Word.ws English Dictionary

waltz Matilda

/ˈwɔːl(t)s məˈtɪldə/

waltz Matilda verb: to travel on foot carrying a swag (belongings wrapped in a blanket); to travel in this manner looking for work.

Verb

waltz Matilda (third-person singular simple present waltzes Matilda, present participle waltzing Matilda, simple past and past participle waltzed Matilda)

  1. (Australia) To travel on foot carrying a swag (belongings wrapped in a blanket); to travel in this manner looking for work.
    • Coercionist Byrnes tells an S. M. Herald reporter that things in Queensland are eminently satisfactory. He doesn't "Waltz Matilda," evidently.1894 December 29, The Worker, Brisbane, page 3, column 6
    • As far as I was concerned the choice was Alice Springs, the center of the great Outback or a box car. There was no contest. I was ready to waltz Matilda.2002, Stuart Dick, Outback to Asia, page 163

Forms of waltz Matilda

third-person singular presentwaltzes Matilda
present participlewaltzing Matilda
past participlewaltzed Matilda
pastwaltzed Matilda

Origin of waltz Matilda

From waltz + matilda (“romantic name for a swag”).

Questions about waltz Matilda

What does waltz Matilda mean?
Waltz Matilda means to travel on foot carrying a swag (belongings wrapped in a blanket); to travel in this manner looking for work.
What part of speech is waltz Matilda?
Waltz Matilda is a verb.
How do you pronounce waltz Matilda?
Waltz Matilda is pronounced /ˈwɔːl(t)s məˈtɪldə/.
What is the past tense of waltz Matilda?
The past tense of waltz Matilda is waltzed Matilda.

Words near waltz Matilda in the dictionary

  1. Waltrip
  2. Walts
  3. Waltses
  4. walty
  5. waltz
  6. waltz Matilda
  7. waltz time
  8. waltz times
  9. waltzed
  10. waltzed Matilda
  11. waltzer

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: waltz Matilda (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: en-au-waltz Matilda.ogg.

Cite this entry: “waltz Matilda.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/waltz_matilda. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.