# beast with two backs

> English word · Noun

## Definitions
1. Two people united in sexual intercourse in the missionary position.

## Etymology
First attested in English by William Shakespeare, see quotations.
Supposedly a calque of French la beste à deux doz (in modern French, la bête à deux dos) from Gargantua and Pantagruel, 1534, by François Rabelais.

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/beast-with-two-backs