Phrases & SayingsWork, bush and rural life
put the billy on
Also: boil the billy
Prepare tea by boiling water in a billy.
In a sentence
Put the billy on and we'll have a cuppa before we head back.
Where it came from
A billy is a metal pot used over a fire for boiling water. To ‘put the billy on’ literally means set it to boil, and by extension prepare tea.
- Where used
- Australia-wide