Isabelle Burke

Research Fellow, Linguistics, Faculty of Arts isabelle.burke@monash.edu

Core expertise

Linguistics

Biography

Isabelle is a research fellow in linguistics in the Faculty of Arts. Her research interests include the study of Australian English.

articles

‘Yeah-nah’ comes back stronger – with a little help from Taylor Swift

She’s brilliant at acknowledging local culture and using colloquial phrases to connect with her audiences. And she nailed it with “yeah-nah”.

Politics and society

Barry Humphries tipping his hat towards the camera

How Barry Humphries breathed life into Australian slang

Through characters such as Bazza McKenzie, the late comedian promoted Australian vernacular – the witty, the crude, and both – to new audiences.

Politics and society

When saying ‘a bit’ can mean a lot

It’s one of those hard-working little linguistic scraps like “you know” or “I mean”, but there’s also a rich vein of humour in the little discourse marker “a bit”.

Politics and society

What’s that you're (not) saying? Filling in the blanks of elliptical slang

The beauty of language isn’t always in the words a phrase contains, but in the words it doesn’t.

Politics and society

Going goon, and getting on the grog

How do Australians like to talk about alcohol in 2022? Do they get on the turps, or just have a few sherbets? Have a bevvie or a cold one or a cleanser?

Politics and society

Yeah, nah: Aussie slang hasn’t carked it, but we do want to know more about it

An extensive study is underway to catalogue Australian slang, its origins, and why it’s such an important part of our language.

Politics and society