Canadian expat reveals the VERY surprising and unique slang term only Australians use
A Canadian influencer has noticed a very unique phrase that all Australians use, but he can’t figure it out.
Josiah Hein is currently travelling through Australia and talks about the strange differences between Australia and his native Canada.
Josiah shared a short video on TikTok, where he has 88,000 followers, that appeared to be filmed at a Costco.
The friendly influencer said he was surprised by the way Australians often use the word ‘keen’ to express enthusiasm or excitement.
“In Australia they say ‘keen’ instead of ‘down’ or ‘I’m keen’ instead of ‘I’m down,’” Josiah said in the clip.
‘So if you’re like, “Dude, you wanna go to the movies?” They’ll just text you, “Keen.” Everyone I know would say “down,” or “I’m down bro, count me in,” but here it’s more like “keen.”‘
Josiah also couldn’t explain the longer version of the Australian slang term.
“Sometimes Australians say, ‘I love it, bro,’” he said with an ironic, quizzical grin.
Canadian TikToker Josiah Hein has revealed he was surprised by the way Australians often use the word ‘keen’ to express enthusiasm or excitement
Josiah’s followers in the Antipodes quickly instructed him in the local linguistics.
‘Because “keen” is a real word in the dictionary that means eager. You saying I’m in the mood is slang,’ wrote one follower.
Others were quick to point out that the term ‘keen as mustard’ derives from the much-loved Keens Mustard Powder, which has long been a staple in the Australian pantry.
However, one fan suggested that the snake was not Australian in origin at all, but rather came from American TV series such as The Brady Bunch.
“I’m pretty sure this is from the American TV series from the 50s and 60s,” they said. “I’m a peach-enthusiastic Marcia Marcia Marcia.”
Even Josiah couldn’t explain the longer version, it was as sharp as mustard.
One pedantic fan, however, saw even more nuance in the discussion, stating that “great” doesn’t necessarily mean “down.”
“Keen is eager, but not yet a definite ‘yes,'” they wrote.
In 2023, Josiah angered many Australians by mispronouncing the Australian cities of Melbourne and Canberra in an “angry” video.
When Josiah arrived in the Australian Capital Territory, he called it ‘act’ instead of ACT. He said it was ‘confusing’ that a city ‘nobody’s heard of’ was the capital of Australia.
He also mispronounced Melbourne as ‘Mell-born’ instead of ‘Mel-bin’ and Canberra as ‘Cane-berr-ah’ instead of ‘Can-brah’.
Josiah’s followers on the Antipodes were quick to instruct him in the local linguistics