Words for underwear: panties, knickers etc.

I have a thing for women's underwear (not just slips) and the subject of what word women use for their underwear has interested me for a while.

The main word I know for women's underwear is knickers. When I was growing up I was basically taught 'girls wear knickers, boys wear pants'. Throughout my life this is by far the most common word I've heard British women use.

As an adult, I've also heard women call them pants or just underwear  but knickers was the most common. 'Knickers' is my favourite word for them, probably because it's what I've actually heard women using in real life the most.

Then there's the word panties... as far as I know this is an American word that has crept into British English. British men seem to use this word sometimes (e.g. in writing) as a sexier substitute for 'knickers', but in my experience almost no British women call their underwear 'panties' (and they don't like the word).

I have encountered British women who do though... I was once discussing the subject of going commando with a then-girlfriend, and she said quite matter-of-factly "I don't always wear panties." She didn't always do it, but she seemed to use the words 'panties' and 'pants', but never 'knickers'... interesting.

Some words I've heard more rarely used: undies sometimes (although something about it is a bit childish for my taste).
A few times I heard women shorten knickers to 'knicks' (I remember hearing one of my mum's friends once saying "I bought a couple of new bras and new knicks.") Again, I find it a little bit too childish-sounding to be sexy.

A really odd one is 'frillies'. This one sounds a bit dirty-old-man like, and I can imagine it's a word young people or women have never used. But I remember hearing it on TV a few times as a kid: I remember a woman in a sitcom tripping over, and then saying to another character in the next scene "Then I fell over and flashed me frillies at the whole street!"


So, what word do you use for women's underwear? Are there any particularly unusual words you've heard women use? Comments welcome.

I am in my early forties and any women I know have describe their underwear as pants, unless they are wearing French knickers in which case they were described as frilly knicks because of the lace on them.

In my area, when I was growing up, pants was used for both boys and girls. The word knickers was there as well but was mainly used in the "I can see your knickers" scenario. Knickers would be more commonly used now. Panties was mainly used by comedians especially in a French accent.