Question for the Aussie members
What does the phrase "And Bobs your uncle" mean? How did that one come about? Thanks.
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"bobs your uncle"..??? dont know how it came about, but it basically means ...no worries...she`ll be right...ok...an example...you have a car that is broken down...i`m a mechanic...i fix your car, you say thank you i then say, no worries, bobs your uncle!she`s done! [:D]hard to explain aussie sayings to americans...they never ever seem to really understand...but it works for us..WE all know what we are saying...hope that explains it a bit anyway.[;)] 0 -
Had an Aussie say "you're a legend, mate" and I took that as a great compliment. 0 -
180..yep..it sure is..theres heaps of aussie specific sayings...its different for us with american sayings...we hear them every day on tv, but 2 australians talking to each other would make the average american think they were hearing something other than english!, bewdy nuke![:D] 0 -
Thanks! Interesting sayings you have. Hopefully I can get to Australia and hear some in person someday. 0 -
Dan, when I was there many years ago, one of the guys I was with wanted to go looking for "Shelias" I got on to that one pretty fast. Tom
PS Them dam Shelias around Cougie Beach(sp) are just too hot for words. Them Aussie lassys are all 10's in my book.
pps, saw my first real platappus there. They're cute too. T0 -
Aha!
I googled up "bob's your uncle."
They didn't know the origin of this expression. I mean if google doesn't know then who does?0 -
www.aussieslang.com
www.koalanet.com.au/australian-slang.html
Google blows, use www.dogpile.com
Meaning
Used to describe the means of obtaining a successful result. For example, 'left over right; right over left, and bob's your uncle - a reef knot'.
Origin
Eric Partridge lists it in his Dictionary of Slang and Unconventional English , 1937. He gives it the meaning 'all will be well', which is not quite how it is used now. Partridge states it as dating from circa 1890, although he presents no evidence for that. Also he suggests that it may be derived from the phrase 'all is bob', which meant 'all is well'.
Another interpretation is that it derives from the supposed nepotism of Lord Salisbury. Piers Brendon, in Eminent Edwardians, 1979, writes:
"... in 1887, Balfour was unexpectedly promoted to the vital front line post of Chief Secretary for Ireland by his uncle Robert, Lord Salisbury."
Various authors have surmised that having an uncle Bob who was Prime Minister became synonymous with having a passport to an easy life.
http://www.phrases.org.uk/meanings/70100.html0 -
Actually it is an English saying.Bobs your uncle and fannies your aunt is the full term.Means everything is OK. 0 -
Several Aussies around my area. Very nice people. I've had contact with one in particular when I was working, name of Iwasi. Great guy, and I loved to talk to him. He had a Jaguar. Pronounced "Jag'-you-are." Somewhere in Australia there is a missing Kangaroo crossing sign, because it's hanging on his mailbox post. 0 -
I've met up with several Aussies in my Navy years.
Seriously bat-crap crazy individuals.
And nearly invincible as a group.
They're the only group of guys I thought could "out-redneck" a redneck. They fight for fun and drink for real, and if I ever needed anyone in my corner, I' pick (in this order) a U.S. Marine or an Aussie sailor.
This is based on my own experience...your mileage may vary.0 -
The craziest Aussie I ever knew was in Hue 1968 tet. Sat ontop of the comand bunker for 3 days drinking scotch and singing. He would stop to call incomming mortors and rockets. Real nice bartone. 0 -
Another interpretation is that it derives from the supposed nepotism of Lord Salisbury. Piers Brendon, in Eminent Edwardians, 1979, writes:
"... in 1887, Balfour was unexpectedly promoted to the vital front line post of Chief Secretary for Ireland by his uncle Robert, Lord Salisbury."
Various authors have surmised that having an uncle Bob who was Prime Minister became synonymous with having a passport to an easy life.
This etymology was on google.
But, they went on to say that the use of this expression had been documented prior to 1887, which meant the Lord Balfour explanation was invalid.0
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