banana bender
- noun
- Australian
:
fiesta loca
- He's always the life of the party, a real banana bender among his friends.
Examples
-
Last night, we had a wild banana bender at Jake's house!
-
They threw a banana bender to celebrate the end of exams.
-
The night quickly became a banana bender after everyone showed up with drinks.
-
Are you ready for another banana bender this weekend?
-
The night quickly became a banana bender after everyone showed up with drinks.
-
They threw a banana bender to celebrate the end of exams.
-
Are you ready for another banana bender this weekend?
Synonyms
56
8.9
A period of heavy drinking and partying that lasts several days
24
8.4
A person who behaves in an odd or funny way
1
9.1
An insulting word for a person who acts very silly or strange
A period of heavy drinking and dangerous behavior lasting hours or days
A person who acts silly and playful
A person who behaves playfully and plays small tricks
Antonyms
How Wild
3
7.7
- Australian
- Informal
56
4.2
∞
1.0
- Informal
46
1.9
Surface Forms
Morphology
banana + bender
The headword 'bender' clearly signals a heavy-drinking spree or wild party, so a learner who knows that constituent will likely infer the sense of a boisterous drinking event. However, 'banana' here is a cultural/metaphorical modifier whose contribution (quirky, regional Aussie flavor) is not predictable from the fruit meaning, and the extension to an 'eccentric person' is also idiomatic. Because part of the meaning (party/binge) is derivable but the full sense relies on cultural/idiomatic use, this is best classified as semi-transparent.
Etymology
Banana bender likely mixes banana, a playful nod to warm places that grow bananas, and bender, an old word meaning 'to drink a lot'. One popular story says people in banana country liked big, noisy parties, so the phrase came to mean a wild party or a quirky person who is a bit 'bananas'.