Crikey I hope it's not dirty. :(
Monday, September 19, 2011
Aussie Speak?
Anyone out there familiar enough with Australian slang to know what "tap the mat" means? Something like "give up" in wrestling? Like you don't know something and need help? Is that it?
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Tsk! 'Walk the Mat' is an Aberdeen expression. I did have a link to the answer but removed it as I no longer required it. I am not sure what it meant but try not to use it in polite company.
ReplyDeleteNot "walk" the mat. Sheesh!
ReplyDeleteHere's the context. It was written by a building contractor about a job.
ReplyDelete"You wouldn't believe it, I got absolutely no visitors apart from family and friends. "Blimey" I asked myself , "what's the point if nobody is looking?"
"So I did a bit of thinking and a bit of reading and I found out that there are literally millions of website out there, and to get found by other people is not easy, to say the least. I had to tap the mat and admit that I needed help."
But tell me about Aberdeen filth too. :)
ReplyDeleteI think I found "walk" the mat. It's just local in Aberdeen, meaning to stroll the downtown area (Union Street.) Like cruising, only without a car. :) I don't think it means anything in any other cities. It's just like taking a walk downtown with your girl. Or friends. Must be an interesting area though, because the website says people from other towns came just to "walk the mat" in Aberdeen. Ah, yes. I suppose you had to be there in 1963. With Randy Mandy. :)
ReplyDeleteIn wrestling, judo, martial arts, you "tap the mat" to submit, I do believe.
ReplyDeleteLike A said, when you give up in wrestling and other sports, you tap (usually bang) the mat to let the ref know to stop the fight. Likewise when you trainer decides that you are losing the fight and need to come out, he or she will "throw the towel in".
ReplyDeleteIt's a phrase I can't recall ever having heard.
ReplyDeleteNot before this post. I confidently predict that in the next few days it'll seem to be everywhere, radio presenters will say it, politicians, random strangers, and I'll wonder why I never heard it before. It'll seem just as though there's a global conspiracy aimed at confusing me.
(Actually, I already think that).
Thank you all. Awards go to A. and Expat Mum for probably being correct. I'll be a gentleman and not ask you for a translation of the other Aussie slang I had trouble with.
ReplyDeleteI almost fell off a ladder once. But did you know you could fall pregnant? You can in Australia, and in an odd way. I don't visit Aussie blogs much anymore (it is really too confusing) but I remember a lady once saying on her blog that she was going to continue doing Pilates until she fell pregnant. And I remember thinking at the time that that just wasn't possible, even in Australia.