sex
Other forms: sexes; sexed; sexing
If you're looking to adopt a cat, you might ask the volunteer at the shelter about that little orange kitten's age and sex. Sex refers to whether the cat is male or female.
In addition to referring to the biological categories of male and female, sex is also shorthand for the activity of being physically intimate with a romantic partner. This word can also be used as a verb: farmers who sex their chickens are figuring out whether they have a rooster or a hen.
Definitions of sex
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either of the two categories (male or female) into which most organisms are divided
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the properties that distinguish organisms on the basis of their reproductive roles“she didn't want to know the sex of the foetus”
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types:
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maleness, masculinity
the properties characteristic of the male sex
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androgyny, bisexuality, hermaphroditism
showing characteristics of both sexes
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femaleness, feminineness
the properties characteristic of the female sex
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virility
the masculine property of being capable of copulation and procreation
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type of:
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physiological property
a property having to do with the functioning of the body
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tell the sex (of young chickens)
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type of:
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differentiate, distinguish, secern, secernate, separate, severalise, severalize, tell, tell apart
mark as different
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differentiate, distinguish, secern, secernate, separate, severalise, severalize, tell, tell apart
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all of the feelings resulting from the urge to gratify sexual impulses
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synonyms:
sexual urge
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type of:
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feeling
the experiencing of affective and emotional states
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feeling
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activities associated with sexual intercourse
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synonyms:
sex activity, sexual activity, sexual practice
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types:
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safe sex
sexual activity (especially sexual intercourse) with the use of measures (such as latex condoms) to avoid the transmission of disease (especially AIDS)
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conception
the act of becoming pregnant; fertilization of an ovum by a spermatozoon
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love, love life, lovemaking, making love, sexual love
sexual activities (often including sexual intercourse) between two people
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carnal abuse
any lascivious contact by an adult with the sexual organs of a child (especially not involving sexual intercourse)
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conjugation, coupling, mating, pairing, sexual union, union
the act of pairing a male and female for reproductive purposes
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breeding, facts of life, procreation, reproduction
the sexual activity of conceiving and bearing offspring
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arousal, stimulation
mutual sexual fondling prior to sexual intercourse
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perversion, sexual perversion
an aberrant sexual practice;
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autoeroticism, autoerotism
using you own body as a sexual object
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promiscuity, promiscuousness, sleeping around
indulging in promiscuous (casual and indiscriminate) sexual relations
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lechery
unrestrained indulgence in sexual activity
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gayness, homoeroticism, homosexualism, homosexuality, queerness
a sexual attraction to (or sexual relations with) persons of the same sex
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bisexuality
an orientation of romantic or sexual attraction to more than one gender
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heterosexualism, heterosexuality, straightness
a sexual attraction to (or sexual relations with) persons of the opposite sex
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bestiality, zooerastia, zooerasty
sexual activity between a person and an animal
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paraphilia
abnormal sexual activity
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defloration
the act of depriving a woman of her virginity (especially by rupturing the hymen through sexual intercourse)
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roll in the hay
slang for sexual intercourse
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hank panky
illicit sexual intercourse
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penetration
the act of inserting the penis into a partner's vagina or anus
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assortative mating
mating of individuals having more traits in common than likely in random mating
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disassortative mating
mating of individuals having traits more dissimilar than likely in random mating
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criminal congress
forbidden or tabu sexual intercourse between individuals
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crossbreeding, interbreeding, miscegenation
reproduction by parents of different races (especially by white and non-white persons)
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generation, multiplication, propagation
the act of producing offspring or multiplying by such production
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cross, crossbreeding, crossing, hybridisation, hybridization, hybridizing, interbreeding
(genetics) the act of mixing different species or varieties of animals or plants and thus to produce hybrids
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inbreeding
the act of mating closely related individuals
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service, servicing
the act of mating by male animals
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caressing, cuddling, fondling, hugging, kissing, necking, petting, smooching, snuggling
affectionate play (or foreplay without contact with the genital organs)
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masturbation, onanism
manual stimulation of the genital organs (of yourself or another) for sexual pleasure
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one-night stand
a brief sexual encounter lasting only for a single night
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inversion, sexual inversion
a term formerly used to mean taking on the gender role of the opposite sex
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lesbianism, sapphism
female homosexuality
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paederasty, pederasty
sexual relations between a man and a boy (usually anal intercourse with the boy as a passive partner)
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type of:
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activity, bodily function, bodily process, body process
an organic process that takes place in the body
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stimulate sexually
Pronunciation
US
/sɛks/
UK
/sɛks/
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