Australian Slang For Dinner (Explained!)

Meals are impossible to escape from.

Most of us eat at least three every day, so linguistically, it’s really important to delineate those and break them down into categories so we are all on the same page about when and what we’re eating.

The evening meal is often the most significant of the day—but what is the Australian slang term for dinner?

Australian slang for dinner is tea. This is by far the most common slang way to refer to dinner, and virtually any Australian will know what you mean when you say tea. That said, there are a number of other slang terms which might be applied to dinner, such as blowout, chow, nosh-up, or repast.

So, while there are other slang terms which can refer to dinner, the only one which exclusively refers to any evening meal, rather than a broader social event, is tea.

Nonetheless, all of these terms have their interesting history.

Let’s find out more.

In This Article

What do Australians call dinner?

Australians call dinner tea, although it’s worth mentioning right away that Australians do of course use the word dinner, too.

That is more of a formal word, although again, in many settings it would be perfectly natural to use dinner and tea interchangeably.

They certainly mean the same meal—that is, the evening meal.

Tea is certainly considered an informal term, though.

Let’s take a couple of different contexts as examples.

In a home setting, one person might simply ask another “What’s for tea?” if it is just an ordinary night and there is no special occasion.

On the other hand, let’s say you were taking your boss out for a professional work meal—“I’m going out for dinner with the boss” would be a more appropriate way of framing this.

So, it’s largely a question of formality, and most Australians use the two terms as the context calls for.

Both mean the same thing in different circumstances. It’s an evening meal, one way or another.

The only other term is supper, though this is more archaic at this point and is not widely used by anyone.

That said, there are a few other potential ways you might hear dinner referred to by an Australian.

As I said, you might hear blowout or perhaps repast as the most common outside of tea.

Blowout, however, means a very large social meal involving lots of people.

This is most often going to be the evening meal, but it doesn’t always have to be.

Repast, similarly, really refers to any meal, though it can commonly refer to dinner.

So, outside of tea, there really are no exclusive terms referring to the evening meal—any of these including chow or nosh-up really just means any meal in the day.

So, where does the term tea come from?

Why is dinner called tea in Australia?

Firstly, in many areas of Australia as well as in large parts of the UK, “dinner” actually colloquially refers to the midday meal.

Dinner is considered a more formal and posh term for the evening meal, but interestingly, the term “tea” has its origins in much more high-class circumstances.

In the 19^th Century, the upper classes would call their midday meal lunch or luncheon, and they would have various teas during the rest of the day—elevenses, afternoon tea, high tea, and so on.

This began as British phenomena but certainly spread throughout the world.

Eventually, in Australia, tea came to mean a hearty meal in the evening, even though it would be rather a long time before afternoon tea really fell out of fashion.

So, it’s simply a muddling of terms.

There are multiple terms for any given meal, and different words were preferred for the same meal depending on your location.

But “tea” as an evening meal has its origins in the afternoon tea of the upper classes.

Why do Australians say blowout?

I mentioned blowout, and this is an interesting one to consider.

Typically, blowout will refer to the evening meal, but not the evening meal under usual circumstances.

Say there is a big event in the family, such as a milestone birthday party.

Everyone from the extended family gets together for a huge meal, whether in a restaurant or at home.

This would be a blowout.

“Blowout” is in many parts of the world a term for any large event and originates in a vernacular term referring to the pressure from a steam engine blowing out.

Why do Australians say chow?

Originally, “chow” was an Americanism that was probably derived from the Chinese cha, which became “chow-chow” in pidgin English, and ultimately chow to mean virtually any large meal.

That came to take on the same meaning in Australia, whether through Chinese migrants or through the adoption of American terms from Hollywood movies.

Why do Australians say repast?

Repast is a much older term, and again not really in hugely widespread use.

Nonetheless, it is in many ways a uniquely Australian term. It originates as far back as Middle English and is based on the Latin term pascere, which means to feed.

Again, it likely spread to Australia during the 19^th and 20^th centuries, and is still used in some contexts today. But it really is just any meal, rather than dinner specifically.

So, while there are a few terms for large meals in Australia, the only pure slang term for dinner or an evening meal is tea.

From the youngest child to the eldest members of Australian society, tea is the most widely used term for dinner—and has been for a very long time.

But there are still other ways to refer to dinner, it’s just that they are either slowly becoming outdated or simply mean something far more specific than just dinner.

More in Australian Slang

Founder - @PollyWebster

Polly Webster is the founder of Foreign Lingo and a seasoned traveler with a decade of exploration under her belt.

Over the past 10 years, she has journeyed to numerous countries around the globe, immersing herself in diverse cultures, traditions, and languages.

Drawing from her rich experiences, Polly now writes insightful articles about travel, languages, traditions, and cultures, sharing her unique perspectives and invaluable tips with her readers.

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