Re that old Madonna number Hanky Panky ("Nothing like a good spanky!"), & the lines "All I want is the back of your hand Somewhere on my behind". It occurs to me that, to us, 'the back of the hand' means the knuckle side, which might sometimes be used aggressively across the face but it would be difficult to administer in a spanking on the buttocks, and what she must have meant was what we would call "The flat of the your hand", ie the palm side.

So have I got it right that Americans think of the hand the opposite way around from us ie, with its 'back' on the opposite side?

~M~