Consent & boundaries

FRIES consent model

AlsoFRIESFRIESfreely given reversible informed enthusiastic specificFRIES acronym

Definition

FRIES is a memory aid for the qualities of meaningful consent: Freely given, Reversible, Informed, Enthusiastic and Specific.

At a glance

  • FRIES stands for Freely given, Reversible, Informed, Enthusiastic and Specific.
  • It is a teaching tool, not a legal test.
  • Specific means agreeing to one thing is not agreeing to everything.
  • Often used in schools, workshops and dating guides.

In detail

The acronym was popularised by sexual health educators, including Planned Parenthood, as an easy way to teach what consent involves. Freely given means without pressure; reversible means it can be withdrawn; informed means based on honest information; enthusiastic means genuinely wanted; specific means agreement to one thing is not agreement to everything.

FRIES is a teaching tool rather than a legal test. It is often used in schools, workshops and dating guides to start conversations about what good consent feels like in practice.

In a sentence

  • Our teacher used FRIES to explain consent, and the reversible part stuck with me.
  • If it fails any part of FRIES, it is not real consent.

Where the word comes from

The acronym was popularised by sexual health educators, including Planned Parenthood, as an easy-to-remember summary of what consent involves.

Common questions

What does FRIES stand for?

Freely given, Reversible, Informed, Enthusiastic and Specific. Together these describe consent that is given without pressure, can be taken back, is based on honest information, is genuinely wanted and applies to a particular activity.

Is FRIES a legal definition of consent?

No. It is an educational memory aid. Legal definitions of consent vary between countries and states.

Related terms