This week’s post on Common Aussie Slang is linked to last week’s, chuck a sickie, but it doesn’t have the same meaning. Crook is an interesting word in English as it has a number of different meanings.
The most common definition is an informal word for someone who is really dishonest, especially a criminal or a cheat. When crook is used in this way it’s a noun so it’ll often have an article in front of it (a/the crook).
“Watch out for him. He’s a real crook.”
“They didn’t realise it at the time, but the crook had stolen all their money.”
The third definition of crook is a long stick with a curved end, especially one carried by a shepherd or a bishop.
“The shepherd’s crook was not to beat the sheep, but to catch hold of them if they went somewhere dangerous where the shepherd was unable to reach.”
In Aussie slang, though, ‘crook’ has a different meaning again. I’ll give you a couple of examples of how it can be used.
Example 1:
A: You look a bit pale. Are you feeling alright?
B: Nah, I’ve been feeling crook since last night.
Example 2:
A: Hey, John, did you chuck a sickie last Friday?
B: No, I was actually really crook. I had to go to the hospital.
From these examples you have probably been able to work out that ‘crook’ means ‘ill’ or ‘unwell’ in Aussie slang. It’s not a negative or offensive word, but it is informal and is usually used when speaking to friends or family.
So, as you can see, it’s important to listen carefully to how ‘crook’ is used in a sentence as it has a few very different definitions. Are there any words in your mother tongue that have multiple and different meanings? Let me know in the comments section below.
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Glossary
informal – (of clothing, behaviour, speech) suitable when you are with friends and family but not for official occasions
dishonest – not honest, someone who tells lies, cheats and cannot be trusted
criminal – someone who commits a crime (an illegal activity)
cheat – to behave in a dishonest way in order to get what you want
article [grammar] – any of the English words ‘a’, ‘an’, and ‘the’, or words in other languages that do the same job as these
stolen – past participle of steal, to take something without the permission or knowledge of the owner and keep it
shepherd – a person whose job is to take care of sheep and to move them from one place to another
bishop – a priest of high rank who is in charge of priests of lower rank in a particular area
beat – to hit many times
offensive – causing someone to feel resentful, upset, or annoyed
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