Australian Slang For Sandwich (Helpful Content!)

The most common Australian slang word for sandwich is sanger. This word refers exclusively to sandwiches. You do hear other terms, such as sarnie, used in Australia, to a lesser extent. The slang phrase “cut lunch” typically also refers to a sandwich, though it can just mean any packed lunch.

So, the most prevalent slang word for a sandwich in Australian slang is sanger.

The vast majority of Australians will understand what you mean when you use this term, and most of them will probably use it themselves.

However, there are other options available for what to call them.

Let’s find out more.

In This Article

What do Australians call sandwiches?

Australians call sandwiches “sangers”, most commonly.

This is a term that exclusively refers to sandwiches, and is used in most parts of Australia.

It could be a long sub, it could be a simple sliced bread sandwich—any kind of sandwich could be called a sanger.

Of course, you get into a wider debate about what exactly a “sandwich” is when you ask what else might be called a sanger.

However, a sanger is filling between two pieces of bread or one sliced piece of bread.

This doesn’t include things in the broader, more tenuous definition of sandwich, things like burgers or wraps.

This is what Australians mean when they say sanger—just your typical sandwich.

Whether it’s a foot long sub or a simple ham and cheese sandwich, it’s a sanger.

There are other words that Australians use to refer to sandwiches, though.

Another one you’ll hear in Australia is “sarnie”.

This one is also used in parts of Britain, which is ultimately where it came from and how it spread to Australia.

This one is definitely a great deal less common than sanger.

While an Australian is likely to understand what you mean by sarnie, they are a lot more likely to use the word sanger themselves.

However, sarnie definitely is used in Australia.

Other than that, we have the phrase “cut lunch”. In its broadest meaning, a cut lunch is just a packed lunch; a lunch that you make at home before going out somewhere, to take with you. But for some people, “cut lunch” has a more specific meaning.

When someone says cut lunch, they mean a sandwich—possibly because of the way sandwiches are often cut.

These are the most common slang words in Australia for sandwich, then.

So, where do they all come from?

Why do Australians say sanger?

Australian slang is very fond of simply shortening words and adding colloquial suffixes, such as –er or –y.

There really isn’t a great deal more to the story of the slang word “sanger”.

In Australia, many people pronounce the full word as “sang-wich”.

Sometime in the 1960s, that was eventually shortened to sanger, simply by reducing the word to the first half of its letters and then adding the –er suffix.

So, sanger is not a word with a particularly complex history.

Our earliest written attestations go back to the 1960s, although it may be that it has its origins further back in time than that.

However, it’s certainly a mid-20^th Century invention.

What is a sanger sandwich?

What is a sanger sandwich, then?

It’s useful to clear up this confusion.

For most Australians, when they say a “sanger”, they just mean any sandwich.

What has gotten some people confused is the idea of a “sanger sandwich”, and whether the word “sanga” refers to specific fillings for the sandwich.

The simple answer is that it does not mean this.

A sanger is any sandwich with any filling, like ham and cheese, chicken and mayo, and so on.

Most Australians wouldn’t say a “sanger sandwich”, since this would be rather a redundant turn of phrase.

What about sarnie?

Why do Australians say sarnie?

Sarnie is a good example of the extent of shared slang between Australia and Britain—far greater than the shared slang between Americans and the British.

Sarnie was originally a northern English dialect word meaning sandwich, arrived at by largely the same means as “sanger”.

You take the first syllable of sandwich, and shorten it down.

That’s really all that happened with “sarnie”!

In terms of when and how it spread to Australia, this would have been some time in the 20^th Century.

It’s impossible to say for sure, really, and it may be a bit older than that.

Why do Australians say cut lunch?

The term cut lunch seems to originate from football.

The idea is that a cut lunch is a lunch parcelled up into many small parts.

Footballers would be stuff their lunches into the very small shorts that they get to play in.

Thus their lunch was “cut”.

This eventually came to take on a more specific meaning of “sandwich”, for some people.

This is largely based on the simple fact that sandwiches are very often cut before you eat them.

It’s really that simple!

It’s important to note, though, that most Australians take this word to mean any packed lunch—and not just a sandwich.

So, again, sanger is definitely your best option for a slang term for sandwich in Australia.

This is used throughout the country and is likely to be understood by just about any Australian person.

It’s a catch-all term for any kind of sandwich, but it’s also a lot more specific than terms like “cut lunch” which sometimes refer to sandwiches—but can just mean any packed lunch.

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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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