borak: meaning, definition, pronunciation and examples
Rare / ArchaicInformal, colloquial, regional (primarily Australian)
Quick answer
What does “borak” mean?
Banter, ridicule, or teasing talk.
Audio
Pronunciation
Definition
Meaning and Definition
Banter, ridicule, or teasing talk.
Good-natured mockery or jesting, often exchanged in a social or competitive context. In Australian usage, it historically referred to nonsense or foolish talk.
Dialectal Variation
British vs American Usage
Differences
The word is virtually unknown in both modern British and American English. It is a loanword from Aboriginal Australian languages that entered 19th-century Australian English.
Connotations
N/A
Frequency
Historical use was confined to Australia and New Zealand. It is considered obsolete in contemporary English globally.
Grammar
How to Use “borak” in a Sentence
poke borak at [someone]be full of borakVocabulary
Collocations
Examples
Examples of “borak” in a Sentence
verb
British English
- (Obsolete, from AU) They would borak him mercilessly about his new hat.
American English
- N/A
adverb
British English
- N/A
American English
- N/A
adjective
British English
- (Obsolete, from AU) It was just a bit of borak talk, nothing serious.
American English
- N/A
Usage
Meaning in Context
Business
Not used.
Academic
Only in historical linguistic or cultural studies of Australian English.
Everyday
Obsolete; would not be understood by most speakers.
Technical
Not used.
Watch out
Common Mistakes When Using “borak”
- Using it in modern conversation expecting comprehension.
- Spelling it as 'borack' or 'borrak'.
- Using it with malicious intent, contrary to its original good-humoured connotation.
FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
No, it is an archaic and regionally restricted word. You will not encounter it in modern everyday English outside of historical contexts or studies of Australian English.
No, it is unsuitable for formal writing due to its archaic, informal, and regionally obscure nature.
The set phrase was 'to poke borak at [someone/something]', meaning to mock or ridicule in a jesting manner.
It is a loanword from an Aboriginal Australian language (likely Wathaurong), meaning 'no' or 'not', which was extended to mean 'nonsense' and then 'mockery' in 19th-century Australian English.
Banter, ridicule, or teasing talk.
Borak: in British English it is pronounced /ˈbɒrək/, and in American English it is pronounced /ˈbɔːrək/. Tap the audio buttons above to hear it.
Phrases
Idioms & Phrases
- “poke borak at someone/something (to mock or ridicule)”
Learning
Memory Aids
Mnemonic
Imagine a BORing person getting a friendly tAKing (taking) from their mates – that's BOR-AK, or good-natured mockery.
Conceptual Metaphor
SPEECH IS A WEAPON (though blunted) – 'poke borak' frames teasing as a gentle jab.
Practice
Quiz
'Borak' is best described as: