Stubby
A short squat beer bottle. Also short shorts - 'stubbies'.
"Grab me a stubby, would you."
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Sunnies
Sunglasses. 'Where'd I put my sunnies?'
"Forgot my sunnies, squinting all day."
Sunny Nelson
Nelson, forever branded by its high sunshine hours. Said with civic pride.
"Retiring to Sunny Nelson, living the dream."
Suss
Two opposite jobs in one word: to sort something out (suss it out), or something suspicious (that's suss).
"I'll suss the tickets tonight."
Swannie
A Swanndri - the heavy woollen bush shirt, NZ's rugged rural uniform.
"Chuck your swannie on, it's brass monkeys."
Sweet as
OK, no problem, all good. The most famous Kiwi phrase. Note: nothing comes after the 'as'.
"Pick you up at 7?" "Sweet as."
Sweet as a nut
Perfectly fine, all sorted - an embellished 'sweet as'.
"All fixed, sweet as a nut."
Sweet bro
Agreement with warmth - 'sweet' plus 'bro'. All good, sorted, no worries.
"I'll shout you back next week." "Sweet bro."
Ta
Thanks. Two letters, job done. More common with the older generation.
"Here's your change." "Ta."
Take a hike
Clear off, go away - blunt dismissal. Also, literally, go tramping.
"Told the door-knocker to take a hike."
Taking the piss
Mocking someone, joking around, or not taking something seriously. NOT to be confused with 'taking a piss'.
"$50 for parking? They're taking the piss."
Tangata whenua
'People of the land' - Maori as the indigenous people of a place. Foundational term.
"Acknowledging the tangata whenua first."
Tangi
A Maori funeral, and the extended grieving gathering. From 'tangihanga'.
"Away at a tangi this week."
Taonga
A treasure or prized possession, from te reo - can be an object, a person, or the language itself.
"This carving's a family taonga."
Tauiwi
Non-Maori New Zealanders collectively - those who came later. A te reo term of increasing use.
"Tangata whenua and tauiwi together."
Tea
Confusingly, dinner. 'What's for tea?' is about food, not beverages.
"What's for tea, Mum?"
The ABs
The All Blacks - NZ's national rugby team and de facto religion.
"ABs playing at three, everything stops."
The big OE
The Overseas Experience - the Kiwi rite of passage of working/travelling abroad, usually the UK or Europe.
"Off on my big OE next month."
The Cape
Cape Reinga, the very top of the North Island where two oceans meet. A pilgrimage.
"Drove all the way to the Cape."
The Mainland
The South Island, as South Islanders insist on calling it. Cheeky superiority.
"Come to the Mainland, we've got space."