that word anywhere else.

[@walterbracey7106]

As the youngest if my 6 siblings. I was often called a sook when I cried after being bullied by them

[@kirstinerapson8630]

@@walterbracey7106 Ahhhhh, such is the life of the youngest sookie bubba sibling........

[@pbaylis1]

Yeah, that's the one. The general term for being a sniveller.

[@amillionbees]

@@13lizby85 Skyte is a word I picked up from my parents, but it seems to have faded out of use. My mum said it to my brother recently and he had no idea what it meant! I never even realised it was just a slang word and not universal! I've never actually heard anyone say 'howly bag' (in wellington at least,), but 'sook/sookie' is common.

[@forestgrey2000]

Great video; thanks. We often temper our accent when away from home - so we can be better understood by locals. When studying at a USA university years ago, 5 or 6 of us Aussies and Kiwis happened to cross paths on campus. We soon slipped back into our 'home' accents and added colloquialisms. After about 10 mins of animated chat, my American companion said, "I'm hardly understanding anything you guys are saying".

[@hyperplayability6290]

lol i change my accent slightly in diff scenarios too

[@SimpleDiaries-h7t]

Yeah it's trully hard😄

[@stanleyallison480]

I exaggerate my accent overseas lol

[@jaykemp2861]

Honestly whenever I talk to folk online I'll normally speak with a more British accent but if there's a Kiwi or Aussie that goes out the window and I'm right into Kiwispeak.

[@JoseAguirre-ri8tg]

11:00 Maoris: kia ora Spanish speakers: Ummm, it's 5 o'clock, mate.

[@mrworldwideakl971]

I'm a Kiwi who moved to Mexico a few years back, and occasionally when people ask the time I say 'kia ora' back instinctively.

[@CRegaladoDA]

@@mrworldwideakl971 What part of Mexico you moved to?

[@mrworldwideakl971]

@@CRegaladoDA Baja California Sur

[@waltonbrown]

I’m maori and speak spanish... kia ora = que hora es... took me awhile for the penny to drop

[@Brekekekiwi]

Apparantly this interaction was common with NZ troops in Europe during WW2.

[@MorganKate]

As a New Zealander, not once have I heard of someone referred to as a howlie bag 😂

[@Langfocus]

That means not everyone uses it. It happens.

[@pennygooch8348]

Ditto! But it is funny so I might start using it... 😄

[@JayBowen]

Same here, as well as 'feel a box of birds' or 'captain cooker'.

[@colleendavis1503]

Yeah, I never heard that one, either.

[@colleendavis1503]

@@JayBowen I think I've only heard 'box of fluffies', and that's a bit old-fashioned.

[@sensorysarah]

I’m a Kiwi living in Australia and some Aussies find particular words I say amusing. I can be talking to people and they will suddenly start laughing. Now I have picked up some of the Aussie accent and the Kiwis laugh at that 😂

[@nikoramuriwai-ihimaera2518]

to kiwis when aussies say 6 it sounds like sex and to aussies when us kiwis say 6 they also hear sex😭

[@tinfoilhomer909]

Yeah, don't talk about office supplies unless you're enunciating very carefully.

[@sensorysarah]

I just finished watching The Wolf of Wall Street nooo 😭😆

[@aspiringaspie3280]

I'm Kiwi and I always remember this funny thing that happened when I was at highschool with an American exchange student. We were in maths class and it was her first day....I asked her for a rubber. She got so embarrassed! In USA they call what we call a rubber an eraser and a rubber a condom 😂😆

[@pgruszewski]

Hmm, that's is a nice one. I'm a Pole grown up in Poland, been living 20 years in Ireland now. In Polish we actually say 'rubber' (gumka) for both :)

[@tinfoilhomer909]

Hearing a Kiwi ask for "twink" from me as an Aussie was not a comfortable experience. I think in NZ it means pen eraser, but here it just means a young boy.

[@БогданРезнік]

@@pgruszewski lol, in Ukrainian, we also say "rezynka" (rubber) for both 😅

[@pgruszewski]

@@БогданРезнік Sława Ukrainie, bracie!

[@БогданРезнік]

@@pgruszewski dziękuję braciom polskim ☺️

[@Alister222222]

Ok, as a New Zealander I wasn't expecting such a correct and comprehensive overview of our speech. I can say that everything in this video is 100% correct. Most of the idioms (like 'box of birds') are pretty informal, so you could go around for a long time, or in certain social circles, without hearing them. One thing, is that kiwi fruit are never called 'kiwis' in New Zealand, and always kiwi fruit. I honestly don't know how you found out so much about New Zealand English! It must have taken so much research.

[@kirstinerapson8630]

I too was really impressed with the depth of our Kiwi-isms. It went far and beyond what I was expecting

[@thewalkin1nstrument]

You’re the man aow, that was a mean as korero about our kiwisms in our accent. Made some sense. Chur

[@catherinekilgour2563]

I would not say this is 100% correct. Some of these terms I've never heard of before and he had Queensland instead of Queenstown. Many of the words he said I would associate with Australia not New Zealand.

[@thewalkin1nstrument]

@@catherinekilgour2563 interesting; apart from the Queensland slip I’ve heard all of these throughout my life. I guess it depends where you’re from in NZ and who you roll with

[@kirstinerapson8630]

@@catherinekilgour2563 I find that to be incredible. Many of the "kiwi-isms" presented were right on the ball. Is it an age thing perhaps? Or maybe a geographical difference?

[@ThatSomethingGuy]

Here's an interesting quirk: Te Warewhare. So, our big-box chain store is called The Warehouse. By a weird integration of Te Reo and English, The Warehouse becomes Te (Te Reo for The) Ware (pronounced as wah-reh, like it would it it were part of a word in Te Reo) whare (pronounced fah-reh, theTe Reo word for House). People might use The Warehouse or Te Warewhare interchangably.

[@rachelcookie321]

Everyone where I live calls it “The Warewhare” so a combination of the two

[@debeeriz]

@@rachelcookie321 never say whakapapa to pakeha kids, they think you are swearing

[@rachelcookie321]

@@debeeriz that is such a random thing to say.

[@FerretKibble]

@@debeeriz oh no, pākehā children know what it means. They're just being cheeky wee buggers.

[@Nikstar34]

@@rachelcookie321" wh" often pronounced as "f"

[@sebstar1979]

“That’s hard case eh?” Or “He’s hard case” Something or someone that’s amusing or weird in a good way. I also love how we say “I’ll just go get my bits and pieces and then we’ll go”. Meaning grabbing your wallet, keys, jacket etc before you head out the door. As a kiwi, I really appreciated watching your video. Made me laugh at my own accent. It was well researched, thanks!

[@MrNicopa]

I asked a flight attendant in Christchurch airport where Gate 2 was. She said “It’s at the top of the iskilator just past the Qantas eerier chickens.” I wondered why Qantas kept such strange domestic fowl in an airport.

[@rais1953]

"Qantas eerier chickens" - for North American readers that's "Qantas area checkins."

[@Obi61248]

Funny af

[@Muritaipet]

Laughed after I worked it out

[@petersmith2040]

NZ English is the most difficult English version in the world to learn for non-native English speakers because even native English speakers from other countries are having difficulties understanding them when they speak casually. In a formal setting, their English is pretty much standard but in a casual setting with a lot of NZ slang/colloquial words/expressions being used, it can be very difficult for people who weren't born or grew up in the country to fully understand them.

[@rais1953]

@@petersmith2040 Hard for North Americans Peter but not for Australians although we mock their strange vowels as the Americans mock ours. And as an Australian native speaker of English I have difficulty understanding some regional or ethnic US accents.

[@Me-ui1zy]

I once went to London for a month, only one person asked if I was Australian, which was surprising. But even more surprising was the fact that he was a New Zealander. The only person who attempted to guess my country who got it wrong was a fellow kiwi

[@kirstinerapson8630]

When my partner and I went to London, we spotted a kiwi from across a crowded park (back when such things existed outside of New Zealand) because he was the only other person we saw the whole day wearing shorts, a singlet and jandals on an autumn afternoon. We casually walked past and I said ever so softly, Kia ora bro. He immediately stopped in his tracks, came over to us, shook my partners hand, landed a sloppy one on my cheek, and returned the Kia ora before heading off on his way.

[@aidanmackle5751]

I get the same thing in NZ sometimes when I meet new people. I think it's because growing up I developed a broad accent that sounds more rural and often live around people with cultivated more proper accents. Kids in the big cities of NZ are losing their accents fast man it's sad. Some of these youngsters are honestly starting to sound like yanks to me aye

[@noooname]

I was on a family holiday in Idaho and happened to talk to a young couple. Two minutes into the convo we asked them what part of Australia were they from, they said they’re from the South Island. I think when you’re surrounded by foreign accents your hometown accent sounds way stronger in contrast - hence the mistaken Aussies.

[@joshuasoedjanto1013]

Shame! 🤣🤣🤣🤣

[@adlamis]

A mate of mine was walking along the street in Turkey once, and this Turkish guy said "Kia ora" - two distinct words, rather than run together as we usually say it. My mate was impressed that he knew this Maori phrase, but he was puzzled, and asked, "How did you know I was from New Zealand?" The guy said, "You're kind of scruffy."

[@frayzoid]

I had a mate from Canada here in NZ who I went out for a meal with but forgot to bring his wallet. He was pretty concerned when I said "No worries, I'll shout" not realising I meant I'd pay for him. I never realised the expression wasn't universal in English before then!

[@johndoes7569]

🤣🤣🤣"No worries, I'll shout"

[@wolf1066]

@@johndoes7569 Problem solving and generosity... they were invented by Kiwis, y'know. :P

[@frahn1702]

An American friend told me someone had once said to her “I’d like to shout you to tea”. She had no idea what he meant, and I had no idea why she didn’t understand him. She said that Americans say ‘I’d like to buy you dinner’.

[@PhansiKhongoloza]

​@@frahn1702Exactly. Because tea is drink.

[@_dashyy]

@@PhansiKhongolozawe often use “tea” as dinner here in nz but it’s used for the drink as well.

[@gracebrown3074]

Since it wasn’t mentioned one of the significant reasons the vowels sounds different and unique even compared to that Australian accent is mostly because of the Māori language. As well as a few of the consonant changes. This is because as Māori started learning English they still kept the accent from the Maori language. Over time people continues to interact with each other and kiwi english started to pick up that accent more and more. And while a lot of the vowels are still different than the Māori vowels they started drawing closer to them than any other English accent and is why it sounds so different now.

[@BethaneyDavies]

Don't forget about "yeah nah" and "nah yeah". The former being negative and the latter being positive. Also "no worries" and referring to things as "wee" when they're little or small. That was something pointed out to me when I was working in the UK and the boss would ask me to do something and my response was "no worries" or "I'll do it in a wee while". Also let's not forget about "chur" and "nek minnit".... lol

[@臺灣是國家臺灣是國家]

I am Kiwi born however came back from living in Australia and the US for 16 years. My neice and nephew were saying this non stop, and I was like? wtf did this yeh-na-yeh/na-yeh-na bs come from? It's a simple yes or no to my question please, I was laughed at especially when I tried to say it myself, I gave up! lol "sus as" is all I can say...;-P

[@universal_hyssoap]

i'm from America and I also say "nah yeah" to confirm things and sometimes "yeah no" (not yeah nah) to deny

[@carrotaddiction]

I think the 'wee' thing is typically scottish. So they were probably just confused that you said it and you're not scottish. I've only heard Scots say it anyway.

[@jkprez]

I was about to add a similar comment before I saw yours. The 'yeah-na' is also heard in Aussie. I watch 'heaps' of Aussie and Kiwi TV (good escape from North American doom and gloom) and haven't heard the 'nah-yeah' that I can recall. Being a Senior Canadian I use heaps of 'ehs' in my convos. I think the new generations of immigrants and their children are decreasing the frequency of 'eh'. I have seen lots of comments elsewhere from people living in Toronto and Vancouver saying that they never hear anyone say eh.

[@BethaneyDavies]

@@carrotaddiction Lots of Scottish immigrants in NZ in colonial times so that's probably where it stems from :)

[@slohmann1572]

Asking for directions in NZ I was told to take the “lift”. I looked for an elevator, but the person actually meant the side opposite to the right....

[@TonyRule]

You must have been in the South Island.

[@loisdungey3528]

I quite often work with internationals. They frequently don't understand a word I say and then I find myself trying to pronounce more clearly. I'm then told I sound English! Can't win.😂

[@comawhite015]

Random factoid: we sometimes use the Maori "waka" (canoe) when referring to a car ie: "where'd I park my waka?"

[@gem157a]

@Cultures' Lover Our transport authority is even called Waka Kōtahi , litteraly the committe of waka. Also, the Māori word for ambulance is Waka tūroro, litterally “a waka for the sick”

[@michaelheliotis5279]

Generally speaking, 'waka' refers to any type of vehicle. It even extends to use as the Māori word for coffin or casket, because it's the canoe of the tūpāpaku (deceased) into the afterlife.

[@kirstinerapson8630]

@@gem157a dont forget the sky waka.

[@Gundogdogdog]

No we don’t lmaoooo

[@jellybean_91]

As an Australian, I first heard this slang used at a kayak place in Australia by a Kiwi mate. I knew "waka" meant canoe, so I thought he was talking about his kayak! It took me a few minutes to realise he meant his car.

[@allieparton8746]

Usually videos like this get soooooo much wrong and do not touch on the Maori language at all! This was fantastic to watch!!

[@susanhall727]

Sweet! Fun fact: I can't remember where I heard this, but apparently when Māori first heard Europeans talking, it sounded as if they were hissing at each other - as there are no sibilants in Māori. Some wee typos which I point out not to find fault but because I think you'd like to know: 10:06 The usual (but dated) expression is "I'm a box of birds". I'm "feeling" a box of birds is not common.13:04 Auckland spelled with a 'c' 11:24 It is almost universal here to say Māori, not Maoris, for the plural, as a token of respect for the Māori language. 11:32 Mana is prestige, not the person who's got it.

[@nikoramuriwai-ihimaera2518]

much respect and love from all the māori community🙌🏽❤️

[@aspiringaspie3280]

As a Kiwi, I'm very impressed. You taught me things that I myself didn't know or realise about the Kiwi language. You're such a professional and you're quick paced with makes for a easy enjoyable video!

[@david-hayes]

I would add "full-on", meaning heavy or intense. Also taihoa meaning wait. A great source is any writing by Barry Crump.

[@benwalls8181]

I live in Sydney Aus, i grew up with kiwis as relatives so I was around them a lot, and I still actually learned quite a few things from this video! it's cool to hear things from a Canadians perspective too! absolutely loved every minute of it!

[@BailinginBC]

I would like to add the word munted - much used in the Shaky Isles

[@kmshallaed8989]

Thanks, I was going to remind them of that too. A great word, very useful.

[@angusgallagher6130]

And "Chur"

[@DGYSAM]

Also Manis. When someone is being a dick. "Stop being a Manis au!"

[@andyjarman4958]

The Minter hitch is a knot introduced by Alpine climber Werner Munter. It tends to damage the rope due to the twists in the rope Ropes on which a Munter hitch have been used to frequently are known as 'munted'. It's an expression familiar to Australian and British sailors igkt.net/sm/index.php?topic=744.0

[@shockafter7]

this reminds me when we had a cat called Munter because it was clumsy and legit stupid. 😆

[@ovidbrandy]

Many in the US would say “loads” where “heaps” is used here, as in “there were loads of people at the concert.”

[@Langfocus]

Yeah, true.

[@iskandertime747]

Or "tons".

[@Langfocus]

I tend to say “tons”, but I hear “loads” as well.

[@ovidbrandy]

@@Langfocus 🤔 Why is North America so focused on the weight of the people rather than their disposition in a pile?

[@cjcanton9121]

Not heaps, that's Aussie and Kiwi, never heard it before I got a pen pal in Australia.

[@gorzux2829]

8:19 OMG I CAN'T I CAN'T BELIEVE IT NONONONO KIWIS ARE SUS

[@PainterVierax]

Oh Jesus! he's the Jester!

[@crazydragy4233]

Idk whether to believe this or not xd

[@turtik9279]

AMOGUS

[@TomorrowWeLive]

I'm a kiwi and I've never heard that. Must be borrowed from American slang.

[@megaton6023]

PLS STOP I’M LOOSING MY MIND

[@geograexperts1554]

"New Zealand not in the world map and is like Australia" Sri Lanka : I can relate

[@covenantor663]

Also Tasmania is often left off maps of Australia!

[@paulfedorenko2301]

I once had a friend from New Zealand back in university. She once asked me if I knew where her country was, so I sarcastically replied, "Yeah. It's that big island of the east coast of Arica."

[@alukuhito]

I don't understand why Sri Lanka isn't a state of India.

[@geograexperts1554]

@@alukuhito seriously 😐

[@nichtrichtigrum]

I'd like to add that the Maori word "whanau" referring to family or close friends is used a lot, too (at least in Otago where I was). Also, "oy" is used a lot, more or less like Americans would use "yo". Then there's the word skuxx which refers to a person who's successful with women, though often it is used ironically. "to skuxx it up with somebody" is used as "to hook up with someone" or generally be flirtatious with them.

[@samuelvink1482]

Oh yes, skuxx is a good addition

[@jan_Masewin]

Yee, whānau is one which isn’t just a substitution in Pākehā contexts ime because it’s got a subtly wider meaning

[@JayBowen]

I was born in 1982 and 'skuxx' wasn't a word until I was about 25 (about 2007) did I notice some kids saying that word and asked them what it meant.

[@gasdive]

Yeah I was going to comment that whānau is pretty common. I hear Tamariki sometimes and now that I'm older, I hear people talk about their moko, short for mokopuna. People talk about kai a lot too. I probably hear Tāma short for Tāmaki-makau-rau more than I hear "Auks". As in "Hemi's gone up to Tāma"

[@Akku8581]

Do people still use the world sukxx?

[@cipher3966]

Some things I have noticed in my life as a Kiwi. Swearing is a lot more casual in NZ I find, and sometimes we are not even sure whether something is a swearword or not. Also I think the language used in NZ is changing rapidly. The rhotic R is increasing particularly amongst children and my theory is it involves things like KZbin. The inclusion of Maori words has always been there but now there is strong deliberate effort to increase it, TV will often slip Maori words in to educate more. People above their forties or fifties are more likely to pronounce the Maori wha(fa) as wa and there are things like beer bare pronunciation difference which doesn't exist in previous generations. Recordings from a couple of decades earlier have much stronger European influence that you described.

[@Gabriel-hs9mv]

Really? Vocabulary and small pronunciation changes wouldn’t shock me, but to go from total non-rhoticity to rhoticity is quite something. Do children really roll the r in things like here or better in NZ nowdays?

[@cipher3966]

​@@Gabriel-hs9mv A lot of them seem to. I have noticed my preschool aged relatives will often pronounce colours and shapes and even things like My Little Pony names in pure US due to songs and cartoons then switch back to NZ. Also in a lot of Polynesian or other communities of non-European descent rhotic r is quite standard even if they are NZ born monolingual so this may also have an influence.

[@EVO6-]

@@Gabriel-hs9mv speaking as someone in Ireland, there are entire swathes of kids that don't even sound like they've lived here a week. KZbin is a hell of a drug

[@angusauty4396]

@@cipher3966 what part of nz are you in? It seems to be increasingly common around auckland but significantly less so the further south you go.

[@cipher3966]

@@angusauty4396 I am in the Manawatu now. But yes, I also thought it was more common around Auckland.

[@thepeff]

I love that the world map that flashed on the screen was missing New Zealand

[@Langfocus]

It actually happens quite a lot. Ask any Kiwi. 😄

[@crazyoldworld7946]

Funny story about a Kiwi who was help up (delayed don't call the cops) in an airport some years ago because he had a fake passport. It was a legit (another classic (opps another Kiwi-ism) shortening of a word) passport but the boarder control person was addiment New Zealand was an Australian state, if it were, it would be the capital. The officer had a world map, you guessed it, no New Zealand for the traveler to point to. It took a couple of calls to sort. The word 'out' seems redundant after the word sort. It's way less grating than the phrase "Go with..." so many questions.........

[@mooser2nz]

Kia ora Paul. Whist I was born in London, I grew up in NZ to Kiwi parents and 4 generations of Kiwis. I grew up in Christchurch the largest city on the South Island. For those who live/born on the South Island, we call it the "Mainland", and we are collectively known as "Mainlanders". There are also a couple of loan Scot words you will find used in the lower Sth Island. These include "wee" meaning "little" ... "I'll have a wee bite of that pie"; and "tad" meaning "some or somewhat" ... "I am tad tired today". Other key differences between AUS and NZ English will be things like "Weed Eater" (NZ) vs "Weed Wacker (AUS) (Line strimmer), or Duvet (NZ) vs Dooner (AUS). Australian's are also likely to use the "o" diminutive way more than use Kiwis (eg Servo, Ambo, Bottle-O, Salvos, arvo; and shorten names eg Timo, Jono, Simmo). Other borrowed Maori that have come into our lexicon include words such as "tiki tour" ... "We'll take a tiki tour" (a less planned trip). With revitalisation of te reo Maori since 1975 - this means you are more likely to see bilingual signs, hear te reo Maori used in broadcasting and a significant increase in general use (especially over the past 10 years).

[@cherie5308]

I'm from the North Island and I've never heard of the South Island being called the "Mainland". No one I know calls it that, we call it the South Island, and South Islanders. "Mainland" must be something more local to you.

[@mooser2nz]

@@cherie5308 Hence you are from the North Island. :o)

[@denzelfoley9743]

The part about how we just make stuff up on the fly to shorten it is definitely true. I'd say the defining part of the language is shortening things to make it easier to say and because its fun.

[@jimattrill8933]

The French do that as well - Macdonalds is called 'Macdo' and there are many other words.

[@Robob0027]

I once had a visit from two friends who did not know each other. They started talking and one said "Oh, you're Australian, aren't you?" No was the terse reply "I'm a New Zealander" and you're French. The reply, equally terse, was "No, I'm Belgian".

[@silverstreettalks343]

In England, people often guess that I'm a Kiwi or Suith Effrikan, though I'm actually Australian, just don't have a broad Australian accent.

[@sambros2]

😂 Belgian is a fake country

[@pensiveboogie]

A tourist is asked “Are you Norwegian?” “No, I’m Swedish. I’ve been sick”

[@Alan_Duval]

@@sambros2 According to Blackadder it was invented by the English to piss off the French.

[@Alan_Duval]

Then again, we have a checkered history with the French in NZ :-/

[@gerrym75]

Knackered or buggered also means it's broken. "Oh geez, the handle on me chilly bin is knackered"

[@davidkirby4387]

Also, 'munted' has same meaning.

[@kathrynaaugustin7986]

Interesting

[@loisdungey3528]

Often use kaput!

[@mikimoto99]

Can also mean unfit, out of breath.

[@loisdungey3528]

@@mikimoto99 , yes, "I'm fair knackered after that run". Or, "That poor old horse is knackered. Needs to be put out to pasture. "

[@alfredojesusbejaranojarami9360]

Thanks mate! haha! I had an exposition concerning AUS and NZL English varieties. Your videos helped me 100 %. I will cite your channel!

[@AverytheCubanAmerican]

"But Canadians these days, don't say eh as often as they used to. Kiwis now take the crown" *Top 10 Anime Betrayals*

[@cerebrummaximus3762]

Yes, it Hurt me too....

[@Serzje]

That's bad eh!

[@chrisheath5233]

It’s not uncommon to see Kiwis misspell “Eh” as “Aye”. It’s still pronounced “Eh” and not “I”. So instead of writing “just got back from the dairy, eh” they write “just got back from the dairy, aye” Where as the Canadian “Eh” is quite short, the Kiwi “Eh” is stretched out.

[@-gemberkoekje-5547]

Leaf me alone 🍃

[@sunisbest1234]

Queenslanders used to do exactly the same. Particularly regional areas. Not so much now. My last year of high school, (boarding school) I was travelling from north QLD to Melbourne, every school holidays, I had to consciously stop myself doing this. Even 40 years later, having a conversation with someone who ends their sentence with, Eh? 5 minutes, and I'm doing it again! 😜🤣

[@Langfocus]

Hi, everyone! I hope you like the video!

[@junctionfilms6348]

Choice also used in England, at least where I lived :) Crack up very common in the UK, as is good as gold, diminutives, wordplay also, making up words etc

[@maxglendale7614]

Great topic, as always! Do you think the difference between the New Zealand and Australian English is more notable than the difference between Canadian and American English? Also for future topics can you explore South African English? In addition, as more foreigners seem to be taking English classes in the Philippines, can you explore the idea of Filipino English and how it is becoming as distinct as Singaporean/Malaysian English. Perhaps the Filipino English/Accent will become the de facto Asian version of English.

[@christiancostantino9838]

Why do you make videos for so long

[@manorueda]

Yesss, I liked it! I missed your videos! By the way, that "eh" at the end of the sentence to ask for confirmation is the same we use in Spain!

[@jd892]

Bro you need to do "Confused Canadian Investigates his Own Canadian Dialect" I am Canadian As well and not everyone speaks the same. Would also be cool to find why Canadian speak with a general American accent compared to Australia. Would be very interesting! The is a general Canadian Accent which sounds like General American but there is also a broad/rural accent aka hockey town accents you can find this accent in the hit show letterkenny and there is a "Urban accent" which you can find spoken by young people in Toronto and other large cities in Canada a lot of Canadian KZbin Influencers have this accent.

[@peterbayne7227]

As a Kiwi, I can confirm that Kiwis use "eh" way more than Canadians. Great video Paul, I think you covered the basics of NZ English well.

[@clunston]

Yeah we say aye all the time

[@JeremiahTeal]

@@clunston I can accept "eh" and "ay", but "aye" is a completely different word pronounced the same as "I". Otherwise pretty good, eh?

[@clunston]

@@JeremiahTeal that’s dry as

[@nikoramuriwai-ihimaera2518]

@@JeremiahTeal we say “aye” or “ay.” the word thats said like I is “āe” which is Te Reo māori for yes. and eh is said like “ow” but without saying the w

[@blitzen435]

As an aussie it's pretty interesting to see how many words/sayings are either exactly the same or very similar to ones we use here in Australia.

[@jollyroger1009]

Australia is the only place outside of Southland that I've ever been where I'm fully understood from the get go.

[@Tony_Malini]

Kiwi: can you come over my place to help me to wash my deck? Canadian: what???

[@Langfocus]

lol

[@joshstanton267]

We're having a barbie on my deck! Wanna pop in!?

[@Tony_Malini]

@@joshstanton267 🤣🤣🤣🤣 I literally died now

[@laurawoodward3046]

@@AndreiBerezin 🤣🤣🤣

[@loisdungey3528]

😂😂

[@_Shadbolt_]

Apparently rather than saying "put the kettle on" Kiwis say "boil the jug". I learnt that from James Acaster who absolutely loves that fact. Can Kiwis confirm?

[@krissp8712]

Yep I've heard that before! I usually say kettle, but every now and then I've heard someone refer to an electric jug.

[@thepaladin48]

Yep always been jug. Would most likely use "kettle" to be one that specifically goes on a stove/burner etc., as opposed to an electric one.

[@malkeynz]

Can confirm.

[@Braddie]

yep!!!!!!! we do say Boil the jug

[@chrisharkin3741]

Many older Australians also say "boil the jug." I think it is more related to age than a difference between AU and NZ. It is because up to the 1980s we could buy a ceramic "electric jug" that did the same job as a kettle, with a different type of element. I still have one...

[@il-dottore]

«…but in different expressions and contexts» amogus

[@enteryournamehere1]

Suspicious!

[@PainterVierax]

sus in the Cockpit

[@epic8923]

When the kiwi is sus! _😳_

[@Lampyboi]

Sus!

[@sauceru99]

It keeps following me around Imma die

[@lmnobcrew5735]

We often make up idioms/sayings as we go and reuse them when they've worked out well. For example, my grandfather says "good as a box of fluffy ducks", which is a play on the box of birds but for more humourous and sarcastic effect

[@seansh2241]

Damn, no mention of the word 'Chur' haha, good video man!

[@dreamingthelife]

yeh I was wtf no Chur?? noteven near the start of the comments either

[@bim_zo]

most people I know don't say Swanndri when going out to the bush, instead they say "bring your swanny" or as a compliment "nice swanny bro".

[@ThomasA101]

Tautoko on shortening Swanndri though I feel like we'd probably spell it "swannie" instead of "swanny"? Not that you'd ever write it down I imagine apart from as part of a linguistic discussion!

[@JayBowen]

@@ThomasA101 Actually, I think the 'ie' is more American English and the 'y' more NZ or British English. Search 'auntie vs aunty'. I think it's because us New Zealanders are subconsciously becoming more Americanised without realising it.

[@HowievYT]

​@@JayBowen you are right Jayden. I'm in my 50's, and my god-kids around 16 - 20. They all have a little American English twang. Television here moved away from UK shows to more US shows, accelerating the change through the 1990's. Millenials have grown up with US accents in almost all their entertainment.

[@paullyons7621]

@@HowievYT It may very well be true that aspects of American pronunciation do creep into the speech habits of Kiwi kids, but (I think) the Kiwi accent is becoming more distinctive over time. Listen to recordings of New Zealanders from a few decades ago. They sounded much more "English" than today's Kiwi speakers; the general trend is not towards American pronunciations, but towards something unique. It's a commonplace that kids learn their speech patterns from other kids, not their parents or their teachers (or TV), and if someone undertook a longitudinal study, I wouldn't be surprised if it found that American pronunciations were present on the speech of (say) four-to-ten-year-olds, but got ironed out during the teenage years. Ph.D. thesis, anyone? Or has it been done?

[@edstraker8451]

As a Kiwi who lived in Java for some time, I was delighted to find quite a few similarities between Indonesian, Javanese and the Maori language. Btw, you didn't mention the word 'Chur', meaning very good. Thanks for this vid.

[@Ricky-nq7lu]

Respect bro for spending the time on learning our way of speaking.

[@stellador]

Thank you so much, Paul! Your videos will never, never not be interesting. I can only imagine how much hard work, research and time goes into them. Thanks again and please, keep them coming!

[@Langfocus]

Thank you, stellador. It’s quite frustrating when certain viewers don’t recognize the work that goes into my videos and ask “Why don’t you make more videos? Pewdiepie makes videos everyday!”

[@markspeer3571]

As a Kiwi living in Japan who teaches English for a living, I sometimes have to write down words or sentences when my students are used to American or British English and may be a little confused by my Kiwi accent. I also try not to use words which they will totally not understand (e.g. pakeha, ka pai, kai, whanau, karakia, tapu etc which are Maori words that we use in Kiwi English). Thanks for the very interesting and accurate video and hopefully heaps of people like it :)

[@aaroncarter8845]

It's actually mad how many maori words that are hard to find workarounds for, like the abrasive "au" to get someones attention

[@NicholasJH96]

Mark as am a Welsh person who speaks British English & Welsh, I know majority of Europe use British English & I know South Korea use American English mainly for English courses. What type of English language do they lean in Japan.

[@markspeer3571]

Hi, mostly American and British English is taught in Japan, which can occasionally be a little confusing to some people due to a few spelling differences, a few minor grammar differences and of the different spoken accents. However that also shows them that English is an international language with different accents instead of simply being a case of one accent being spoken everywhere around the world. It’s an interesting contrast with some foreign languages taught at my university where standard Russian (which I studied) based on the Muscovite accent as taught, where standard French based on a Parisian accent was taught, where standard Japanese based on a Tokyo accent was taught and so on.

[@alukuhito]

@@NicholasJH96 American English (Los Angeles) is used as the standard in public schools in Japan, including American spelling.

[@iainbowie3945]

When I was working my boss was a New Zealander. He once told me about a student who was 'sickened'. I said oh dear, and he replied that she was not ill - but second not first!

[@briankelly5828]

"Ill" is "crook". A chicken is a chook, so a sick chick is a crook chook.

[@rafalg87]

This inconsistency sickens me.

[@deluisterij]

​@@rafalg87 I sickened that

[@sdrtcacgnrjrc]

I don't understand the "but second not first" ?

[@iainbowie3945]

@@sdrtcacgnrjrc because in his accent his word second sounded like sickened to our non NZ ears

[@dolmioSLIDE]

As a kiwi, one term that was missed is "hard out!" meaning to agree with gusto. "Oh hard out, my bro".

[@OneLittleE]

He missed far out too

[@sp1midholm]

Hi Paul, a couple of things ... The Grow-en, flow-en etc pronunciations are also heard in Australia quite often, I think they may be more common in Queensland than Melbourne where I used to live, but you definitely hear them in Oz, Also, the trap/bath split is different in Australia and NZ. An Aussie will 'aanswer' a question, or go to a 'daance', but a Kiwi will 'ahnswer' a question and go to a 'dahnce'.

[@uasj2]

Yes "knowen" (for known) is common in Australia - eg: rural Tasmania. The dance/answer thing is very South Australian.

[@DiscoFang]

The funny part of the video's explanation for this was his very distinct pronunciation of the word "vowel". He didn't seem to notice the reverse of "grown" and "flown" where we remove the vowel for the Kiwi "vowl" ... and trowl, dowl etc.

[@simonkohlhardt6961]

the dance pronunciation is per state, or inheritance, same as plant, castle...I say plaant, but also say carstle, and daance. My folks where Sydney NSW, I grew up in PNG

[@WeRektEconomy]

8:20 There is no escape.

[@gralha_]

AMOGUS

[@michaelhunt2222]

Get out of my head!!!! Get out of my head!!!! Get out of my head!!!! Get out of my head!!!! Get out of my head!!!!

[@flatraul]

they actually use sus unironically amogus amogus amogus

[@0_base1]

I am Canadian and I love New Zealand! I can always tell if someone is a Kiwi! I hope to visit there one day! Much love to you NZ! ❤️ 🇳🇿 🇨🇦

[@nikoramuriwai-ihimaera2518]

and we hope to have you some day

[@_Jitterbug]

My absolute favourite phrase i hear sometimes, is the passive-aggressive version of 'Get back to work', and that is simply: "Oi, LESS HUI, MORE DO-IE!" Hahahaha

[@Franciscoluche]

8:20 “Among us” of course !!! ☺️

[@josephmckee3605]

My fav is "taking the piss" but piss can have multiple meaning making fun of/ not taking seriously, "taking a piss" means urinating or "getting on the piss"means getting drunk, I find most slang can have different meanings depending on contest

[@pensiveboogie]

Non-Australians may say “Taking a shower” or “Taking a piss”. Australians say “Having a shower”, “Having a piss”. “Taking the piss” is to mock someone or to tease them

[@supechube_k]

"fush and chups" feesh and cheeps" I'm deeaaaaaaad 🤣

[@supechube_k]

"I'd like to order some feesh and cheeps" 🤣🤣

[@newton983]

@@supechube_k This is exactly how many Spanish-speakers would sound like! 😅

[@dinoe.t.8079]

@@newton983 we only have 5 vowel sounds, in contrast to the english 15 and they even change between accents making it harder. I try to focus on consonants in hope that it goes unnoticed.

[@newton983]

@@dinoe.t.8079 It rarely goes unnoticed. Spanish is my L1, too, so I know how difficult it is to make a difference between minimal pairs such as "short i" vs "long e" vowel sounds, for instance. Certain consonant sounds are challenging for us, too. Think of both hard and soft "th" sounds, or the classic /ch/ vs /sh/, for example.

[@dinoe.t.8079]

@@newton983 Yeah, German is my L2, so that help with the vowels. I think the problem is, that there are no clear trends like in french or portuguese or slightly different letters like in the nordic languages but just the exact same 5 letters that get shifted around depending on the word.

[@MrFordAddict]

Chocka is usually said with an s after the a in Australia and New Zealand. So it becomes chockas. The expression "the wops/the wop-wops" in Australia is "whoop-whoop" which also means "middle of nowhere" or somewhere that's far away.

[@melb5467]

I’ve only heard it said chocka. No “s”.

[@janeteholmes]

The NZ “wops” has a cognate in Australian English, “woop-woop “ “That town is somewhere up woop-woop.” Meaning it’s miles away in the middle of nowhere. I have never heard anyone use “a box of birds” in any context. It can’t be more than vanishingly rare in Australia.

[@Barnnz]

Box of fluffy ducks is more commonly used here in NZ

[@jeremyelliot4831]

Q. "How ya feeling?" A. "box o' birds, mate"

[@janeteholmes]

@@jeremyelliot4831 you’re Australian and people use this where you are?

[@uasj2]

Yes, this Aussie has never heard "box of birds" either.

[@JayBowen]

I'm a Kiwi and have never heard of 'feel a box of birds', 'captain cooker' or 'howly bag'.

[@Je.rone_]

Paul, the best language channel on KZbin😀

[@coconatsu9079]

ikr

[@mikhailjoshuapahuyo1431]

Fax

[@nongthip]

There is a general belief in much of the USA that "we don't have an accent" which is of course a product of being surrounded by people who speak with a similar "accent" and hearing more of the same on American TV shows and movies. Sorry USA but all of you speak with some degree of "accent" as neutral a it may seem to your ears. But this lack of awareness can also be found in far away downunder New Zealand where I (a US citizen) lived for several years. Most memorable was chatting with one of my Kiwi mates (friends) when I tried to describe my perception of the Kiwi accent, to which she oh so wonderfully replied, *"Oye doint hev en excint!"* All I can say is Ha Ha Ha the Kiwi accent is one of the most distinctive and also most difficult to imitate of any of the "English" speaking countries. Sweet as coussie bro! ;-)

[@doodleblockwell2610]

Agreed, I doubt I could ever get the hang of their vowels. It is not as hard to understand as a Scottish accent, but it is close. Those of us growing up in English speaking North America just can't shake the feeling that we are the only ones pronouncing English with a normal accent. Arrogant I know, but I can still think it safely enough.

[@Jay-we2ek]

Neve heard anyone in my whole life say "Americans don't have an accent". Not by any person I've ever known, or ever on TV or social media. Never heard it before.

[@jorugarushia9167]

Said no American ever. We are fully aware of the different English accents we have in our country.

[@BailinginBC]

I like to tell people that I don't have an accent - they just listen funny.

[@TillyOrifice]

@@Jay-we2ek Maybe not but, "you have an accent" isn't uncommon.

[@19562008ful]

Hey! I’m from Québec city, let me tell you this, you’re doing a damn good job 👏🏼 as far as I’m concerned. 👍🏼 keep up the interesting work.

[@tsnowsill]

Heaps good video bru. Just one thing, I think Queenie refers to "Queenstown" (NZ) rather than "Queensland" (AUS)

[@c0ronariu5]

And Auckland has a C in it.

[@TheMatadrum]

@@c0ronariu5 Jaffatown has lots of C's in it.

[@roydavidson6161]

And that marmite would only be found in a British food store. Vegemite is heaps better though eh cuz

[@AshleyMooreAMS]

I was surprised that Kiwis had a special name for Queensland!

[@gwabell]

@@AshleyMooreAMS as someone from Queensland I first thought it was odd that they'd use it for Queensland rather than Queenstown, but then I thought it makes sense because there are probably more kiwis living on the Gold Coast than in Queenstown.

[@joshuahillerup4290]

The use of sus there is now entering slang in the US and Canada

[@Jay-we2ek]

Not surprising, its just a shortened word. It's not a NZ thing, at all. It's just as common, if not more, in England.

[@darkcaste]

@@Jay-we2ek I remember "sus" in NZ from 30 years ago, so it's a moot point if it's in England now. What I think we can agree on is that the UK, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand all have this tendency to shorten words (except when Aussies make them longer), so if it originated in any single country, it wasn't America, lol

[@universal_hyssoap]

in washington state, I heard people saying sus since i was in elementary school

[@darkcaste]

@@universal_hyssoap are we supposed to guess how old you are?

[@TDMFAN]

@@Jay-we2ek in England it was used to refer to a specific law. In NZ it means 'suspect/suspicious' as well as 'sort' (i.e. can you sus us out a ride.?). Never heard of it being used in the second context anywhere else in the world... and if it has, I guarantee it was picked up from us in recent decades.

[@studiosnch]

"Mana" is a familiar word in Filipino as well. We understand it more as "heritage" or "inheritance" though, but the Polynesian belief of the mana as "spiritual" is also understood in our context. Also while you're at it, try searching for this ad of a Kiwi promoting a wooden deck that sounded like "woodin dick".

[@gsf67]

As a Kiwi, I would say that the Aussies make a big deal over the way we pronounce the word "deck". We will say things like, "mate, come over to my place for drinks, and I'll take you into the back yard and show you my huge deck".

[@francissquire9910]

Beware of a Kiwi who asks if you want to see his duck!

[@gsf67]

@@francissquire9910 actually my deck is not that big, but I trim the bush around the outside to make it look bigger.

[@markjosephbacho5652]

Both also has unaspirated T and unvoiced Z as noted here 5:30

[@silverstreettalks343]

It's all in those short vowels. I studied with a chap for three years and didn't know he was a Kiwi until one day, speaking quickly, he said, "thes" for "this". Otherwise he'd managed to almost completely obscure the accent.

[@Tebbypantgungun]

I use "box of fluffies" quite often, an older gentleman now passed used to say 'beaut, and box of birds' a lot. Never have I heard of Queenie or Aucks or howlie bag! But I do love saying 'spare the effort and that is munted!'

[@derekmills5394]

Can confirm that I live in the cultural melting pot that is 'Sarf Aucks' cuz

[@barryscott6222]

I first ran into one of your video's several years ago. You were explaining some features of the Phillipines and Tagalog. Great to see that you are still making excellent videos. Very interesting and informative.

[@Langfocus]

Thanks! Yes, I’ve got a couple hundred videos by now, I guess. If you check my channel page you can browse the topics I’ve covered. 👍🏻

[@djweebo]

"Hey there's a kunekune over there!" The Māori guy: :D The Japanese guy: 😟🙅‍♂️🏃

[@lionheart1234]

Huh?

[@FindecanorNotGmail]

"Wriggling" ... as in _snake_ ?

[@aolanikunisan]

There’s an urban monster known as kunekune in Japan which causes mental damage.

[@lionheart1234]

@@aolanikunisan oh shit. Ty for the info.

[@SaxandRelax]

Wavy

[@claretravels783]

I've always liked the Kiwi accent without being able to put my finger on why - but I think that rising intonation at the end of a sentence might be something to with it. It just sounds very endearing!

[@j-day]

As a kiwi, this is pretty accurate. Best analysis I think I have seen of New Zealand English.

[@selwyngamble4585]

This is new due to Covid-19 but with the popularisation of Zoom a hui on zoom has now been dubbed a zui

[@Langfocus]

That’s cool! 😀

[@kirstinerapson8630]

I did not know that. Thank you. It shall be my new term for my work meetings. Love it. cheers

[@Muminekae]

One of many things I loved about Dunedin, Otago is the use of 'wee' as in to describe something small, this presumably comes from the Scottish background of the city.

[@olivius8891]

8:25 GET OUT OF MY HEAD

[@BallisticCoefficient]

What a great video. As a South African who has emigrated to New Zealand, 3 years ago, I can give some examples of different pronunciations, and yes, South Islanders have a much more pronounced Kiwi accent. I have been fortunate enough to travel the entire country twice already and stop in virtually every city. Being interested as I am in languages as a hobby, i have made some observations to try to explain how things sound to a south African, whose native English is closer to RP than Kiwi or Aussie. The 'High Rising Terminal' way of addressing people caught me out, is when a Maori woman was serving me at a fast food place. I had just arrived at the drive through of a take away restaurant, and the server said, " Hello, you mister speaker?" to which I replied, no and am not, and gave my name. She rolled her eyes, and insisted saying, " No, you mister Speaker?" and again I said, no, I'm Paul. She then leant out of the window, and pointed to the speaker box where you are supposed to stop and place your order and said. " No, You missed a speaker!". Turns out it was a statement, even though it sounded very much like a question. It was so funny, but she was not amused. In addition to that, the Kiwis, who are awesome people, have some crazy pronunciations. I was in a conversation early on and someone mentioned the Mare of Auckland. I thought that's neat, they have a mascot or something. And then they said that the Mare said etc. I was a new arrival and didn't want to be rude and only after a while did I realize that they meant the Mayor. I was in an interview and both the interviewers spoke to me about wetbacks in the context of a wetback strategy. after several uses of this word, I had to stop them for clarification. Turns out they meant Weetbix. I don't know how Weetbix became wetbacks but apparently its a thing. I also worked with a woman from Christchurch who was showing me the damage from the Earthquakes there , and she said , this place used to be a kappick. ( Carpark) and our best customer was wedliver ( We Deliver), so there is alot of contraction of words. They say Kah, for car, fah for fire, and kahnel for carnal. They love to use the Beer example when distinguishing Aussie English and say, the Aussies say Bear and we say bear. I honestly cannot hear the difference. When you thank someone, they will often say, " Youre Ok" or if you do something for them, they say, " You'll do". Anyway, love the content.

[@gabrielking1247]

Gday Paul I’m from Southland, a common phrase people ask me to say as a way to judge my accent is “purple work shirt” and to other kiwis it can often sound like “brrrr brrr brrrrr” 🤣 “Good as gold” is often paired with “right as rain”, probably the most common maori loan word is whanau (family) and I’d say people from canterbury have quite a drawl to their speech

[@adlamis]

Thirty dirty purple work shirts - you can sing it to the tune of "Glory, glory, hallelujah." (I live in Otago, but not South Otago, where they talk like Southlanders.)

[@daniellefoulkes7621]

Wrong brand of Marmite bro, that's a pommie variety. Chur.

[@NicolaiParsons]

Also, usually Vegemite >>> Marmite in both NZ and Australia.

[@daniellefoulkes7621]

@@NicolaiParsons um no, marmite 4 lyf.

[@toasterbot9597]

@@NicolaiParsons Agreed. Marmite is so weirdly sweet, vegemite is where it's at

[@Jadak1Kadaj]

@@toasterbot9597 Marmite is easily the superior product though! Vegemite is too bland.

[@pbaylis1]

I prefer Vegemite, although I don't want to credit Aussies for anything good.

[@johnwelshmusic]

As a Canadian I think telling a Kiwi from an Aussie accent is like a Brit, Kiwi or Aussie trying to hear difference between an American and a Canadian...to an untrained listener they may sound the same initially .

[@RenegadeRanga]

I'm an Aussie and the most telling feature in the Canadian accent is how the ou is really carried and sounds close to w. Then straight away I can tell they're Canadian.

[@raymondlugo9960]

Such as with "about" and the a sound in "pasta."

[@swansbear]

100% this. When I lived in North America for a year even i started to struggle with the differences between states & between Aussies & Kiwis. Both Kiwis & Canadians hate having to explain where they are from, the poor dears!

[@johnwelshmusic]

It’s also a bit like Australia or NZ in that particularly in rural areas you can have really broad accents. in parts of Canada where the out and about is outrageously obvious and even sounds funny to us urban Canadians. I never get offended when I’m travelling and people ask me if I’m American since if I had a dollar for every time I’ve mixed up Kiwis and Aussies while backpacking I’d be rich 😆

[@abandonedfragmentofhope5415]

When Canucks say borrow or sorry is usually the give away for me.

[@TeReaper]

My ethnicity is NZ European which is Incredibly accurate. Im part German, french, english, Scottish and Irish. But I am a 5th generational new Zealander. Box of birds, box of fluffy ducks and box's of fluffys is another set of idioms.

[@ellenmay88]

We’re South Islanders where I’ve grown up with “tea” generally meaning the meal at the end of the day (unless you’re going out for “dinner”!) and the word “wee” means little. Our daughter is living in Auckland and was told that tea is what you drink and you eat “dinner” and “wee” doesn’t really exist up there - maybe different in other parts of the North Island, I don’t know. I presume “wee” came from the Scottish settlers down south. We also assumed every kiwi knew what a cheese roll was but apparently that’s a South Island thing as well!

[@reneebroski]

im from auckland and we defintely use tea for dinner, and wee meaning little lmao. never heard of a cheese roll before tho, sounds so nice aye

[@ellenmay88]

@@reneebroski that's good to hear - and cheese rolls are lovely with soup (easy to make)! 😊

[@neville132bbk]

Explaining this so many times to Ch. homestay daughters and friends on line...."tea" as a meal always == at the end of the day, the evening meal-- so, "teatime". "Dinner" can be in the middle of the day, usually on Sunday, in my experience. Some words tend to be regional to a degree viz "humps" in New Plymouth and "judder bars" in Ch'church. The N American "dumpster" I have always called "skips"..which apparently is a North Country coal mining word. Other words tend be used more Maori-descended speakers, and so regional. NZ idioms...well......how long have you got. Just never call me "pakeha".

[@calebmcclure6193]

I hadn't heard of a cheese roll till I moved down south, and I can honestly say that they are kinda rank

[@alexp2859]

"Tea" as the word for an evening meal is of UK/English origin, and it's originally a working class term.

[@deluisterij]

Thank you so much for your meticulous work. Communication amends so many minunderstandings. And your videos are providing the framework for interlinguistic exchange and in doing so broadening understanding so much it blows my mind. Even though I might never get to speak with a Kiwi, I feel that through knowing something about how to frame their language, I've already gotten way closer. And I was going to impress everybody with a fitting Kiwi phrase here, to round off my argument, but bugger that.

[@eozfalloon1998]

chur

[@crasharchive7707]

Ever since I heard it a little while back I’ve been kinda interested in this dialect. I remember hearing Australian and right after hearing New Zealand English and noticed there were differences but couldn’t touch on what exactly was different. Now I know, thanks for the video

[@d.robertdigman1293]

"Knackered" is one of my favourites (we use it in Australia too). I have long wondered whether there is a link between our slang word and "knackery" being a "place to slaughter animals, particularly horses." In other words, does "I feel knackered" really mean "I feel like a slaughtered horse"?

[@simonkohlhardt6961]

knackered can also mean you had your balls cut off, but its knackery I think, the horse got knackered, buggered is a word I try to avoid, if someone says it to me I nearly always ask , "metaphorically speaking?"

[@d.robertdigman1293]

@@simonkohlhardt6961 Yeah, 'buggered' is certainly a word that can bugger off!

[@LukeDixon-xk8lu]

This is where it comes from. A horse which was too no longer fit to work / was exhausted / injured etc was sent to the knacker yard.

[@csolisr]

I'm recovering from a case of the Amogus and bam, 8:20

[@gf-iw1zw]

lmao im dead

[@samgyeopsal569]

They say Glasgow is home to a great many specky bams

[@Nugcon]

we pray for you buddy. we can get through this

[@jumpvelocity3953]

GET OUT OF MY HEAD GET OUT OF MY HEAD

[@ChineseKiwi]

The Maori word 'whanau' (pronounced fa-now), meaning 'family', is much more commonly used as a Maori loan word in NZ English than others listed. The slang saying 'feed the whanau' is often used if say, you want some of what your friend is having to eat!

[@rosecoppelmans4624]

Also ‘kai’ !! I think people actually say it more than ‘food’ haha

[@marcthompson536]

Fa-now is not really correct. Fa-no is more accurate as nau is more pronounced as no than now.

[@tylenchambers5018]

Faa-no

[@BailinginBC]

@@rosecoppelmans4624 Used to love the Kai Cart in front of the Wellington Railway Station.

[@kirstinerapson8630]

Ask any kiwi what this means and they'll all know, "Cuz, I've got the whanau coming to my whare for a kai this weekend. Stink. I wanted to go out on the waka with the bro's, but now I'm stuck with the missus helping with the mahi."

[@DanielCube468]

Kiwi here: the slang term/variations of "chur" and "che badda/s" which basically mean cheers, and cheers brother/s respectively and are used as a greeting or a farewell.

[@jellybean1962]

😂🤣😂

[@alisonhinode7909]

“Choice” is also used in Australia - or at least it was during the 80s. Of course it could have been borrowed from NZ.