(Australian) The statutory authority responsible for providing social security payments.
(Australian) The statutory authority responsible for providing social security payments.
"Centrelink" means: The statutory authority responsible for providing social security payments.. This is a fairly neutral word with no inherent risk attached. There is no real cause for parental concern; it is descriptive vocabulary rather than something dangerous. If your child uses it, context will usually make the meaning clear. A brief, curious question about where they heard it is generally enough to know whether to follow up.
"Centrelink" means: The statutory authority responsible for providing social security payments.. This is a fairly neutral word with no inherent risk attached. There is no real cause for parental concern; it is descriptive vocabulary rather than something dangerous. If your child uses it, context will usually make the meaning clear. A brief, curious question about where they heard it is generally enough to know whether to follow up.
Slang is read by different audiences for very different reasons. The For parents view re-explains the term in plain, non-judgemental language so a caregiver can understand what their child means without needing the surrounding subculture. The For English learners view focuses on register (when it's safe to use), formal alternatives, and common mistakes — what a textbook won't teach you.
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Aussie and Kiwi vocabulary — bogan, daggy, brekkie, sheila, bach, jandals — the whole Antipodean lexicon, including outback dialect, surf and beach culture, and Sydney/Melbourne street slang.
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(chiefly, Australian, colloquial) An automated process of debt recovery, especially that employed by Centrelink.
(Canada) A non-profit facility providing social and community services to Indigenous people living in an urban centre.
(Australia) An immigration detention facility; a facility in which people who have attempted to enter Australia without prior authorisation are detained, pending a decision on whether they are to be accepted as refugees or returned to their country of origin.
(British) A government-funded agency that helps the unemployed to find work; a local office of this agency.
"Centrelink" means: The statutory authority responsible for providing social security payments.. Register: neutral, standard English, usable in most everyday contexts. Note the regional or dialect label (Australian) — usage may sound odd outside that variety. A common non-native mistake is to use the word in the wrong register, or to assume one fixed meaning when it is actually polysemous; always check the surrounding register and the audience before producing it yourself. In formal writing, prefer a neutral synonym or a short descriptive phrase, and use this word only when you have heard or read it being used naturally in a comparable context.
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(British) A means-tested government benefit available to jobseekers.