Frenchie

English

Etymology

From French +‎ -ie.

Pronunciation

• Audio (General Australian):

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Noun

Frenchie (plural Frenchies)

1. Alternative spelling of Frenchy (“French person”)
2. (UK, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, slang) A condom; abbreviated form of French letter.

   Synonyms: see Thesaurus:condom

   • 1985, “Delerium Tremens” (track 2), in Ordinary Man‎^[1], performed by Christy Moore:

     I dreamt that Ruairi Quinn was smokin' marijuana in the Dail. Barry Desmond handing Frenchies out to scuts in Fianna Fail.

   • 2002 February 7, Janine Burgess, “Armour against pleasure?”, in The Timaru Herald:

     Gone are the terms we used in our youth the frenchies, frangers, rubbers, joes, french letters, gumboots, rubbers, johnnies, parachutes and plastic fantastics — these days they're just condoms.

   • 2004, Paul Sendziuk, Learning to Trust: Australian Responses to AIDS:

     The poster was designed by Aboriginal health workers in northern Queensland for use in remote Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities, where the slogan was sometimes modified to ‘Use Frenchies’ because the word ‘condom’ was not in common use.

3. (colloquial) A French Bulldog.
4. (slang) A French kiss.
   • 2014, J. David Simons, The Credit Draper:

     “Kiss me,” she said.
     He heard a giggle from Molly.
     “Give her a Frenchie,” Solly said.

Proper noun

Frenchie (plural Frenchies)

1. Alternative form of Frenchy (“name”)