12+3

A popular abbreviation in BDSM, usually interpreted as "12 strokes + the usual 3", is used to denote rough impact play or merciless corporal punishment, more severe than usual. In the past years, especially in online communication, the term has taken on a more negative connotation and is used by some submissives and by many spankees to mean exaggeration mostly by potential Dominants.

There are different versions of the origin of the expression 12+3 and its entry into BDSM jargon. It is most commonly believed to come from the traditional number of strokes with a rattan cane, given consecutively and constituting a series of 12 strokes (a dozen canes), imposed as corporal punishment in many English schools from the late 19th and first half of the 20th century, and also in some schools in continental Europe. When the teacher or educator who carried out the punishment wanted to be strict, he added a few more blows (usually up to 3) to the allotted dozen to prolong the duration of the punishment and increase its severity. To the extent that the punished student expected a series of 12 strokes, but still until the very end did not rule out receiving from the "usual" 3, this made the punishment even more painful.

Sometimes the expression 12+3 is misspelled as 12+12 (usually interpreted as two dozen) when the intended meaning is the same.

See corporal punishment and domestic discipline.

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