Learning notes
Different phrases you can use when describing a car:
- Wow, your new ride’s pretty flash!
- Check out my new ride!
- It’s a hybrid, so it’s great on petrol.
- It’s got push-button start and lane assist.
- My car drives like a dream.
- That’s not bad for a hatchback!
- She has a brand new car.
- I drive an SUV.
- My brother drives a ute.
- I’ve got a second-hand/used car.
- It’s in top nick.
- It’s perfect for zipping around.
- It runs like a dream.
Colloquial expressions:
To hit the road means to start on a journey
If something looks the goods, it looks stylish, or impressive.
If your car drives like a dream, it is very smooth and comfortable to drive.
If your car is in top nick, it is in very good condition.
If your car is perfect for zipping around, it means it’s small, fast and easy to drive.
Vocabulary:
Bragging about something means to talk proudly about it.
Wheels in casual English, wheels is an informal way to refer to a “car” itself. You might also hear someone say “a set of wheels” — that means the same thing.
In casual Australian and the US English, ‘ride’ can often mean ‘car’, as in:
- “Check out my new ride!”, means “Look at my new car!”
- “That’s a sweet ride!”, means “The car looks awesome!”
To give someone a ride means to take someone somewhere by car (U.S. and Australian English)
To give someone a lift means to take someone somewhere by car (British and Australian English)
If something is pretty flash, it looks fancy or impressive.
Tinted windows are darkened windows that give the car a stylish look and help block out sunlight.
Alloy wheels are shiny, lightweight wheels made from metal — they often make the car look more modern or sporty.
Servo is Australian slang for service station or petrol station
An EV is short for electric vehicle. It’s a car or ute which runs only on electricity.
A hybrid car is a car that uses both petrol and electricity.
If a car has a push button start, you don’t need to turn a key. You just press a button to start the engine.
Lane assist is a safety feature that helps keep the car in its lane when you are driving.
A hatchback is a car with a back door that opens upwards. That back door is called a hatch.
An SUV is short for Sports Utility Vehicle which is a bigger car that has plenty of space and is particularly good for driving on rougher roads in the outback.
A ute is a utility vehicle. It has a cabin un the front and a flat, open tray at the back for carrying tools or equipment.
A second-hand or used car is one that someone else owned before you.
Learning focus:
Australian English includes some words that are uniquely Australian, and others that come from the English spoken in other parts of the world, particularly North America and Great Britain. In the dialogue you can see a few of these. See some of the equivalents below:
Australian English | British English | American English |
Petrol | Petrol | Gas |
Servo (short for service station) | Petrol station | Gas station |
Ride or lift (taking someone by car) | Lift | Ride |
Cars/wheels/ride | Car/wheels | Car/wheels/ride |
Boot | Boot | Trunk |
They are all perfectly fine to use!!
A big thank you to SBS Dutch producer Paulien Roessink, who interviewed the participants of the World Solar Challenge 2025 race: Kevin van der Putte from the Innoptus Solar Team and Daniël Blik from Solar Team Twente.
Paul Nicholson and Lily O'Sullivan voiced the characters of Allan and Claire, and Professor Lynda Yates was our educational consultant.
상단의 오디오를 재생하시면 팟캐스트를 들으실 수 있습니다.
호주 공영방송 SBS(Special Broadcasting Service) 한국어 프로그램의 페이스북과 인스타그램을 팔로우하세요. 구글플레이와 애플 앱스토어에서 SBS Audio 앱을 다운로드할 수 있습니다.
