Tawse

The tawse, sometimes formerly spelled taws (the plural of Scots taw, a thong of a whip), is an implement for corporal punishment applied either to the buttocks (see spanking) or the palm of the hand (known as hand tawsing). The tawse is a leather strap that has one end split into one or more prongs. A spanking administered with a tawse is technically known as tawsing, although the terms strapping and belting may be used to describe it.

The general sensation from a tawsing is a stinging that gives way to more notable burning and throbbing pain, however the exact experience will be influenced by factors such as: the number of strokes administered, the speed at which the strokes are administered, the force behind the strokes, the thickness of the tawse itself (with a thicker tawse typically resulting in greater intensity), and the individual's pain tolerance.

The tawse is associated with Scotland, particularly in educational discipline, but it was also used in schools in a few English cities, e.g., Newcastle upon Tyne, Gateshead, Liverpool, Manchester and Walsall. In this British educational context, the official name "tawse" was hardly ever used in conversation by either teachers or pupils, who instead referred to it as either the school strap or the belt.

Tawsing can be done as a consensual activity between adults as part of erotic spanking, a form of impact play.