Not here to muck around
Serious, focused, down to business. Often ironic before doing exactly that.
"Right, not here to muck around - let's go."
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Nuggets
An exclamation of mild frustration - 'oh nuggets'. Kid-safe swearing.
"Oh nuggets, forgot my lunch."
Number 8 wire
The DIY, fix-anything-with-what's-lying-around mentality. From the fencing wire that fixed everything on NZ farms.
"Classic number 8 wire solution — held with cable ties and hope."
O for awesome
A legendarily wrong answer from a NZ celebrity spelling segment, now used to celebrate confident wrongness.
"He said the capital of Australia is Sydney. O for awesome."
On the marae
At the communal Maori grounds - and, figuratively, in a space of protocol and respect.
"Learned it on the marae as a kid."
On the piss
Out drinking, having a big night.
"The boys are on the piss tonight."
On the piss again
Back out drinking - said of a mate with a pattern. Half judgment, half admiration.
"He's on the piss again, surprise surprise."
Oosh
An exclamation for something impressive or a big hit — 'oooosh!'
"Oosh! Did you see that tackle?"
Op shop
Opportunity shop — a second-hand/charity store. Op-shopping is a national sport.
"Scored this jacket at the op shop for $5."
Op-shopping
Second-hand charity-shop browsing - a national thrifty pastime.
"Spent Saturday op-shopping in Grey Lynn."
Out of it
Wildly drunk or wasted; also, in older usage, something unbelievable.
"He was out of it after two beers."
Ow
An exclamation stapled to the end of a sentence for emphasis, often with 'not even'. Pronounced like 'oh' with attitude.
"Not even ow!"
Pack a sad
To sulk or throw a tantrum; also used when machinery gives up.
"He packed a sad when we changed the plan."
Pakaru
Maori for broken or busted. Often anglicised as 'puckeroo'.
"The fence is pakaru again."
Pakeha
A New Zealander of European descent - the standard, neutral te reo term.
"A Pakeha take on it, for what it's worth."
Palangi
Samoan word for a European/white person, common across NZ. Usually friendly and descriptive.
"He runs fast for a palangi!"
Palmy
Palmerston North. Said with affection or a smirk, depending.
"Uni took me to Palmy for three years."
Pash
To kiss passionately. A 'pash' at the school disco is a rite of passage.
"They had a pash on the dance floor."
Paua
Abalone - the iridescent-shelled shellfish. The meat's a delicacy, the shell's in every NZ souvenir shop.
"Got a feed of paua off the rocks."
Piece of piss
Extremely easy. NZ's answer to 'piece of cake', with less cake.
"The test was a piece of piss."