Australian English

The Macquarie Dictionary is considered the standard reference for Australian language---both spoken and written.

If the doctors have access to Windows Media Player (free internet plug-in) and would like the opportunity to accustom themselves to the Australian way of speaking, there is a series of audio recordings available from the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) website on a variety of Australian topics. Transcripts of the audio recordings are also available for download.

There are also a number of Australian slang glossaries and other sources to be found online. Here are a few that may be of interest.

Macquarie Dictionary Book of Slang

Online Aussie English for the Beginner
This resource is on the National Museum of Australia’s website. It provides a fun online quiz and other information that explains some common Australian words and phrases and allows the user to hear them spoken. A PDF document of a vocabulary of Australian English can also be downloaded from here, which was written by the Australian National Dictionary Centre.

English Bites
This is located on the ABC’s website. English Bites is an informative and entertaining way to improve someone's knowledge of the English language. Featuring a new story each weekday English Bites provides a detailed review of language, terms and usage. The site provides video of the program (Real Player or Windows Media player formats), as well as transcriptions with vocabulary explanations and a short multiple choice quiz for each story to check the user's comprehension.

Australian Word Map
This is another site produced by the ABC in collaboration with Macquarie Dictionary. It allows searches for regional Australian words and slang.