1. Originally referred to poor, homeless itinerant workers in the USA. These original hobos travelled from town to town seeking temporary employment, usually along the lines of physical labour. They are traditionally associated with freighthopping (illegally riding in the carriages of freight trains). See also drifter, vagabond and okie.
2. Nowadays commonly used throughout the English-speaking world to refer to any homeless person. See also bum, tramp and beggar.
Traditional hobos are often romanticized in popular culture, for example in the books "Of Mice and Men" by John Steinbeck and "On the Road" by Jack Kerouac and in the music of Woody Guthrie.
The portrayal of modern homeless people, however, is usually much less favourable, with a widespread belief that homelessness is self-inflicted and that these "bums" should "just get jobs".
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1. In France, "mรยฉtis" is a general word referring to anyone who is mixed race.
2. In Canada and the northern USA, the Mรยฉtis are a distinct ethnic group, descended from French and Scottish men who married Amerindian (mostly Cree, Ojibwa and Algonquin) women.
There are around 390,000 people in Canada who identify as belonging to the Mรยฉtis people: around 1.3% of the Canadian population.
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1. <noun> A person from New Zealand. The term is very commonly used because the alternative, "New Zealander", is perceived as being kind of long and cumbersome.
2. <adjective> From, of or relating to New Zealand. This term is very commonly used because the country of New Zealand doesn't really have any other adjective ("New Zealandic" or "New Zealandish" are not correct).
3. <noun> A small, brown flightless bird indigenous to New Zealand. A common national symbol for New Zealand.
4. <noun> A fruit (also known as a "kiwifruit", a "Chinese gooseberry" or a "melonette") which originates from southern China, but is today grown in many parts of the world, notably Italy and New Zealand.
1. Kiwis have cooler accents than Aussies!
2. A Kiwi family moved in next door.
3. I'd love to see a kiwi in the wild.
4. A single kiwi isn't much of a lunch!
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1. A person who travels independently, typically on a low budget, usually staying in hostels or with locals rather than in hotels. Usually aged between 18 and 30 but can be older. Backpackers often travel for several months at a time, and do not consider their trip to be a "holiday". Due to the fact that backpacking was popularized by the hippie movement in the 1960s, there is some association of backpackers with aspects of counterculture.
2. A fan of certain types of "alternative" hip-hop. When used as a derogatory term, it can imply that the individual is suburban/middle class and listens to "nerd rap" rather than "real rap". When used as a neutral term of description, it can imply that the individual listens to thought-provoking, original, intellectual hip-hop. The term is especially associated with fans of the record label Definitive Jux.
1. "Last night I went out for a spliff with a bunch of Australian backpackers I met in a club, they were pretty cool guys."
2. "Oh I'm not really into that whole artsy backpacker scene, I prefer straight-up rap music, stuff like 2Pac and N.W.A."
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Originally a derogatory term for Romani people, who were known by the British population as gypsies because it was falsely believed that they originated from Egypt.
With the arrival of Irish Travellers in Britain, the terms "gyppo" and "gypsy" were also applied to these people.
Nowadays the term "gyppo", like "pikey", is often used as an insult to refer to anyone who is perceived to be poor, dirty, smelly and/or inclined to theft.
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A mildly derogatory term used by Australians and Kiwis to refer to the English people. The term originates from the abbreviation "PoHM", which stood for "Prisoner of Her Majesty" and was used to describe the convicts shipped from Britain and Ireland to Australia in the 18th and 19th centuries. The term was turned on its head, and is used in reference to the fact that the English are still, in the 21st century, stuck in Britain, while the Australians are now free from the British Government, living in independent Australia.
It's pronounced like "pom".
We're definitely gonna beat the Pohms at cricket!
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1. British term used to refer collectively to two separate traditionally-nomadic groups found in the UK: Irish Travellers (also known as Pavee, tinkers and pikeys) and Romani (also known as Roma, Romany, Romanichals, Romnichals and Kale). The term is used to replace the traditional term "gypsy", which is now considered offensive by some. The term refers to members of these two groups regardless of whether they actually live a nomadic or sedentary lifestyle.
2. A term used by people who are travelling away from home, but have distaste for the terms "tourist" and "holidaymaker". Travellers are often said to be distinct from tourists/holidaymakers due to the fact that they travel for longer periods of time, seeing a variety of places in one trip, and make an effort to experience the real spirit of the places they visit, rather than just tourist resorts. Those who self-describe as travellers are also often travelling on a tighter budget than traditional tourists, staying in hostels rather than hotels. A roughly synonymous term is "backpacker".
1. Although the Romani and the Irish Travellers have very different histories and cultures, the majority of the British population are unaware of existence of two distinct groups, and consider both to be "gypsies" or "travellers".
2. The great thing about staying in hostels is the opportunity to meet and hang out with other travellers, from all over the world.
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