What does durry mean?
A durry is an informal Australian and New Zealand term for a cigarette. The word belongs firmly to colloquial speech: you are unlikely to encounter it in news reports or formal documents, but it is common in everyday conversation, especially in workplaces and social settings where smoking breaks are part of the routine. Someone might say they are stepping outside for a durry, or that they rolled their own durries. The term carries a relaxed, often working-class connotation and is frequently heard alongside other Australasian slang such as smoko, the traditional break from work. Its plural is simply durrries. Because the word is regionally restricted, speakers elsewhere may find it unfamiliar, and it should not be confused with dhurrie, the flat-woven Indian rug that shares a similar spelling. For learners of English, durry is a useful word chiefly for understanding informal Australian conversation and media rather than for formal use, and it sits comfortably within the rich local vocabulary surrounding cigarettes and smoking culture.
nounA cigarette. Used almost exclusively as informal slang in Australian and New Zealand English.
- A cigarette (Australian and New Zealand informal slang).
"He stepped out back for a quick durry before the meeting started."
"I'm popping outside for a durry — want anything from the servo?"
"The tradies knocked off early and lit up a couple of durrries on the veranda."
Regular plural formed by doubling the r before adding -ies.
"The ashtray on the site bench was full of crushed durrries by lunchtime."
In Australia, nobody 'has a smoke' at smoko — they duck out for a durry.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of durry
The origins of durry are uncertain, which is not unusual for colloquial slang of this kind. It emerged in Australian English, and some sources suggest a possible link to a word for tobacco or a crude cigarette borrowed from an Indian language during the colonial era, but this connection has not been firmly established and dictionaries generally label the etymology obscure. What is clear is that the word became established in twentieth-century Australian and New Zealand vernacular, where it remains the standard informal term for a cigarette.
How durry is actually used
Strictly colloquial and regional to Australia and New Zealand; it would sound out of place in formal writing or outside Australasia. Like most slang for cigarettes, it carries casual or working-class connotations and can sound jocular rather than neutral.
Easily confused with durry
A dhurrie is a flat-woven cotton rug from India, whereas a durry is slang for a cigarette.