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fessée

spanking, smack on the bottom

noun feh-SEH Rare

Origin: From fesse (buttock)

Usage Note

Fessée comes from fesse (f), meaning buttock. Physical punishment of children (la fessée) was legally banned in France in 2019. The word appears in discussions of child-rearing, legal debates, and colloquial speech. The related verb fesser (to spank) is informal and now carries legal connotations.

Examples

"Les parents ne peuvent plus donner de fessée à leurs enfants en France."

Natural Translation

Parents can no longer spank their children in France.

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