What does budgie mean?
A budgie is the familiar informal name for the budgerigar, a small, long-tailed parakeet native to the dry grasslands of Australia. Budgies are among the most popular cage birds in the world, prized for their bright plumage — typically green and yellow in wild-type birds, but bred in many colour varieties — their cheerful chirping, and their remarkable ability to learn words and tunes. The term is chiefly British and Australian in flavour, though it is understood everywhere the bird itself is kept. Because it is a clipped, affectionate form, "budgie" suits everyday conversation rather than formal scientific writing, where "budgerigar" (Melopsittacus undulatus) is preferred. The word has also entered idiomatic English through the Australian slang compound "budgie smugglers," a humorous term for very brief men's swimwear. Compact, friendly, and instantly recognisable to bird lovers, "budgie" is a useful word for anyone writing about pets, birds, or colloquial English.
nounAn informal name for a budgerigar, a small, long-tailed Australian parakeet kept widely as a cage bird and often brightly coloured.
- Informal short form of budgerigar: a small Australian parakeet commonly kept as a pet.
"She taught her budgie to whistle the opening notes of her favourite song."
"The children begged for a budgie after visiting the aviary at the zoo."
"He wore a pair of bright green budgie smugglers on the beach, to everyone's amusement."
Standard regular plural; used when referring to multiple birds of the species.
"The pet shop had a row of cages full of chirping budgies."
Australians gave the world 'budgie smugglers' — slang for skimpy men's swimwear so tight it looks like the wearer has smuggled a small parrot inside.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of budgie
"Budgie" arose as an informal shortening of "budgerigar," which entered English from Australian Aboriginal sources — most accounts trace it to a word in an Indigenous language of New South Wales, such as Gamilaraay (Kamilaroi), meaning roughly "good bird" or "good food." The longer form became current in English during the nineteenth century as the species was exported worldwide as a cage bird, and the shortened "budgie" developed naturally in colloquial speech, especially in Britain and Australia. No classical Latin or Greek root is involved, so there are no European cognates.
How budgie is actually used
"Budgie" is an informal, affectionate clipping of "budgerigar," used especially in British and Australian English. It carries a light, domestic connotation and appears in playful compounds such as "budgie smugglers." In formal ornithological writing, "budgerigar" or "shell parakeet" is preferred.