Sexual slang is a set of
linguistic
Linguistics is the scientific study of language. The areas of linguistic analysis are syntax (rules governing the structure of sentences), semantics (meaning), Morphology (linguistics), morphology (structure of words), phonetics (speech sounds ...
terms and phrases used to refer to sexual organs, processes, and activities; they are generally considered
colloquial
Colloquialism (also called ''colloquial language'', ''colloquial speech'', ''everyday language'', or ''general parlance'') is the linguistic style used for casual and informal communication. It is the most common form of speech in conversation amo ...
rather than formal or medical, and some may be seen as impolite or improper.
Related to sexual slang is slang related to
defecation
Defecation (or defaecation) follows digestion and is the necessary biological process by which organisms eliminate a solid, semisolid, or liquid metabolic waste, waste material known as feces (or faeces) from the digestive tract via the anus o ...
and
flatulence
Flatulence is the expulsion of gas from the Gastrointestinal tract, intestines via the anus, commonly referred to as farting. "Flatus" is the medical word for gas generated in the stomach or bowels. A proportion of intestinal gas may be swal ...
(
toilet humor
Toilet humour or potty humour is a type of off-colour humour dealing with: defecation (including diarrhea and constipation), in which case it is called scatological humour (compare scatology); urination; flatulence, in which case it is called fla ...
,
scatolinguistics). References to the
anal tract are often given a sexual connotation in the context of
anal sex
Anal sex or anal intercourse principally means the insertion and pelvic thrusting, thrusting of the Erection, erect human penis, penis into a person's Human anus, anus, or anus and rectum, for sexual pleasure.Sepages 270–271for anal sex inform ...
(in particular, in a context of male homosexuality).
While popular usage is extremely versatile in coining ever new short-lived synonyms, old terms with originally no pejorative colouring may come to be considered inappropriate over time. Thus, terms like ''
arse/
ass
Ass most commonly refers to:
* Buttocks (in informal American English)
* Donkey or ass, ''Equus africanus asinus''
**any other member of the subgenus ''Asinus''
Ass or ASS may also refer to:
Art and entertainment
* Ass (album), ''Ass'' (albu ...
'', ''
cunt
"Cunt" () is a vulgar word for the vulva in its primary sense, and it is used in a variety of ways, including as a term of disparagement. "Cunt" is often used as a disparaging and obscene term for a woman in the United States, an unpleas ...
'', ''
cock'' and ''
fuck
''Fuck'' () is profanity in the English language that often refers to the act of sexual intercourse, but is also commonly used as an intensifier or to convey disdain. While its origin is obscure, it is usually considered to be first attested ...
'' should not be considered "
slang
A slang is a vocabulary (words, phrases, and linguistic usages) of an informal register, common in everyday conversation but avoided in formal writing and speech. It also often refers to the language exclusively used by the members of pa ...
," since they are the inherited common English terms for their referents, but they are often considered
vulgarisms and are replaced by
euphemism
A euphemism ( ) is when an expression that could offend or imply something unpleasant is replaced with one that is agreeable or inoffensive. Some euphemisms are intended to amuse, while others use bland, inoffensive terms for concepts that the u ...
s or scientific terminology in "polite" language.
Pejorative usage
Terms of disparagement are used to refer to members of a given
sexual minority,
gender
Gender is the range of social, psychological, cultural, and behavioral aspects of being a man (or boy), woman (or girl), or third gender. Although gender often corresponds to sex, a transgender person may identify with a gender other tha ...
,
sex, or
sexual orientation
Sexual orientation is an enduring personal pattern of romantic attraction or sexual attraction (or a combination of these) to persons of the opposite sex or gender, the same sex or gender, or to both sexes or more than one gender. Patterns ar ...
in a derogatory or pejorative manner. They are used as insults by persons who are not or do not wish to be associated with the group being disparaged. For example, ''
queer
''Queer'' is an umbrella term for people who are non-heterosexual or non- cisgender. Originally meaning or , ''queer'' came to be used pejoratively against LGBTQ people in the late 19th century. From the late 1980s, queer activists began to ...
'' can be used as an insult by those seeking to deprecate
homosexual
Homosexuality is romantic attraction, sexual attraction, or sexual behavior between people of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality is "an enduring pattern of emotional, romantic, and/or sexual attractions" exc ...
,
bisexual
Bisexuality is romantic attraction, sexual attraction, or sexual behavior toward both males and females. It may also be defined as the attraction to more than one gender, to people of both the same and different gender, or the attraction t ...
, and
transgender
A transgender (often shortened to trans) person has a gender identity different from that typically associated with the sex they were sex assignment, assigned at birth.
The opposite of ''transgender'' is ''cisgender'', which describes perso ...
or
transsexual
A transsexual person is someone who experiences a gender identity that is inconsistent with their assigned sex, and desires to permanently transition to the sex or gender with which they identify, usually seeking medical assistance (incl ...
people, but the word has also undergone
reclaiming
In linguistics, reappropriation, reclamation, or resignification is the cultural process by which a group reclaims words or artifacts that were previously used in a way disparaging of that group. It is a specific form of a semantic change (i. ...
, such that it can be used positively within that community. Which terms are used as slurs is determined by a society's or subculture's set of values, especially its biases against genders (
sexism
Sexism is prejudice or discrimination based on one's sex or gender. Sexism can affect anyone, but primarily affects women and girls. It has been linked to gender roles and stereotypes, and may include the belief that one sex or gender is int ...
). For example, words such as ''
whore'' and ''
slut'' are typically used to refer to
sexually promiscuous women.
Sexual slurs are common across many cultures and historical periods. The most common slurs directed against men historically include accusations of being a passive homosexual (
Aristophanes
Aristophanes (; ; ) was an Ancient Greece, Ancient Greek Ancient Greek comedy, comic playwright from Classical Athens, Athens. He wrote in total forty plays, of which eleven survive virtually complete today. The majority of his surviving play ...
notably enjoyed using such allusions) or of being
effeminate
Effeminacy or male femininity is the embodiment of feminine traits in boys or men, particularly those considered untypical of men or masculinity. These traits include roles, stereotypes, behaviors, and appearances that are socially associated wi ...
; for example, in the
Hittite military oath, oath-breakers are threatened with being made into women (a promise of either actual
castration
Castration is any action, surgery, surgical, chemical substance, chemical, or otherwise, by which a male loses use of the testicles: the male gonad. Surgical castration is bilateral orchiectomy (excision of both testicles), while chemical cas ...
, or of divine revenge on the traitors' manhood).
The pejorative term
prick for a contemptible person is also usually used for men.
Sexual slang and humor
In the popular
jargon
Jargon, or technical language, is the specialized terminology associated with a particular field or area of activity. Jargon is normally employed in a particular Context (language use), communicative context and may not be well understood outside ...
of many
culture
Culture ( ) is a concept that encompasses the social behavior, institutions, and Social norm, norms found in human societies, as well as the knowledge, beliefs, arts, laws, Social norm, customs, capabilities, Attitude (psychology), attitudes ...
s, the use of sexual slang is a form of
humor
Humour ( Commonwealth English) or humor (American English) is the tendency of experiences to provoke laughter and provide amusement. The term derives from the humoral medicine of the ancient Greeks, which taught that the balance of fluids i ...
or
euphemism
A euphemism ( ) is when an expression that could offend or imply something unpleasant is replaced with one that is agreeable or inoffensive. Some euphemisms are intended to amuse, while others use bland, inoffensive terms for concepts that the u ...
that often creates controversy over its public use. Sexual humor has been seen in many circles as crude and unsophisticated, as well as insulting towards the subject it describes. Sexual slang has a long history in literature and comedy: examples from
Shakespeare
William Shakespeare ( 23 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's natio ...
are well-known. The popularity of contemporary
comedian
A comedian (feminine comedienne) or comic is a person who seeks to entertainment, entertain an audience by making them laughter, laugh. This might be through jokes or amusing situations, or acting foolishly (as in slapstick), or employing prop c ...
s who indulge in sexual humor, from
George Carlin
George Denis Patrick Carlin (May 12, 1937 – June 22, 2008) was an American stand-up comedian, social critic, actor and author. Regarded as one of the greatest and most influential comedians of all time, he was dubbed "the dean of countercultur ...
to
Andrew Dice Clay
Andrew Dice Clay (born Andrew Clay Silverstein; September 29, 1957) is an American stand-up comedian and actor. He rose to prominence in the late 1980s with a brash, deliberately offensive persona known as "The Diceman". In 1990, he became the f ...
, reflects the appeal of this form of speech. It is often seen as a form of
taboo
A taboo is a social group's ban, prohibition or avoidance of something (usually an utterance or behavior) based on the group's sense that it is excessively repulsive, offensive, sacred or allowed only for certain people.''Encyclopædia Britannica ...
, in which much of the appeal lies in the shock value of daring to speak "forbidden" words in public.
Examples
*
Bareback – sexual penetration without a
condom
A condom is a sheath-shaped Barrier contraception, barrier device used during sexual intercourse to reduce the probability of pregnancy or a Sexually transmitted disease, sexually transmitted infection (STI). There are both external condo ...
.
*
Bukkake
is a sex act in which one person is ejaculated on by multiple males. It is often portrayed in pornographic films.
Bukkake videos are a relatively prevalent niche in contemporary pornographic films. Originating in Japan in the 1980s, the g ...
– a group of men masturbating and ejaculating onto a single person.
*
Circle jerk – when a group of males masturbate in a circle.
*
Creampie – when someone ejaculates inside their partner's vagina or anus, resulting in
semen
Semen, also known as seminal fluid, is a bodily fluid that contains spermatozoon, spermatozoa which is secreted by the male gonads (sexual glands) and other sexual organs of male or hermaphrodite, hermaphroditic animals. In humans and placen ...
dripping from there.
*
Cum shot
A cum shot is the depiction of human ejaculation, especially onto another person. The term is usually applied to depictions occurring in pornographic films, photographs, and magazines. Unlike ejaculation in non-pornographic sex, cum shots typ ...
– depiction of a man ejaculating onto another person.
*
Cybersex
Cybersex, also called Internet sex, computer sex, netsex, e-sex, cybering, is a virtual sex encounter in which two or more people have long distance sex via electronic video communication (webcams, VR headsets, etc.) and other electronics (such as ...
– sexual encounters through technology.
*
Dry humping – frottage while clothed. This act is common, although not essential, in the dance style known as "grinding".
*
Edging – deliberate
orgasm
Orgasm (from Greek , ; "excitement, swelling"), sexual climax, or simply climax, is the sudden release of accumulated sexual excitement during the sexual response cycle, characterized by intense sexual pleasure resulting in rhythmic, involu ...
delay.
*
Felching – involves sucking semen out of the anus of their partner.
*
Gang bang – one person having sex with multiple people simultaneously.
*
Pompoir – use of vaginal muscles to stimulate the penis.
*
Quickie – a short sexual encounter.
*
Rimming – the oral stimulation of the anus.
*
Snowballing – involves a person taking someone's semen into their mouth and passing it to another's mouth.
*
Sounding – the penetration of the urethra with an object.
*
Teabagging – involves someone placing their
scrotum
In most terrestrial mammals, the scrotum (: scrotums or scrota; possibly from Latin ''scortum'', meaning "hide" or "skin") or scrotal sac is a part of the external male genitalia located at the base of the penis. It consists of a sac of skin ...
into another person's mouth.
Sexual slang and social media
With the advancement of the internet and social media, it has gotten increasingly easier to communicate and share information rapidly and to a wide audience. As the generations progress they will have their own slangs for certain things and sex is no exception. With
Gen Z growing up and creating lots of content on social media such as
TikTok
TikTok, known in mainland China and Hong Kong as Douyin (), is a social media and Short-form content, short-form online video platform owned by Chinese Internet company ByteDance. It hosts user-submitted videos, which may range in duration f ...
,
Instagram
Instagram is an American photo sharing, photo and Short-form content, short-form video sharing social networking service owned by Meta Platforms. It allows users to upload media that can be edited with Social media camera filter, filters, be ...
, or
X, they have also brought changes to sexual slang terms. Listed are some sexual slang terms that are commonly referenced, not all of which may have explicit sexual meaning, but are words under the sex umbrella:
* Baddie – A person (usually a female) who sleeps around
*
Big dick energy – People who have strong and confident sexual auras
* Body count – The number of people someone has slept with
* Easy – Someone who hooks up a lot with many different people
* FWB –
Friends with benefits
* Player – Someone who flirts with many people
* Sneaky link – A person, usually a casual sexual partner, one meets secretively
* Seggs – an alternate word for sex originating from attempts to evade TikTok's moderation
Not all sexual slang words mean only one thing; there can be multiple different meanings for the same word, depending on the context.
See also
*
Baseball metaphors for sex
*
Glossary of BDSM
A glossary (from , ''glossa''; language, speech, wording), also known as a vocabulary or clavis, is an alphabetical list of Term (language), terms in a particular domain of knowledge with the definitions for those terms. Traditionally, a gloss ...
*
Green's Dictionary of Slang
References
Further reading
*
*
*
*
* Heidepeter, Philipp;
Reutner, Ursula. "When Humour Questions Taboo: A Typology of Twisted Euphemism Use", in: ''Pragmatics & Cognition'' 28/1, 138–166.
ISSN
An International Standard Serial Number (ISSN) is an eight-digit to uniquely identify a periodical publication (periodical), such as a magazine. The ISSN is especially helpful in distinguishing between serials with the same title. ISSNs a ...
0929-0907.
External links
The Online Slang Dictionary��thesaurus containing terms related to sexuality.
{{Sexual slang
*
Profanity