Words & TermsPeople and character
wowser
Also: wowserish, wowserism, wowserdom
A puritanical person who disapproves of drinking or pleasure.
In a sentence
The editorial dismissed every festival critic as a wowser.
Where it came from
Wowser is recorded from 1900 and became a political label for a puritanical killjoy. Its origin is uncertain; newspaper editor John Norton claimed the coinage, but British dialect influence is also possible.
- First recorded
- 1900
- Initial era
- 1900–1949
- Where used
- Australia-wide