the.com/roo
Australian slang's way of saying kangaroo without wasting the breath.
means An informal, chiefly Australian shortening of 'kangaroo,' used for the animal itself or as a nickname (as in military and sporting contexts).
from Clipped from 'kangaroo,' which English borrowed from a Guugu Yimithirr word (recorded by Captain Cook's crew in the 1770s) for a type of kangaroo. The short form 'roo' emerged much later in Australian English as casual slang, simply trimming the long borrowed word down to its punchy back half.
- origin
- shortened from kangaroo, Aussie habit of clipping words
- usage
- also pops up as a nickname, Winnie the Pooh's joey
- linguistic cousin
- same clipping pattern as arvo and servo