Whanau
Family — including the extended, chosen, everyone-who-matters kind.
"Bringing the whole whanau to the barbecue."
The dictionary · best-rated first · page 22 of 22
Whanau time
Family time - now used well beyond Maori contexts for any family gathering.
"Weekend's for whanau time."
Whare
A house or building, from te reo. Used casually for home too.
"Come round to the whare later."
Wharenui
The big meeting house on a marae - the heart of the community gathering.
"We slept in the wharenui after the tangi."
What a sad guy
Commentary on someone doing something uncool or mean-spirited.
"He dobbed us in to the boss. What a sad guy."
Whenua
Land, and also 'placenta' - reflecting the deep tie between people and earth in Maori worldview.
"This whenua's been in the family forever."
Whip
A car, especially a flash one. 'Nice whip.'
"Check out his new whip."
Whitebait
Tiny translucent fish, netted in spring and fried into fritters. A pricey seasonal obsession.
"Whitebait fritters for tea - spoiling ourselves."
WINZ
Work and Income NZ - the government benefits agency, and the queue you dread.
"Spent all morning at WINZ."
Wobbly boot
The state of being drunk - 'on the wobbly boot'. Old-school and gentle.
"He'd had the wobbly boot on by six."
Wop-wops
Already known - but worth the deep-country reminder: the absolute middle of nowhere.
"They've moved out to the wop-wops."
Wouldn't feed him after midnight
A joke that someone's a gremlin/troublemaker. Gentle dig.
"He's a menace - wouldn't feed him after midnight."
Wound up like an eight-day clock
Extremely tense or agitated. Vintage rural simile.
"He's wound up like an eight-day clock over it."
Yarn
A chat, a story, or to talk at length. 'Good yarn' or 'spin a yarn'.
"Had a good yarn with the neighbour."
Yeah nah
A polite no, a soft disagreement, or a verbal run-up while you think. The order matters: yeah nah leans no; nah yeah leans yes.
"Staying for tea?" "Yeah nah, gotta shoot off."
Yeah nah yeah
Layered NZ ambivalence resolving to yes - the more 'yeahs' at the end, the more it means yes.
"You keen?" "Yeah nah yeah, go on."
Yeah the boys
A rallying cry of approval and camaraderie, celebrating mates doing something worthy (or laddish). Ironic or sincere.
"He sank the whole jug!" "Yeah the boys!"