nong

See also nóng, nǒng, and nòng

English

Etymology

Probably shortened from ning-nong.

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA: /nɒŋ/

Noun

nong (plural nongs)

1. (slang, Australia, New Zealand) An idiot.
   • 1983, Robert Drewe, The Bodysurfers, Penguin 2009, p. 126:

     ‘In there, you nong,’ Max said, pointing out a pink-brick home with a 1950s skillion roof.

   • 2008, Michael Panckridge, Hat Trick! Toby Jones, Books 1-3, 2010, unnumbered page,

     ‘You guys are such nongs! Why would you want to face up to Shoaib Akhtar when you could win a World Cup against the young blond Aussie star at the home of cricket?’

   • 2010, John Dale (editor), Best on Ground: Great Writers on the Greatest Game, unnumbered page,

     […] and spend every second Saturday defiant and one-eyed among the opposition nongs at the Barkly Street end.

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Mandarin

Romanization

nong

1. Nonstandard spelling of nóng.
2. Nonstandard spelling of nǒng.
3. Nonstandard spelling of nòng.

Usage notes

English transcriptions of Chinese speech often fail to distinguish between the critical tonal differences employed in the Chinese language, using words such as this one without the appropriate indication of tone.