Plonk

๐Ÿบ noun ยท Food & Drink
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1910s Still common
Definition
Cheap wine.
Example Sentence
"Brought some plonk to the party."

Where "Plonk" Comes From

Believed to trace back to World War I soldiers' slang, itself a garbled version of the French "vin blanc" (white wine), which English-speaking troops mangled into "vin blonc" and eventually "plonk."

The term crossed into everyday Australian English and stuck, evolving into a catch-all word for wine โ€” especially the cheap, no-frills variety.

Word Type
Noun
Category
๐Ÿบ Food & Drink
Origin
๐Ÿ‡ฆ๐Ÿ‡บ Australian English
Usage
Informal / Spoken
Era
1910s

How Aussies Actually Use It

Almost always signals cheap, unpretentious wine rather than anything fancy โ€” "brought some plonk to the party" is a modest, budget-friendly offering, not a boast.

It's a fixture of casual gatherings, share houses, and backyard barbecues, often referring to cask wine or the cheapest bottle on the shelf.

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