A Handy Guide to Ja’mie King’s Totally Ja’miezing Aussie Vocabulary

Chris Lilley’s latest mockumentary series, Jai’me: Private School Girl, premiered last night on HBO (and you can watch the first episode for free on YouTube), giving fans of the Australian comedian what they’ve been demanding for years now: more Ja’mie King. Ja’mie is a character played by Chris Lilley himself — first in 2005’s We Can Be Heroes, and later in 2007’s Summer Heights High — a 17-year-old high schooler who is a total mean girl. And she’s won the Internet’s heart by being a walking, hair-flipping catchphrase in a show that’s really all about her. She’s trendy, boy-crazy, a little psychotic, and also throws around Aussie slang (and a bit of her own vocab) like it’s confetti. In order to gear up for this new dose of teen linguistics, here’s a handy field guide to some of her favorite words. 

bogan
noun \ˈbau̇-ˈgən\
Someone who’s trashy. A mutant hybrid of the American white trash and bro stereotypes.
“I usually try to avoid public school people. Like, one time I went to this year ten formal with this guy from a public school as a joke. Like, me and my friends thought it’d be so cool to just check out all of the bogans and stuff.�

box gap
noun \ˈbäks ˈgap\
The space between one’s thighs when they are standing, ideally three fingers in width. Also known as a thigh gap.
“One of the main features of quiche is box gap. If you’ve got your thighs rubbing together from fat, then you want to think about what you’re eating or just accept the fact that you’re never gonna be quiche.�

care factor
noun \ˈker ˈfak-tər\
The level at which you care about something (often not high).
“But Ja’mie, he’s in year ten.� “Uhh, care factor?�

crack onto
verb \ˈkrak ˈȯn-(ˌ)tü\
To flirt with someone as the result of sexual attraction.
“She’s a lesbian … I always think she’s trying to crack onto me. Gross!�

go off
verb \ˈg� ˈȯf\
To get nuts, have fun, lose control.
“Before we go, I want to give you guys an example of what you will look like going off on the dance floor at the formal. *turns on boombox* *gyrates onstage*�

goss
noun \ˈgäs\
Gossip.
“News, goss, go.�

Hillford Girl
noun \ˈhil-ˈfȯrd ˈgər(-ə)l\
A student at Hillford Girls Grammar School.
“Hillford’s pretty much known for having the hottest girls in the whole of Sydney. It’s like, a known thing. If you go to Hillford, people are like, ‘Oh my God, you must be so hot.’�

hot as
adjective \ˈhät az\
really hot
“I fuckin’ love year tens. So hot as.�

ILY
abbreviation \ˈil-ē\
The acronym for “I love you.�
“I love you so much. ILY, everyone! ILY!�

Ja’miezing
adjective \ˈjä-ˈm�z-iŋ\
When you’re good at everything (sport, theater, having the most Facebook friends in the school, etc.) the way Ja’mie King is.
“I’m good at a lot of stuff … I like to say I’m Ja’miezing.�

Kelton guy
noun \ˈkel-ˈtən ˈgī\
A student at Kelton Boys Grammar.
“Kelton guys are the future leaders of the country, so it’s good for me to get in with them now so that in the future I’ll have, like, connections for later in life.�

pash
verb \ˈpash\
To kiss, with tongue. Make out.
“I’ve had eleven actual boyfriends and I’ve pashed like 135 guys.�

povo
adjective \ˈpȯ-ˈv�\
Poor, impoverished.
“I’m going out to the Western suburbs to this really povo area where these African immigrants live, and it’s really cute.�

Prefect Promise
noun \ˈprē-ˌfekt ˈprä-məs\
An oath taken by all grade twelve Hillford School prefects, swearing that they will stick together no matter what.
“Like, for example, if one of us got depression and wanted to kill themselves, then we — as part of the Prefect Promise — would probably all kill ourselves.�

quiche
adjective \ˈkēsh\
Incredibly attractive, sexy. A step above hot.
“There is a major hottie in attendance, a rugby scholarship guy, and he is so fuckin’ quiche. I’m getting a semi just thinking about it.�

random
adjective \ˈran-dəm\
Off-topic, weird, or virtually anything else. A catchall word.
“This is gonna sound really random, but I reckon some of the year sevens are actually hot at this school.�