| 释义 |
Speewah, n. Austral.|ˈspiːwɑː|
Also Speewa, etc.
[The name of a remote locality reputedly north-west of Swan Hill in Victoria, and of a legendary sheep station supposedly situated there.]
An imaginary place used as the setting for unlikely and tall stories of the Australian outback. Also, a story of this kind.
1890Truth (Sydney) 16 Nov. 1/4 Dear Mr Truth—I have just returned from ‘the Spewah country’, where we have to crawl on our hands and knees to get under the clouds. 1911Bulletin (Sydney) 17 Aug. 14/3 If any snagger boasted of having shorn 32 sheep in the breakfast ‘run’, there was always someone present to mention that ‘Crooked Mick’, at Speewah, had done 33 in the same time. 1944A. Marshall These are My People 154, I had heard of Speewa, that mythical station used as a setting for all the lies put over on new-chums... It's a big place. When I was there they had to get two Chinese to mix the mustard with long-handled shovels. 1962Australasian Post 25 Oct. 38 The Speewah lies way out west o' sunset where the crows fly backwards to see where they're coming from. 1965B. Wannan Fair Go, Spinner ii. 64, I had a relation on Speewah station. He told me what he'd seen there; I won't deny it sounds a lie But then I've never been there. 1979Courier-Mail (Brisbane) 12 May 1/2 Each must tell a speerwah, or bush yarn, for more than four minutes. |