new Zealand English

The first dictionary with entries documenting New Zealand English was probably the Heinemann New Zealand Dictionary published in 1979. Edited by Harry Orsman (1928–2002), it is a 1,337-page book with information relating to the usage and pronunciation of terms that were widely accepted throughout the English-speaking world, and those peculiar to New Zealand. It includes a one-page list of the approximate date of entry into common parlance of the many terms found in New Zealand English but not elsewhere, such as "haka" (1827), "boohai" (1920), and "bach" (1905). A second edition was published in 1989 with the cover subtitle "The first dictionary of New Zealand English and New Zealand pronunciation". A third edition, edited by Nelson Wattie, was published as The Reed Dictionary of New Zealand English by Reed Publishing in 2001.{{cite book |url= https://trove.nla.gov.au/work/22519219 |title=The Reed dictionary of New Zealand English : the first dictionary of New Zealand English and New Zealand pronunciation / general editor, H.W. Orsman |isbn=9780790007526|last1=Orsman|first1=H. W. |last2=Wattie|first2=Nelson|year=2001 |access-date=22 May 2021}}

The first dictionary fully dedicated to the New Zealand variety of English was The New Zealand Dictionary published by New House Publishers in 1994 and edited by Elizabeth and Harry Orsman.{{cite web |title=Orsman, Harry |url=http://www.bookcouncil.org.nz/writer/orsman-harry/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180907003426/http://www.bookcouncil.org.nz/writer/orsman-harry |archive-date=2018-09-07 |access-date=10 April 2018 |website=New Zealand Book Council}}{{cite web |url= https://www.victoria.ac.nz/lals/resources/nzej/nzej-az-list#M |title=New Zealand English Journal: Bibliography alphabetical by author |website=Victoria University of Wellington |access-date=26 July 2018}} A second edition was published in 1995.{{Cite book |last1=Orsman |first1=Elizabeth |title=The New Zealand dictionary |last2=Orsman |first2=H. W. |date=1995 |publisher=New House Publishers |isbn=978-1-86946-015-0 |edition=2nd |location=Auckland, N.Z}}

In 1997, Oxford University Press produced the Harry Orsman-edited The Dictionary of New Zealand English: A Dictionary of New Zealandisms on Historical Principles, a 981-page book, which it claimed was based on over 40 years of research. This research started with Orsman's 1951 thesis and continued with his editing this dictionary. To assist with and maintain this work, the New Zealand Dictionary Centre was founded in 1997 by Victoria University of Wellington and Oxford University Press. This was followed by The New Zealand Oxford Paperback Dictionary in 1998, edited by New Zealand lexicographer Tony Deverson. It is based on The Oxford Paperback Dictionary, fourth edition, and The Australian Oxford Paperback Dictionary, second edition.{{cite book | last=Deverson | first=Tony | title=The New Zealand Oxford paperback dictionary | publisher=Oxford University Press | publication-place=Auckland, N.Z. | year=1998 | isbn=978-0-19-558410-3 | oclc=45314926 }} Further lexicographical work culminated in the 1,374-page The New Zealand Oxford Dictionary published in 2004, by Tony Deverson and Graeme Kennedy. The dictionary contains over 100,000 definitions, including over 12,000 New Zealand entries and a wide range of encyclopedic information.{{cite book |url=http://www.oxfordreference.com/view/10.1093/acref/9780195584516.001.0001/acref-9780195584516|title=The New Zealand Oxford Dictionary |via=Oxford Reference|doi=10.1093/acref/9780195584516.001.0001|year=2005|isbn=9780195584516|publisher=Oxford University Press|editor1-last=Deverson|editor1-first=Tony|editor2-last=Kennedy|editor2-first=Graeme}} A second, revised edition of The New Zealand Oxford Paperback Dictionary was published in 2006,{{cite book |last1=Deverson |first1=Tony |author2=New Zealand Dictionary Centre |title=The New Zealand Oxford paperback dictionary |date=2006 |publisher=Oxford University Press |location=Auckland |isbn=9780195584790 |edition=2nd}} this time using standard lexicographical regional markers to identify the New Zealand content, which were absent from the first edition.{{Citation needed|date=August 2023}} The NZ Dictionary Centre ceased active operations after the retirement of its second Director, Dianne Bardsley, in 2012.New Zealand Dictionary Centre } URL: https://www.wgtn.ac.nz/lals/centres-and-institutes/dictionary-centre | Victoria University of Wellington (accessed 1 October 2024)

Another authoritative work is the Collins English Dictionary, first published in 1979 by HarperCollins, which contains an abundance of well-cited New Zealand words and phrases, drawing from the 650-million-word Bank of English, a British research facility set up at the University of Birmingham in 1980 and funded by Collins publishers.{{Cite web|url=http://www2.lingsoft.fi/doc/engcg/Bank-of-English.html|title=The Bank of English Project|access-date=9 April 2018|archive-date=17 April 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180417012433/http://www2.lingsoft.fi/doc/engcg/Bank-of-English.html|url-status=dead}} Although this is a British dictionary of International English there has always been a credited New Zealand advisor for the New Zealand content, namely Professor Ian Gordon from 1979 until 2002 and Professor Elizabeth Gordon from the University of Canterbury since 2003.{{cn|date=November 2024}}

Australia's Macquarie Dictionary was first published in 1981, and has since become the authority on Australian English. It has always included an abundance of New Zealand words and phrases additional to the mutually shared words and phrases of both countries. Every edition has retained a New Zealand resident advisor for the New Zealand content,{{cite book |last1=Manser |first1=Pat |title=More Than Words: The Making of the Macquarie Dictionary |date=23 February 2021 |publisher=Macquarie |chapter=Ch. 5 |isbn=978-1-76098-109-9 |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=iYMSEAAAQBAJ&pg=PT56 |language=en}} the first being Harry Orsman.{{cite web|url=https://www.wgtn.ac.nz/lals/centres-and-institutes/dictionary-centre/about-us/new-zealand-lexicography|title=New Zealand Lexicography |date=12 December 2019 |publisher=School of Linguistics and Applied Language Studies, Victoria University of Wellington |access-date=22 May 2021}} and the most recent being Victoria University of Wellington lexicographer Laurie Bauer.

From the 1790s, New Zealand was visited by British, French and American whaling, sealing and trading ships. Their crews traded European and American goods with the indigenous Māori.{{Cite web|url=https://teara.govt.nz/en/artwork/24312/maori-trading|title=Māori trading-Economic history|access-date=9 April 2018}}{{Cite web|url=https://collections.tepapa.govt.nz/topic/1080|title=Cross-cultural exchange between Māori and Europeans|access-date=9 April 2018}} The first European settlers to New Zealand were mainly from Australia, some of them ex-convicts or escaped convicts. Sailors, explorers and traders from Australia and other parts of Europe also settled.{{Cite web |title=History of New Zealand {{!}} Colonization, Maori, Map, Facts, & Government {{!}} Britannica |url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/history-of-New-Zealand |access-date=2024-06-30 |website=www.britannica.com |language=en}}

When in 1788 the colony of New South Wales was formed, most of New Zealand was nominally included, but no real legal authority or control was exercised. As a non-sovereign nation, New Zealand remained ungoverned and most European settlers intermarried with and lived among the Māori iwi in harmony. Settlers were greatly outnumbered by Māori and relied on them for security and safety.Mark Derby, 'Cultural go-betweens – Pākehā–Māori', Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, http://www.TeAra.govt.nz/en/cultural-go-betweens/page-2 (accessed 23 September 2024) The first official missionaries, who were from England, arrived in New Zealand in 1814, bringing formal education and farming skills as well as Christianity to the communities, many of which by this time had become bi-lingual.Mark Derby, 'Cultural go-betweens – Missionaries', Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, http://www.TeAra.govt.nz/en/cultural-go-betweens/page-3 (accessed 23 September 2024)

When the New Zealand Company announced in 1839 its plans to establish formal colonies in New Zealand, this and the increased commercial interests of merchants in Sydney and London spurred the British to take stronger action to establish British sovereignty over New Zealand. Captain William Hobson was sent to New Zealand to persuade Māori to cede their sovereignty to the British Crown and on 6 February 1840 Hobson and about forty Māori chiefs (rangatira) signed the Treaty of Waitangi at Waitangi in the Bay of Islands.{{cite book |title=The Authentic and Genuine History of the Signing of the Treaty of Waitangi |last=Colenso |first=William |author-link=William Colenso |year=1890 |publisher=By Authority of George Didsbury, Government Printer |location=Wellington |url=http://www.waitangi.com/colenso/colhis1.html |access-date=31 August 2011 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110816123405/http://www.waitangi.com/colenso/colhis1.html |archive-date=16 August 2011 }}

New Zealand broke its connection with New South Wales and became the Colony of New Zealand on 1 July 1841.'New Zealand Becomes a Colony', from An Encyclopaedia of New Zealand, edited by A. H. McLintock, originally published in 1966. Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand

URL: http://www.TeAra.govt.nz/en/1966/history-constitutional/page-2 {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150408100226/http://www.teara.govt.nz/en/1966/history-constitutional/page-2 |date=8 April 2015 }} (accessed 04 Dec 2022) From this point there was considerable European settlement, primarily from England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland, and to a lesser extent the United States, South Africa, and various parts of continental Europe. Some 400,000 settlers came from Britain, of whom 300,000 stayed permanently. Most were young people and 250,000 babies were born.

After the Treaty of Waitangi, the next few years saw tensions grow over disputed land purchases by settlers as well as some communities refusing to accept British rule. Conflicts escalated into what became the New Zealand Wars from 1845 to 1872.{{cite encyclopedia|url=http://www.teara.govt.nz/en/new-zealand-wars/page-6 |title=New Zealand wars |encyclopedia=Te Ara – The Encyclopedia of New Zealand}} The colonial government summoned thousands of British troops from Britain and Australia, as well as locally recruited pro-British militia forces, to mount major campaigns to overpower the Māori and Māori-allied separatist movements, eventually resulting in the defeat of the rebel forces.{{cite book |last=King |first=Michael |author-link=Michael King (historian) |year=1977 |title=Te Puea: A Biography |publisher=Hodder and Stoughton |location=Auckland |page=26 |isbn=0-340-22482-7}}{{cite book|last=Dalton |first=B.J. |title=War and Politics in New Zealand 1855–1870 |publisher=Sydney University Press |year=1967 |location=Sydney |page=179}}{{cite book |first=James |last=Belich |year=1986x |title=The New Zealand Wars and the Victorian Interpretation of Racial Conflict |edition=1st |publisher=Penguin |location=Auckland|pages=204–205 |isbn=0-14-011162-X}}

Despite the wars, gold discoveries in Otago (1861) and Westland (1865) caused a worldwide gold rush that more than doubled the New Zealand population from 71,000 in 1859 to 164,000 in 1863. Between 1864 and 1865, under the New Zealand Settlements Act 1863, 13 ships carrying citizens of England, Scotland, Ireland and South Africa arrived in New Zealand under the Waikato Immigration Scheme.{{cite web |url=http://homepages.ihug.co.nz/~jess/scrapbook/genealogy/waikato.html |title=Waikato Immigration: The Scheme |access-date=16 April 2015 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111012031342/http://homepages.ihug.co.nz/%7Ejess/scrapbook/genealogy/waikato.html |archive-date=12 October 2011 }} According to census data from 1871, around half the early settlers were English, a quarter Scots, a quarter Irish and 5% Australian.{{cite news |last=Lynch |first=Keith |url=https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/125209768/the-new-zealand-accent-explained|title=The New Zealand accent explained|work=Stuff |date=25 May 2021 |access-date=26 February 2024}}

The European population of New Zealand grew explosively from fewer than 1000 in 1831 to 500,000 by 1881. By 1911 the population of New Zealand had reached a million, of which 49,844 were Māori. 702,779 were New Zealand-born. The largest foreign-born demographics were those born in England and Scotland, followed by Australia and Ireland.{{cite web | url = https://www3.stats.govt.nz/historic_publications/1911-census/1911-results-census.html | title=Results of a Census of the Dominion of New Zealand | publisher =Statistics New Zealand | date = 30 December 1912 | accessdate=24 September 2024}}

A distinct New Zealand variant of the English language has been recognised since at least 1912, when Frank Arthur Swinnerton described it as a "carefully modulated murmur". From the beginning of the haphazard Australian and European settlements and latter official British migrations, a new dialect began to form by adopting Māori words to describe the different flora and fauna of New Zealand, for which English did not have words.The Story of English by Robert McCrum, William Cran, and Robert MacNeil. BBC Publications and Faber and Faber: London, 1986.

The New Zealand accent first appeared in towns with mixed populations of immigrants from Australia, England, Ireland, and Scotland. These included the militia towns of the North Island and the gold-mining towns of the South Island. In more homogeneous towns such as those in Otago and Southland, settled mainly by people from Scotland, the New Zealand accent took longer to appear,{{Cite web |url=http://www.teara.govt.nz/en/speech-and-accent/page-2 |title=Speech and accent – Explanations of New Zealand speech |last=Gordon |first=Elizabeth |website=Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand}} while the accent was quick to develop in schools starting from the 1890s.

Since the latter 20th century New Zealand society has gradually divested itself of its fundamentally British roots{{cite web |url=https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2014/mar/12/new-zealands-flag-represents-a-country-that-no-longer-exists |title=New Zealand's flag represents a country that no longer exists|date=11 March 2014|work=The Guardian}} and has adopted influences from all over the world, especially in the early 21st century when New Zealand experienced an increase of non-British immigration, which has brought about a more prominently multi-ethnic society. The Internet, television,{{cite web |url=http://www.stuff.co.nz/travel/blogs/voyages-in-america/6837596/The-strange-American-ness-of-NZ-pop-culture |title=The strange American-ness of NZ pop culture|date=2 May 2012 |website=Stuff |access-date=30 September 2017}} movies and popular music have all brought international influences into New Zealand society and the New Zealand lexicon. Americanisation of New Zealand society and language has subtly and gradually been taking place since World War II and especially since the 1970s.{{cite news|url=http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10342128 |title=Tapu Misa: Clinging to Kiwiness on wave of Americanisation|date=23 August 2005|work=The New Zealand Herald}}

While the Māori language and New Zealand Sign Language are statutory official languages of New Zealand, English is a de facto official language, which may be used in any public or official context.{{cite news |last=Walters |first=Laura |title=Analysis: Why English does not need to be made an official language |url= https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/101497027/analysis-why-english-does-not-need-to-be-made-an-official-language |access-date=9 January 2021 |work=Stuff |date=16 Feb 2018}} In 2018, MP Clayton Mitchell of New Zealand First put forward a bill for English to be recognised as an official language in legislation.{{Cite news | url= http://www.newshub.co.nz/home/politics/2018/02/nz-first-submits-bill-for-english-to-be-recognised-as-official-language.html | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20180215101032/http://www.newshub.co.nz/home/politics/2018/02/nz-first-submits-bill-for-english-to-be-recognised-as-official-language.html | url-status= dead | archive-date= 15 February 2018 | title=NZ First submits Bill for English to be recognised as official language| work=Newshub | date=15 February 2018}}{{Cite web |url=http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PA1802/S00143/nz-first-bill-english-set-to-become-official.htm |title=NZ First Bill: English set to become official |website=Scoop News}}

{{Main|New Zealand English phonology}}

Not all New Zealanders have the same accent, as the level of cultivation (i.e. the closeness to Received Pronunciation) of every speaker's accent differs. An identifiable feature of New Zealand English is its chain shift where the {{sc2|TRAP}} vowel has moved up to the place of the traditional {{sc2|DRESS}} vowel, which in turn has moved up towards the traditional {{sc2|KIT}} vowel, which in turn is centralised. This makes "bat" sound like "bet", "bet" sound like "bit", and "bit" sound like "but" to foreign ears. For example "six" is {{IPA|[səks]}} in New Zealand English but {{IPA|[sɪks]}} in Australian English. General New Zealand English is non-rhotic, however Southland/Otago is semi-rhotic due to the accent's Scottish influence.{{Citation needed|date=August 2023}}

New Zealand English has a number of dialectal words and phrases.{{cite web |title=English and the official languages of New Zealand |url=https://www.new-zealand-immigration.com/migrate-to-new-zealand/language/ |website=New Zealand Immigration Concepts |language=en-NZ}} These are mostly informal terms that are more common in casual speech. Numerous loanwords have been taken from the Māori language or from Australian English.{{Cite web |title=Introduction to New Zealand English |url=https://www.oed.com/discover/introduction-to-new-zealand-english/?tl=true |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20240824045648/https://www.oed.com/discover/introduction-to-new-zealand-english/?tl=true |archive-date=2024-08-24 |access-date=2025-03-11 |website=www.oed.com |language=en}}

New Zealand adopted decimal currency in 1967 and the metric system in 1974. Despite this, several imperial measures are still widely encountered and usually understood, such as feet and inches for a person's height, pounds and ounces for an infant's birth weight, and in colloquial terms such as referring to drinks in pints.[http://www.consumeraffairs.govt.nz/news-1/consumer-alerts/when-is-a-pint-not-a-pint "When is a pint not a pint? "] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130207161708/http://www.consumeraffairs.govt.nz/news-1/consumer-alerts/when-is-a-pint-not-a-pint |date=7 February 2013 }}, Ministry of Consumer Affairs[http://www.stuff.co.nz/dominion-post/news/local-papers/the-wellingtonian/7621775/Is-a-pint-really-a-pint-in-Wellington "Is a pint really a pint in Wellington? "], 6 September 2012, The Wellingtonian{{cite journal | last1 = Dignan | first1 = J. R. E. | last2 = O'Shea | first2 = R. P. | year = 1995 |title = Human use of metric measures of length | journal = New Zealand Journal of Psychology | volume = 24 | pages = 21–25 }} In the food manufacturing industry in New Zealand both metric and non-metric systems of weight are used and usually understood, owing to raw food products being imported from both metric and non-metric countries. However, per the December 1976 Weights and Measures Amendment Act, all foodstuffs must be retailed using the metric system.[http://lamar.colostate.edu/~hillger/international.html#new_zealand Metric usage and metrication in other countries]. U.S. Metric Association (USMA), Inc. {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120831004546/http://lamar.colostate.edu/~hillger/international.html|date=31 August 2012}} In general, the knowledge of non-metric units is lessening.{{Citation needed|date=August 2023}}

Both the words amongst and among are used, as in British English. The same is true for two other pairs, whilst and while and amidst and amid.{{Citation needed|date=August 2023}}

New Zealand English terms of Australian origin include bushed (lost or bewildered), chunder (to vomit), cooker (a derogatory term for conspiracy theorists), drongo (a foolish or stupid person), fossick (to search), larrikin (mischievous person), Maccas (slang for McDonald's), maimai (a duckshooter's hide; originally a makeshift shelter, from aboriginal mia-mia), paddock (field, or meadow), pom or pommy (an Englishman), skite (verb: to boast), station (for a very large farm), wowser (non-drinker of alcohol, or killjoy), and ute (pickup truck).{{citation needed|date=November 2018}}

Advancing from its British and Australian English origins, New Zealand English has evolved to include many terms of American origin, or which are otherwise used in American English, in preference over the equivalent contemporary British terms. In a number of instances, terms of British and American origin can be used interchangeably. Many American borrowings are not unique to New Zealand English, and may be found in other dialects of English, including British English.{{Cite journal |last=Vine |first=Bernardette |date=1999 |title=Americanisms in the New Zealand English Lexicon |url=https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/1467-971X.00118 |journal=World Englishes |language=en |volume=18 |issue=1 |pages=13–22 |doi=10.1111/1467-971X.00118 |issn=0883-2919|url-access=subscription }} Some examples of such words in New Zealand English are the preferred usage of the American bobby pin over the British hair pin,{{cite news |title=Why I'm moving into a bus with an 11-year-old, a dog and a cat |url=https://www.stuff.co.nz/life-style/homed/renting/300244904/why-im-moving-into-a-bus-with-an-11yearold-a-dog-and-a-cat |access-date=17 April 2021 |work=Stuff |date=21 March 2021 |quote=I read about a woman who bartered her way up from a bobby pin to a small cabin. I don’t have enough faith or spare time for that, and I can never find a bobby pin when I need it |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210323060659/https://www.stuff.co.nz/life-style/homed/renting/300244904/why-im-moving-into-a-bus-with-an-11yearold-a-dog-and-a-cat |archive-date=23 March 2021 |url-status=live }} muffler for silencer,{{cite news |title=An illustrated history of electric car design |url=https://www.stuff.co.nz/motoring/evs/124743456/an-illustrated-history-of-electric-car-design |work=Stuff |date=15 April 2021 |quote=Milton O. Reeves and Marshall T. Reeves invented the first muffler to reduce petrol engine noise |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210818115320/https://www.stuff.co.nz/motoring/evs/124743456/an-illustrated-history-of-electric-car-design |archive-date=18 August 2021 |url-status=live}} truck for lorry, station wagon for estate car,{{cite news |title=Lessons learned after living with a Nissan Leaf |url=https://www.stuff.co.nz/motoring/evs/124857656/lessons-learned-after-living-with-a-nissan-leaf |work=Stuff |date=16 April 2021 |quote=it would be better if it was a little more squared off like a station wagon. |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210425055345/https://www.stuff.co.nz/motoring/evs/124857656/lessons-learned-after-living-with-a-nissan-leaf |archive-date=25 April 2021 |url-status=live}} stove for cooker, creek{{cite dictionary|url= https://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/creek |title=Creek definition and meaning |dictionary=Collins English Dictionary}} over brook or stream, eggplant for aubergine, median strip for central reservation,{{cite news |title=Safe-hit posts installed on State Highway 1 near Ōhakea to stop overtaking on median strip |url=https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/300038987/safehit-posts-installed-on-state-highway-1-near-hakea-to-stop-overtaking-on-median-strip |access-date=17 April 2021 |work=Stuff |date=21 June 2020 |language=en}} pushup for press-up, and potato chip for potato crisp.{{cite news |title=McCain resumes normal chip production after Covid induced backlog |url=https://www.stuff.co.nz/timaru-herald/news/122595783/mccain-resumes-normal-chip-production-after-covid-induced-backlog |access-date=17 April 2021 |work=Stuff |date=4 September 2020 |quote=With Kiwis eating fewer hot chips during lockdown, one of New Zealand’s largest potato chip manufacturers was forced to cut production significantly}}

Other examples of vocabulary directly borrowed from American English include the boonies, bucks (dollars), butt (bum or arse), ding (dent), dude, duplex, faggot or fag (interchangeable with the British poof and poofter), figure{{cite dictionary |url= https://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/figure |title=Figure definition and meaning|dictionary=Collins English Dictionary}} (to think or conclude; consider), hightail it, homeboy, hooker, lagoon, lube (oil change), man (in place of mate or bro in direct address), major (to study or qualify in a subject), to be over [some situation] (be fed up), rig (large truck),{{cite news |title=Big-rig driver helps end police chase in California by blocking getaway car |url=https://www.stuff.co.nz/motoring/300272762/bigrig-driver-helps-end-police-chase-in-california-by-blocking-getaway-car |access-date=17 April 2021 |work=Stuff |date=9 April 2021}} sheltered workshop (workplace for disabled persons),{{cite news |title=Closing sheltered workshops did more harm than good for intellectually disabled |url=https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/opinion/79045618/closing-sheltered-workshops-did-more-harm-than-good-for-intellectually-disabled |access-date=17 April 2021 |work=Stuff |date=18 April 2016}} spat{{cite dictionary|url=https://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/spat|title=Spat definition and meaning |dictionary=Collins English Dictionary}} (a small argument), and subdivision, and tavern.{{cite dictionary|url= https://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/tavern |title=Tavern definition and meaning |dictionary=Collins English Dictionary}}

Regarding grammar, gotten can be used as opposed to the standard British got in New Zealand English in active contexts, though some speakers do not use it.{{Cite book |title=New Zealand English |last=Bell |first=Allan |publisher=John Benjamins Publishing Company |year=1999 |location=Philadelphia, USA |url=https://archive.org/details/newzealandenglis00bell |pages=181|isbn=978-1-55619-723-9 }} It has been increasing in usage in recent years and is rarely written down.{{Cite book |url=https://www.cambridge.org/nz/universitypress/subjects/languages-linguistics/historical-linguistics/standards-english-codified-varieties-around-world |title=Standards of English: Codified Varieties around the World |date=December 2012 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=9780521763899 |pages=328 |language=}}

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{{more citations needed|section|date=September 2019}}

Some English words are used almost exclusively in New Zealand.

• bach (noun) – cheaply built and basic holiday home; located at beaches throughout the country{{Citation |last=Deverson |first=Tony |title=bach |date=2010 |url=https://www.oxfordreference.com/display/10.1093/acref/9780195584974.001.0001/acref-9780195584974-e-201 |work=The Oxford Dictionary of New Zealandisms |access-date=2023-11-16 |publisher=Oxford University Press |language=en |doi=10.1093/acref/9780195584974.001.0001 |isbn=978-0-19-558497-4|url-access=subscription }}
• Carbonettes (noun, especially in the North Island) – pieces of charcoal used in barbecues{{Cite web |title=CHAPTER II. EXAMPLES OF COMMON WORDS AND GRAMMATICAL STRUCTURE USED IN NEW ZEALAND |url=http://www.genderi.org/foreign-languages.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240510183232/http://www.genderi.org/foreign-languages.html |url-status=usurped |archive-date=10 May 2024 |access-date=2024-05-10 |website=www.genderi.org |language=az}}
• convert (verb) – to steal a car, hence also the name for car theft being car conversion
• chur (interj) — hello, cheers, thanks{{Cite news |title=Chur - te reo Māori words now official and included in the new Oxford English Dictionary |last=Los'e |first=Joseph |date=2023-03-15 |url=https://www.nzherald.co.nz/kahu/chur-te-reo-maori-words-now-official-and-included-in-the-new-oxford-english-dictionary/3MINW42AQ5H5RICNKW5PLEZH6U/ |access-date=2024-11-24 |work=New Zealand Herald }}
• crib (noun) – similar to bach (above), used more in Otago and Southland{{Citation |last=Deverson |first=Tony |title=crib |date=2010 |work=The Oxford Dictionary of New Zealandisms |url=https://www.oxfordreference.com/display/10.1093/acref/9780195584974.001.0001/acref-9780195584974-e-1159 |access-date=2024-05-30 |publisher=Oxford University Press |language=en |doi=10.1093/acref/9780195584974.001.0001 |isbn=978-0-19-558497-4|url-access=subscription }}
• dairy (noun) – corner shop; convenience store.{{Citation |last=Deverson |first=Tony |title=dairy |date=2010 |url=https://www.oxfordreference.com/display/10.1093/acref/9780195584974.001.0001/acref-9780195584974-e-1236 |work=The Oxford Dictionary of New Zealandisms |access-date=2023-11-16 |publisher=Oxford University Press |language=en |doi=10.1093/acref/9780195584974.001.0001 |isbn=978-0-19-558497-4|url-access=subscription }}
• durry (noun) – cigarette{{Citation |last=Deverson |first=Tony |title=durry |date=2010 |url=https://www.oxfordreference.com/display/10.1093/acref/9780195584974.001.0001/acref-9780195584974-e-1456 |work=The Oxford Dictionary of New Zealandisms |access-date=2023-11-16 |publisher=Oxford University Press |language=en |doi=10.1093/acref/9780195584974.001.0001 |isbn=978-0-19-558497-4|url-access=subscription }}
• eh? (particle) – used to elicit a response. Used much more in New Zealand than in the stereotypical Canadian English.{{cite news|url=https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/113796639/why-do-new-zealanders-say-eh-so-much|title=Why do New Zealanders say 'eh' so much?|first=Joel|last=MacManus|date=29 Jun 2019|access-date=25 May 2021|work=Stuff }}
• handle (noun) – a 425–500 mL glass of beer with a handle, as sold in pubs{{Cite web |title=Handle Definition & Meaning {{!}} Britannica Dictionary |url=https://www.britannica.com/dictionary/handle |access-date=2024-05-10 |website=www.britannica.com |language=en-US}}
• hardout/hard – used to show agreement, or used to show emphasis/intensity. Examples: Agreement: "Yeah hard/hardout". "He was running hardout."{{Cite web |title=New Zealand slang {{!}} 100% Pure New Zealand |url=https://www.newzealand.com/uk/new-zealand-slang/ |access-date=2023-12-27 |website=www.newzealand.com |language=en-GB}}
• heaps (adjective, adverb) – abundant, plenty, plentifully. Examples: "There are heaps of cops surrounding the house." "I love you heaps." "Give it heaps!" – give it your best effort! often in cooking someone would say, "that's heaps" meaning 'that's too much' (also used in Australia){{Cite web |date=2024-06-28 |title=Definition of HEAP |url=https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/heap |access-date=2024-06-30 |website=www.merriam-webster.com |language=en}}{{Citation needed|date=August 2023}}
• hokey pokey (noun) – the New Zealand term for honeycomb toffee; also a flavour of ice cream consisting of plain vanilla ice cream with small, solid lumps of honeycomb toffee.[http://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/cgi-bin/paperspast?a=d&cl=search&d=EP19271219.2.166.2&srpos=1&e=01-01-1839-19-01-1933--10--1-byDA---0hokey+pokey+recipe-- "Hokey Pokey"], Recipe, Evening Post, 1927{{citation |url=http://www.chelsea.co.nz/recipes/210/hokey-pokey.aspx |title=Chelsea Sugar – Hokey Pokey |publisher=Chelsea.co.nz |access-date=28 October 2010 |archive-date=26 April 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110426123321/http://www.chelsea.co.nz/recipes/210/hokey-pokey.aspx |url-status=dead }}{{cite web|url=http://www.kiwiwise.co.nz/recipe/hokey-pokey |title=Hokey Pokey – New Zealand Kids Recipe at KiwiWise |publisher=Kiwiwise.co.nz |access-date=28 October 2010}}{{cite web |url=http://www.kiwianatown.co.nz/kiwiana-recipes.html |title=Popular Kiwi recipes – pavlova, anzac biscuits, roast lamb, pikelets etc |publisher=Kiwianatown.co.nz |access-date=28 October 2010 |archive-date=4 June 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100604103210/http://www.kiwianatown.co.nz/kiwiana-recipes.html |url-status=dead }}
• jandals (noun) – the NZ term for flip-flops. Originally a trademarked name derived from "Japanese sandals".{{cite web|url=https://nzhistory.govt.nz/timeline/04/10|access-date=22 February 2017|title=Morris Yock trademarks the jandal|date=4 October 1957|publisher=New Zealand History}}
• jug (noun) – a kettle (also used in Australia){{Citation |last=Deverson |first=Tony |title=jug |date=2010 |url=https://www.oxfordreference.com/display/10.1093/acref/9780195584974.001.0001/acref-9780195584974-e-2435 |work=The Oxford Dictionary of New Zealandisms |access-date=2023-11-16 |publisher=Oxford University Press |language=en |doi=10.1093/acref/9780195584974.001.0001 |isbn=978-0-19-558497-4|url-access=subscription }}
• kai (noun) – Māori word meaning food, or something to eat, used by Māori and Pākehā alike{{Citation |last=Deverson |first=Tony |title=kai |date=2010 |url=https://www.oxfordreference.com/display/10.1093/acref/9780195584974.001.0001/acref-9780195584974-e-2457 |work=The Oxford Dictionary of New Zealandisms |access-date=2023-11-16 |publisher=Oxford University Press |language=en |doi=10.1093/acref/9780195584974.001.0001 |isbn=978-0-19-558497-4|url-access=subscription }}
• kūmara (noun) – sweet potato,{{cite web |title=kumara |url=https://www.dictionary.com/browse/kumara |website=dictionary.com |access-date=1 April 2022}} specifically those historically cultivated by Māori.{{Cite web |title=Definition of KUMARA |url=https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/kumara |access-date=2024-05-10}}
• munted (adj.) – broken; ruined; wrecked{{Cite encyclopedia |title=English language in New Zealand - New words |encyclopedia=Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand |last=Bardsley |first=Dianne |year=2013 |url=https://teara.govt.nz/en/photograph/40335/munted |access-date=13 December 2024}}{{cite news |last=Flood |first=Alison |title=Oxford English Dictionary extends hunt for regional words around the world |website=The Guardian |date=19 June 2018 |url=https://www.theguardian.com/books/2018/jun/19/oxford-english-dictionary-extends-hunt-for-regional-words-around-the-world |access-date=12 December 2024}}
• puckerood (adj) – broken; busted; wrecked.{{cite web|url=https://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/puckerood|access-date=30 July 2017|title=Definition of puckerood|work=Collins English Dictionary}} From Māori "pakaru" – to shatter{{Cite dictionary|title=pakaru |url=https://maoridictionary.co.nz/word/4982 |access-date=2024-04-18 |dictionary=Te Aka Māori Dictionary |language=en}}
• sweet as! (interj) – cool; awesome{{cite web |title=What are some of the slang terms I will hear in New Zealand? |url=https://support.nmit.ac.nz/kb/articles/what-are-some-of-the-slang-terms-i-will-hear-in-new-zealand |publisher=Nelson Marlborough Institute of Technology |access-date=19 February 2019 |archive-date=19 February 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190219183356/https://support.nmit.ac.nz/kb/articles/what-are-some-of-the-slang-terms-i-will-hear-in-new-zealand |url-status=dead }}
• tramping (noun) tramp (verb) – Bushwalking, hiking. Usage is exclusive to New Zealand.{{Cite web |last=Flickerwell |title=New Zealand Style Guide |url=https://styleguide.nz/ |access-date=2025-03-07 |website=New Zealand Style Guide |language=en-NZ}}

Many of these relate to words used to refer to common items, often based on which major brands become eponyms.

Some New Zealanders often reply to a question with a statement spoken with a rising intonation at the end. This often has the effect of making their statement sound like another question. There is enough awareness of this that it is seen in exaggerated form in comedy parody of New Zealanders, such as in the 1970s comedy character Lyn Of Tawa.{{cite encyclopedia |title=Lynn of Tawa |first=Chris |last=Maclean |url= https://teara.govt.nz/en/video/13446/lynn-of-tawa |encyclopedia=Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand |date=1 March 2016 |access-date=11 November 2024}} This rising intonation can also be heard at the end of statements that are not in response to a question but to which the speaker wishes to add emphasis. High rising terminals are also heard in Australia.{{sfnp|Crystal|2003|p=355}}

In informal speech, some New Zealanders use the third person feminine she in place of the third person neuter it as the subject of a sentence, especially when the subject is the first word of the sentence. The most common use of this is in the phrase "She'll be right" meaning either "It will be okay" or "It is close enough to what is required". Similar to Australian English are uses such as "she was great car" or "she's a real beauty, this [object]".{{Citation needed|date=August 2023}}

Another specific New Zealand usage is the way in which New Zealanders refer to the country's two main islands. They are always (except on maps) referred to as "the North Island" and "the South Island". And because of their size, New Zealanders tend to think of these two islands as being 'places', rather than 'pieces of land', so the preposition "in" (rather than "on") is usually used – for example, "my mother lives in the North Island", "Christchurch is in the South Island". This is true only for the two main islands; for smaller islands, the usual preposition "on" is used – for example, "on Stewart Island", or "on Waiheke Island".{{Citation needed|date=August 2023}}

As in some other varieties of English, "us" is sometimes used in place of "me". A common example is "give us a go", meaning "give me a go".{{Cite journal |last=Bauer |first=Laurie |author-link=Laurie Bauer |date=2007 |title=Some grammatical features of New Zealand English |url=https://www.wgtn.ac.nz/lals/resources/publications/nzej-backissues/2007-laurie-bauer.pdf |journal=New Zealand English Journal |volume=21 |access-date=10 November 2024}} About half the country pronounce the words "grown" and "known" with two syllables, as "growen" and "knowen". Similarly to other English varieties, when {{IPA|/l/}} follows a vowel it is often vocalised, dropping the usual contact of the tongue and the sound becomes a vowel. An example of this is changing the words "feel" to "fee-u" or "railway" to "rai-u-way".{{Cite web |date=5 September 2013 |title=Sound changes in speech |url=https://teara.govt.nz/en/speech-and-accent/page-4 |access-date=31 January 2025 |website=Te Ara: The Encyclopedia of New Zealand}}

{{Main|Māori language influence on New Zealand English}}

Many local everyday words are loanwords that have been assimilated from the Māori language, including words for local flora, fauna, place names and the natural environment.

The dominant influence of Māori on New Zealand English is lexical. A 1999 estimate based on the Wellington corpora of written and spoken New Zealand English put the proportion of words of Māori origin at approximately 0.6%, mostly place and personal names.Kennedy, Graham & Shinji Yamazaki 1999. The Influence of Maori on the New Zealand English Lexicon. In John M. Kirk (ed), Corpora Galore: Analyses and Techniques in Describing English. Amsterdam: Rodopi: 33–44

Some Māori words occur in New Zealand English, such as kia ora (hello).{{Cite web|url=http://www.maorilanguage.net/maori-words-phrases/maori-words-used-new-zealand-english/|title=Māori Words used in New Zealand English|website=Māori Language.net|language=en-US|access-date=2018-12-25}}

Māori is ever present and has a significant conceptual influence in the legislature, government, and community agencies (e.g. health and education), where legislation requires that proceedings and documents be translated into Māori (under certain circumstances, and when requested). Political discussion and analysis of issues of sovereignty, environmental management, health, and social well-being thus rely on Māori at least in part. Māori as a spoken language is particularly important wherever community consultation occurs.{{Citation needed|date=August 2023}}

Recognisable regional variations are slight, except for Southland and the southern part of neighbouring Otago, with its "Southland burr", where the postvocalic R is pronounced rather than clipped. This southern area traditionally received heavy immigration from Scotland (see Dunedin). Several words and phrases common in Scots or Scottish English persist there; examples include the use of wee for "small", and phrases such as to do the messages meaning "to go shopping". Other Southland/Otago features which may also relate to early Scottish settlement are the use of the {{sc2|TRAP}} (short A) vowel in a set of words which usually use the {{sc2|PALM}} vowel (long A), such as dance or castle, which is also common in Australian English. Another feature is the maintaining of the {{IPA|/ʍ/}} ~ {{IPA|/w/}} distinction (e.g. where which and witch are not homophones).{{cite journal |last=Warren |first=Paul |date=2012 |title=Origins and development of New Zealand English |journal=International Journal of Language, Translation and Intercultural Communication |volume=1 |pages=87–102 |doi=10.12681/ijltic.12 |url=https://ejournals.epublishing.ekt.gr/index.php/latic/article/download/2719/2489 |doi-access=free }}

Recent research (2012) suggests that postvocalic {{IPA|/r/}} is not restricted to Southland & Otago, but is found also in the central North Island where there may be a Pasifika influence, but also a possible influence from modern New Zealand hip‐hop music, which has been shown to have high levels of non‐prevocalic {{IPA|/r/}} after the {{sc2|NURSE}} vowel.

Taranaki has been said to have a minor regional accent, possibly due to the high number of immigrants from the south-west of England. However, this is becoming less pronounced.{{Cite thesis |last=Ainsworth |first=Helen |title=Regional Variation in New Zealand English : The Taranaki Sing-song Accent |date=2004 |publisher=Victoria University of Wellington |type=PhD |hdl=10063/551 }}

Some Māori have an accent distinct from the general New Zealand accent; and also tend to include Māori words more frequently. Comedian Billy T. James and the bro'Town TV programme were notable for featuring exaggerated versions of this.As well as other Polynesian accents Linguists recognise this as "Māori English", and describe it as strongly influenced by syllable-timed Māori speech patterns.{{Cite thesis |last=Szakay |first=Anita |title=Identifying Māori English and Pākehā English from Suprasegmental Cues: A Study Based on Speech Resynthesis |date=2007 |publisher=University of Canterbury |hdl=10092/975 }} Linguists count "Pākehā English" as the other main accent, and note that it is beginning to adopt similar rhythms, distinguishing it from other stress-timed English accents.{{cite web|url=http://www.radionz.co.nz/national/programmes/saturday/audio/2205127/language-with-jeanette-king|title=Language with Jeanette King|date=17 March 2011|website=Radio NZ |access-date=30 September 2017}}

It is commonly held that New Zealand English is spoken very quickly.{{Cite web|url=https://naumainz.studyinnewzealand.govt.nz/help-and-advice/life-and-culture/speaking-new-zealand-english/|title=Speaking New Zealand English | NauMai NZ|website=naumainz.studyinnewzealand.govt.nz}}{{Cite web|url=http://www.newzealandnow.govt.nz/live-in-new-zealand/english-language|title=Understanding New Zealand English | New Zealand Now|website=www.newzealandnow.govt.nz|date=14 July 2022 }} This idea is given support by a study comparing adult New Zealand English and American English speakers which observed faster speaking and articulation rates among the New Zealand English group overall.{{Cite journal|last1=Robb|first1=Michael P.|last2=Maclagan|first2=Margaret A.|last3=Chen|first3=Yang|date=2004-01-01|title=Speaking rates of American and New Zealand varieties of English|journal=Clinical Linguistics & Phonetics|volume=18|issue=1|pages=1–15|doi=10.1080/0269920031000105336|issn=0269-9206|pmid=15053265|s2cid=145246900}} However, a similar study with American and New Zealand English-speaking children found the opposite, with the speaking and articulation rates of the New Zealand children being slower.{{Cite journal|last1=Robb|first1=Michael P.|last2=Gillon|first2=Gail T.|author2-link= Gail Gillon |date=2007-01-01|title=Speech rates of New Zealand English- and American English-speaking children|journal=Advances in Speech Language Pathology|volume=9|issue=2|pages=173–180|doi=10.1080/14417040601013695|s2cid=42993620|issn=1441-7049}} The same study proposed that differences in the relative number of tense and lax vowels between the two speaker groups may have influenced the speaking and articulation rates.

• Where there is a difference between British and US spelling (such as cancelling/canceling and jewellery/jewelry), the British spelling of double-L is universally used. The British use of single-L is also universally used in words such as enrol.{{Citation needed|date=August 2023}}
• New Zealand English prefers the use of tyres, not tires, except for trademarks such as Cooper Tires.{{cite web|url=http://www.coopertires.co.nz/index.php?page=7-reasons-why-you-should-choose-cooper-tyres|title=Tyre – Tires – Why You Should Choose Cooper Tyres|website=Coopertires.co.nz|access-date=30 September 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170407113752/http://www.coopertires.co.nz//index.php?page=7-reasons-why-you-should-choose-cooper-tyres|archive-date=7 April 2017|url-status=dead|df=dmy-all}}
• The Commonwealth spelling of kerb (at roadside) is used over US curb.{{cite web|url=http://grammarist.com/spelling/curb-kerb/|access-date=23 March 2017|title=Curb vs. kerb|date=4 January 2012 |publisher=grammarist.com}}
• New Zealand spelling of -re words such as centre, fibre, litre, and theatre has always followed the British spelling as opposed to the American center, fiber, liter, and theater.{{Citation needed|date=August 2023}}
• Nouns with the -ce suffix such as defence and licence are usually spelt with -ce as opposed to the American defense and license.{{cite web |title=Driver licences |website=NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi |url=https://www.nzta.govt.nz/driver-licences/ |access-date=26 October 2024}}{{Citation needed|date=August 2023}}
• With -our words like colour/color or favour/favor the spelling of -our is almost always used{{cite web |url=http://www.onlinegrammar.com.au/us-and-australian-spelling/ |title=American and Australian spelling |first=Mary |last=Morel |work=Online Grammar |access-date=26 June 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130512092058/http://www.onlinegrammar.com.au/us-and-australian-spelling/ |archive-date=12 May 2013 }} except arbor in Arbor day or unless it is a trademark, such as Colorsteel{{Cite web |url=http://www.nzsteel.co.nz/products/colorsteel%C2%AE |title=Colorsteel |website= New Zealand Steel|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140620082735/http://www.nzsteel.co.nz/products/colorsteel%C2%AE |archive-date=20 June 2014 }} or The Color Run.{{Cite web |url=http://thecolorrun.co.nz/ |title=Home – The Color Run |website=The Color Run |access-date=30 September 2017}}

• New Zealand English retains the distinctions between program ("computer heuristic") and programme ("schedule", "broadcast show"), disk ("information storage device") and disc ("flat circular object"), and analog (as in analog stick) and analogue (all other senses) as found in British and often in Australian English.{{cite web|url=http://australiandictionary.blogspot.com.au/2013/11/is-it-analogue-or-analog.html|title=Australian Dictionary – Australian English Dictionary – Spellcheck (spell check): Is it analogue or analog?|first=Kelvin|last=Eldridge|date=9 November 2013|website=Australiandictionary.blogspot.com.au|access-date=30 September 2017}}
• It is usual to form past tenses and past participles of certain verbs with -t and not -ed. For example, learn becomes learnt, spoil becomes spoilt, burn becomes burnt, dream becomes dreamt {{IPA|/dɹemt/}}, and smell becomes smelt. These verb forms are pronounced with a final unvoiced {{IPA|/t/}} sound, meaning spoilt is pronounced {{IPA|/spoɪlt/}} not {{IPA|/spoɪld/}}. This contrasts with American English, where -ed is far more common and is pronounced {{IPA|/d/}} (e.g. dwelled {{IPA|/dweld/}} is an American form of dwelt {{IPA|/dwelt/}}). Learned, the adjective meaning "wise", is universally spelt thus and pronounced as two syllables ({{IPA|/ˈlɵːnəd/}}). The past tenses and past participles of earn and boil are earned and boiled respectively, though they may be pronounced ending with a {{IPA|/t/}} sound.{{Citation needed|date=August 2023}}
• Words with the digraphs ae and oe in British English are usually spelt as such in New Zealand English (e.g. faeces not feces) rather than with just e as with American English.{{Citation needed|date=November 2024}}
• In hyperbolic statements, the spellings of ton and tons are commonly used (e.g. I have tons of friends and I feel tons better), despite the metric system with its tonne having been introduced in the 1970s.{{Citation needed|date=August 2023}}
• In words that may be spelt with either an -ise or an -ize suffix (such as organise/organize) it is acceptable to use either in New Zealand English but -ise has taken precedence over several decades. This contrasts with American and Canadian English, where -ize is generally preferred, and British English, where -ise is also generally preferred. In Australian English -ise is strictly used.{{cite web | url=https://onlinewritingtraining.com.au/writeaussie-australian-american-spelling-differences/ | title=Australian & American spelling differences | Mary Morel | work=Online Writing Training | date=23 February 2015 | last1=Morel | first1=Mary }}
• New Zealand favours fiord over fjord, unlike most other English-speaking countries. The fiord spelling was the normal one in English until the early 1920s,{{cite web |url=http://www.oed.com/viewdictionaryentry/Entry/70499 |title=fiord / fjord, n. |website=Oxford English Dictionary |access-date=7 March 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140518042412/http://www.oed.com/viewdictionaryentry/Entry/70499 |archive-date=18 May 2014 }} and is preserved in many place names worldwide. In New Zealand it is used in Fiordland, a rugged region in the south-west.{{Citation needed|date=August 2023}}
• When spelling words borrowed from Māori, New Zealand English can either spell them with macrons or without (e.g. Maori and Māori are both accepted spellings).{{Citation needed|date=August 2023}} Macrons have become more widespread over time.{{Cite web |last=Crewdson |first=Patrick |date=2017-09-10 |title=Why Stuff is introducing macrons for te reo Māori words |url=https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/96578644/why-stuff-is-introducing-macrons-for-te-reo-maori-words |access-date=2023-09-28 |website=Stuff |language=en}}
• Australia and New Zealand always use jail over the British gaol (which is now considered obsolete, even in the United Kingdom).{{cite web|url=https://www.govt.nz/browse/crime-and-justice/prison-life/prison-life-and-going-to-prison/|title=Prison life and going to prison|website=Govt.nz |date=29 January 2020 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230213062711/https://www.govt.nz/browse/law-crime-and-justice/prison-life/prison-life-and-going-to-prison |archive-date= Feb 13, 2023 }}{{cite news|url=http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11433763|title=West Coast man sentenced to 11 months jail for serious assault on wife|date=16 April 2015|work=The New Zealand Herald}}{{Cite web |url=http://www.teara.govt.nz/en/prisons/page-1 |title=Prisons – New Zealand's prisons |last=Clayworth |first=Peter |website=Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand |access-date=30 September 2017}}
• Gram, the unit of mass, is commonly spelt as such and not gramme, which is somewhat found in British English. The same holds true for the word's derivates (e.g., kilogram is more common than kilogramme).{{Citation needed|date=August 2023}}
• Contractions (i.e. shortened words that retain the final letter of the full word) do not terminate with a full stop. Thus the abbreviation of Doctor is Dr and that of Mister is Mr, as opposed to Dr. and Mr. in American English. Initialisms and acronyms such as USA and NASA (or Nasa) also do not include full stops. This has been the practice in New Zealand since the late 1970s.{{citation needed|date=September 2019}}

Since the advent of word processors with spell-checkers, in modern assignment writing in New Zealand universities{{which|date=March 2021}} the rule is to use either 100% British spelling or 100% American spelling, the emphasis being consistency.{{Cite web |title=American vs. British spelling – OWLL |url=http://owll.massey.ac.nz/academic-writing/american-vs-british-spelling.php |access-date=30 September 2017 |website=Massey University}}{{Failed verification|date=June 2024|talk=Claimed rule not supported by reference}}

{{Portal|New Zealand|Language}}

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{{Clear}}

{{Reflist}}

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|title=A handbook of varieties of English

|volume=1: Phonology

|publisher=Mouton de Gruyter

|pages=603–613

|isbn=3-11-017532-0

}}

• Grant, L.E., and Devlin, G.A. (eds.) (1999). In other words: A dictionary of expressions used in New Zealand. Palmerston North: Dunmore Press.
• Leland, Louis S., jr. (1980). A personal Kiwi-Yankee dictionary. Dunedin: John McIndoe Ltd.
• Orsman H.W., (ed.) (1997). The Dictionary of New Zealand English: a dictionary of New Zealandisms on historical principles. Auckland: Oxford University Press. {{ISBN|978-0-19-558380-9}}.
• Orsman H.W., (ed.) (1979). Heinemann New Zealand dictionary. Auckland: Heinemann Educational Books (NZ) Ltd.
• {{citation

|last1=Trudgill

|first1=Peter

|author1-link=Peter Trudgill

|last2=Hannah

|first2=Jean

|year=2002

|title=International English: A Guide to the Varieties of Standard English

|edition=4th

|location=London

|publisher=Arnold

}}

{{Refend}}

{{Refbegin}}

• {{Cite book

|last1=Hay

|first1=Jennifer

|last2=Maclagan

|first2=Margaret

|last3=Gordon

|first3=Elizabeth

|year=2008

|title=New Zealand English

|series=Dialects of English

|publisher=Edinburgh University Press

|isbn=978-0-7486-2529-1

}}

• {{Cite book|title=The Emergence of New Zealand English|last=Kirkpatrick|first=A.|publisher=Oxford University Press|year=2003|location=Oxford}}

{{Refend}}

{{subject bar|auto=y|d=y|wikt=y}}

• [http://www.newzealandslang.com New Zealand Slang]
• [https://www.ualberta.ca/~johnnewm/NZEnglish/origins.html Origins of New Zealand English]
• [http://www.canterbury.ac.nz/nzilbb/research/onze/ The Origins of New Zealand English Project] at the University of Canterbury
• [https://www.victoria.ac.nz/lals/centres-and-institutes/dictionary-centre New Zealand Dictionary Centre]
• [https://www.victoria.ac.nz/lals/centres-and-institutes/dictionary-centre/about-us/new-zealand-english-in-the-21st-century New Zealand English in the 21st century]
• [https://web.archive.org/web/20100209041916/http://www.chemistry.co.nz/kiwi.htm Kiwi Words & Phrases]
• [http://www.nzonscreen.com/title/new-zild-2005 New Zild – The Story of New Zealand English]
• [http://homes.chass.utoronto.ca/~cpercy/courses/eng6365-ladd.htm English, Maori, and Maori English in New Zealand]
• [http://www.oxfordreference.com/view/10.1093/acref/9780195584516.001.0001/acref-9780195584516 The New Zealand Oxford Dictionary]
• [http://www.brenontheroad.com/travellers-guide-new-zealand-slang The Ultimate Traveller's Guide To New Zealand Slang]

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Category:Languages attested from the 19th century

Category:Dialects of English

English

Category:Oceanian dialects of English