As early as the 20^th and 21^st centuries the usage of digger slang came into effect. This is how our defense force commanders communicated. We also call it Anzac or Australian slang. Would you want to know what they are? Then follow this post to understand how they have grouped and understood meaning for each slang.

We have categorized the slangs in few types as mentioned below. It will help you to grasp them as we have listed them under each category like slangs used to name the military equipment, their devices, the common communication between the commanders and their subordinate etc. Few do not have any unique context and hence we have listed them under miscellaneous. Look for the words you require and become familiar with how our defense people communicate with each other.

Australian Slang About Military

Military Equipment

All the equipment used in the Australian defense is mentioned below. For instance, a helicopter is, in general, referred to as Helo. However, a heavy-lift helicopter is called as an angry chook. Likewise, we have different slangs for the same types of equipment as well. Quite interesting right? Read in detail to learn more.

1. Pig        – F-111 aircraft.
2. Jellybean dispenser      – sub-machine gun F1
3. Helo      – helicopter
4. Elephant gun   – a rifle that is self-loading type
5. Clacker – Firing device hand-held
6. Cent    – Armoured vehicle used for fighting (Centurion)
7. Black plastic fantastic – It is the slang used to refer M16. During the times when both common service rifles namely SLR and M16 were in use
8. Bird Gunner    – Surface-Air Missiles
9. Bang Stick – Rifle
10. Bang Sea – Ejection seat
11. AusCam –        It is a piece of military equipment used as a standard mask. AUStralian CAMouflage’ in short is called as AusCam.
12. APC – Standard is the Armoured Personnel Carrier. More colloquially it is also used to refer bathing done to clean armpits with limited water resource
13. Angry Chook  –  A Chinook which is used in the army called a heavy-lift helicopter

Soldiers personal activity and things they use

Under this division, we have spoken about the general activity which a defense person does during their stay. It may include their eating habits, the things they use for cooking or terms they use to go to sleep and much more. They speak a secret language as they are used to do so and we are proud that they protect our nation.

1. Back-ups         – At the time of having meals the few seconds time taken is referred to as back-ups.
2. Banjo  – It is a breakfast made of bacon and egg provided in tin foil rolls to the people in the army who takes care of the country staying in the range
3. Bird Bath – Taking bath not with water but with a baby wipe or other similar clothes. For example, they use Bog or date roll which is nothing but toilet tissue
4. Bush Hat – soldiers wearing a floppy hat during training
5. Dixie-bashing – to washing
6. Eating irons     – Cutlery
7. Sleeping bag – going to bed
8. Farter bed – going to sleep
9. Scran-bag        – the bag that contains clothes and it is lost
10. Skippy Badge Hat
11. Slouchie / Slouch Hat – soldiers wearing a brown coloured fur-felt hat

Military instructions

Commands issued by the higher officials to their subordinates in the ground. This also includes the words used by senior officials to scold their reporters for non performance or disobedience  

1. Brass up – Fire at something many times
2. Bug out – leave the area
3. Face ripping    – one-way talk between a soldier and his subordinate
4. Harden Up      – Commanding a person to do the job without cribbing to make them stop complaining
5. Pineapple        – odious task delivered by a sergeant
6. ROP    -Restriction of Privileges. A person who is guilty of a military offense is given this punishment.
7. Tea and Sticky Buns   – senior commander talks one-way providing feedback of the team member reminding the shortcomings

Devices and items used in the army

Apart from the equipment used in the defense, the devices like goggles, surface vessels etc are separately explained in the section below.

1. Battle Tranny  – Radio stations are accessed using this device
2. Hoochie – plastic sheets used for making a shelter
3. Mog     – medium transport truck
4. NVG    – goggles used for getting night vision
5. Pam     – doctrine manual
6. Seventy-Seven Set      – AN/PRC-77 manpack radio
7. Target – Naval surface vessel
8. Yowie suit – garments that are heavily camouflaged and snipers wore
9. Zoom bag –     Flying suit.
10. F.R.E.D           – device which can be used to open can, bottle and also used as a spoon
11. Fruit salad / Gongs      – Medals
12. Gucci  – expensive kit

General terms mainly related to food and eatables

A mention of the food items and things related to cooking and eating are explained below. For eg a fruit drink is called as limer and a goffa means soft drink.

1. Canteen Medals – stains of beer or food on the jacket close to the chest area
2. Gomper –  Chocolate bar (gumpy bar)
3. Bohica – Bending Over
4. Dixies  – cooking pans small in size
5. Drabs   – tropical dress used by airforce officials
6. Fatcans or Fat shop     – Canteen
7. Fat pills           – candies, sweets, chocolates or lollypops
8. Limers – fruit drink
9. Hot Box          – a plastic container with cooked vegetables in a small portion
10. Juvie juice       – flavored fruit juice
11. KFS     – Knife Fork Spoon all three built-in as one equipment
12. Maggoty          – meat pie
13. Q-store            – huge building stacked with all things
14. Rat Pack          – 24 hour CRP (combat ration pack)
15. Redders           -Tomato sauce
16. SCRAN           – food that contains Sultanas, Currants, Raisins and Nuts
17. Turps   – drinking alcohol in excess
18. Goffa / Goffer –           Soft drink

People in the army

How do we call the officials in the army?? That is exactly listed below. A jube is an amateur soldier, on the other hand, a tank soldier is gun bunny and, in general, a soldier is called digger. Find more from the list given below.

1. Bean Counter  –  A person who pretends to understand but knows hardly anything
2. Black Hat  – professionals in the armor corp department
3. Bagger – A married member who comes from home and is married. He has home lunch and not eats at the canteen.
4. Boffin  – Technicians who take care of electronic things in the army.
5. Boggy – Also called as bograt, a Pilot Officer
6. Boots   – A person who is out of reach for vision and hardly his boots can be seen
7. Cams   – DPCU – Disruptive Pattern Combat Uniform (DPCU), dress used by army and air force officials during exercise.
8. Chicken Strangler       – soldiers who are capable of living off the land
9. Cockroach       – supply person in the ordnance corps department
10. Craftie – Royal Australian Electrical and Mechanical Engineers (RAEME) private corps
11. Dargon            – Non-Commissioned or warrant officer at a senior level
12. Digger – army soldier
13. Drop shorts/ Gun Bunny – tank soldier
14. Dirt Dart         – army parachuting soldier
15. Emu Bob or Parade     – soldiers forming a line and walk to pick up litter
16. Handbag          – Cops who operate the signals. Also, medical kits are referred to as the handbag.
17. Jube     – amateur soldier
18. Fang Farrier    – dental doctor in the army
19. Koala Bear      – a person fit for nothing is called this way
20. Light / Half Colonel – Lieutenant
21. Lobster            – physical training teacher
22. Mango – Army Reservist
23. Morale Vampire         – goal-oriented officer
24. Numpty           – a person who is fit for nothing
25. Off Cut / Oci dot – officer cadet
26. Oxygen thief   – useless person to the core who is thought of wasting oxygen being alive
27. Packed lunch commando        – army reserve member
28. Retread           – trade changing soldier
29. Reg      – solider
30. Q         – Quartermaster
31. Q-blokes or Q-waller or Quey – a person working in the Q-store.
32. Pusser  – Sailor
33. Quarmbie        – a person with a lack of motor skills
34. Ration Assassin – a person who cooks for the defense personnel
35. Rat-Catcher    – hygienists
36. Rupert – Army Officer
37. Sally Man        – Army Officer.
38. SAS     – short form of Special Air Service
39. Trash haulers /trash –  Transport aircrew
40. Tanker/Tanky – belongs to the armored corps team
41. Tooth Fairy     – a member of army dentists
42. Trucky – Soldiers
43. Turret-head      – armored corp member
44. Two-dads         – a person with a hyphenated surname
45. Fish head          – aircrew in maritime patrolling
46. Fitter and turner          – cook in an army
47. Flight Lewie    – Flight Lieutenant
48. Flogg Off – Flying Officer
49. Grunt(s) – infantry soldier.
50. Gunny/Gunnie Air Force term for an armaments fitter. No relation to the US Marine Corps rank of Gunnery Sergeant.
51. Gun Plumber   Fitter/armourer, usually those attached to artillery units.
52. Ginger Beers- flight engineers
53. Gaz      – a person with great skills

Miscellaneous

The remaining slang used by people in the army are listed below

1. Pig Pen            – Officer’s mess
2. Snake Pit         – Sergeants Mess
3. COMMS – a short form of communication. Talk or discussion related to any topic.
4. EX       – short form of exercise
5. Cloud Puncher – Artillery air defense branch
6. CRP     – Combat Ration Pack
7. Crump in – bad parachute landing
8. Door kicker     – trained SAS professional to gain forcible entry
9. Head Shed        – unit level headquarters
10. House on the back        – soldiers will pack everything in a pack and hold it on their back
11. Hook in – perform a task with vigor
12. KFF      – slouch hat
13. Kip       – nap
14. Nard roll           – Toilet roll
15. O Group           – Order distributing meeting
16. OP        – operation
17. One-ers – preparing coffee for self and not offering to others
18. Redders medal -a stain occurred on one’s uniform of tomato sauce.
19. Red Tabs         -red tabs are worn on the collars of Senior Officers in the Army these red tabs are used to differentiate the official. They are used by Colonel and above.
20. Resup  -in terms of food, water and ammunition resume is used. It means resupply.
21. Rock show      -it is used to describe a plan which has not been planned and managed well.
22. Sad-on – being unhappy
23. Sads     – whining
24. Space Cadet    – Staff Cadet
25. Sparky – Electrician
26. Spook  – Intelligence Officers.
27. Subbie – Lieutenants, Pilot, Flying Officers
28. Snake  – Sergeants
29. Tail-end Charlie          – he is the soldier who protects the rear of a platoon
30. S.W.A.T          Reserves. Abbreviation for Some Weekends And Tuesdays
31. Tailor-made – Mass-produced
32. TIC      – short form of Troops In Contact
33. TOC    – defense canteen service
34. Tubbin – short form of Thumb Up Bum Brain In Neutral
35. Two-way rifle range   – Battlefield
36. Up there Cazaly          – infantrymen battle cry
37. UXO    Unexploded Ordinance. This either has not been fired or failed to detonate or explode when it was fired.
38. Webbing         A system of pouches worn by a soldier as his or her basic belt kit carrying water, ammunition and sometimes food.
39. Wombat gun   – Waste Of Military Budget And Time M79 grenade launcher
40. Free Balling or snaking – going commando means without underwear.
41. Full-track – substituted for rank corporal.
42. Gammas – go to the upper deck and expose to the sunlight
43. Gedunk Machine – dispensing machine for drinks and candy
44. Go fast –  airforce members wearing a baseball cap
45. God Botherer/sky pilots – remotely religious
46. Goffa   – navy salute
47. Gonk     – To sleep