Reflections on 1831 "Jazz"

[Jonathon Green]

One use of _genou_ that seems to have been overlooked is 'faire du genou',
best translated as to 'play footsie' under the table. This is unashamedly
sexual and might well be seen as an overture to intercourse and thus one who
practises it will more than likely 'want to fuck'.

Whether the phr. extends back to 1616 I cannot say; it is in Barrere's
L'Argot (1902) and in subsequent slang dicts.

Jonathon Green