Australian English
Aussie Talk and other ways to learn Australian English
People learn the English they hear in Australia in a few different ways. This page says what each way is for, and what Aussie Talk is for.
Aussie Talk is an iPhone app. The translator on this website is free. The app is free to download.
Practise on iPhone.
Learn, chat with Bruce, translate, and play the sport card game.
A general English course
A general English course teaches grammar, vocabulary, and the English you need for study or work. It is the right place for exams, writing, and the core of the language.
It is not built around Australian slang, shortened words such as arvo, or how place names are said. Aussie Talk does not replace that course. It is practice for the local words and the accent, after you already have some English.
Australian TV and podcasts
Australian television and podcasts are a way to hear the accent in a real conversation, with the speed and the background noise left in.
A show is made to be watched or listened to. Subtitles, when a show has them, follow the story. They are not a slang lesson, and the show will not stop so you can say one line back. On this site, the Aussie slang glossary gives the meaning and a recording for words that already have both. In the app, Learn asks you to listen, then say the words yourself.
Talking with locals
Talking with people in Australia is how you find out whether you understood. It is not a class. The other person may not have time to explain every word.
Practising first makes those conversations easier to follow. Aussie Talk is that practice. It is not a stand-in for talking to people. The longer accent guide explains what you are hearing. The accent app page is where you practise it.
A general language app
A general language app is built to teach many languages. Aussie Talk is an iPhone app for Australian English.
Learn has 6 stages, 46 lessons and 312 real Australian voice recordings. Those lesson recordings are never text to speech. You can also chat with Bruce, 3 free chats a day, use Translate with a free Slang of the day, and play the sport card game. The full list is on the Australian English app page, and the chat is on the Bruce page.
What it costs
- The iPhone app is free to download. Talk with Bruce includes 3 free chats a day.
- Premium Monthly is A$14.99 in Australia and US$9.99 in the United States.
- Premium Annual is A$39.99 in Australia and US$24.99 in the United States, with a 7-day free trial for eligible new subscribers.
- Lifetime Learning is A$24.99 in Australia and US$14.99 in the United States. It unlocks Learn and the slang dictionary. It does not include unlimited chats with Bruce. The number of those chats is shown in the app.
- Premium includes unlimited chats with Bruce. Fair-use limits stop abuse. Normal use does not reach them.
Other countries see local prices. The price is shown in the app before you buy, in your App Store currency.
Questions about these ways of learning
Is Aussie Talk a general English course?
No. A general English course teaches grammar and the English you need for study or work. Aussie Talk is an iPhone app for the English you hear in Australia: slang, sayings, place names and the accent. It does not replace a general English course.
Can television or a podcast teach the Australian accent?
They are a way to hear Australian English in a real conversation. A show is made to be watched or heard, not to stop on one word and ask you to say it back. The recordings on this site, and Learn in the app, are for that kind of practice.
Should I still talk to people in Australia?
Yes. Talking with locals is how you find out whether you understood. Aussie Talk is practice before and between those conversations. It is not a substitute for them.
What is different about Aussie Talk and a general language app?
A general language app is built for many languages. Aussie Talk is an iPhone app for Australian English. Learn has 6 stages, 46 lessons and 312 real Australian voice recordings. Those lesson recordings are never text to speech.