sexual
UK /sɛk.ʃuː.əl/ · US /sɛk.ʃu.əl/ adjective, noun
Forms sexuals
- adjective Arising from the fact of being male or female; pertaining to sex or gender, or to the social relations between the sexes. “Women face sexual discrimination in the workplace.”
- adjective (biology) Capable of sexual reproduction; sexed, sexuate.
- adjective Pertaining to sexual intercourse or other intimate physical contact. “Giving oral sex is my favorite sexual act.”
- adjective Characterised by sexual feelings or behaviour; possessing sexuality. “She's a very sexual woman.”
- adjective Pertaining to sexuality as a cultural phenomenon; relating to sexual behaviour or conduct. “a sexual innuendo”
- adjective (LGBTQ, of a person, rare) Experiencing sexual attraction; not asexual.
- adjective (obsolete) Pertaining to the female sex.
- noun (biology) A species which reproduces by sexual rather than asexual reproduction, or a member of such a species.
- noun (LGBTQ) A person who experiences sexual attraction, a person who has interest in or desire for sex (especially as contrasted with an asexual).
Synonyms
Antonyms
Etymology
Borrowed from Latin sexuālis. By surface analysis, sex + -ual.
Webster’s 1913
- adjective Of or pertaining to sex, or the sexes; distinguishing sex; peculiar to the distinction and office of male or female; relating to the distinctive genital organs of the sexes; proceeding from, or based upon, sex; as, sexual characteristics; sexual intercourse, connection, or commerce; sexual desire; sexual diseases; sexual generation. Sexual dimorphism (Biol.), the condition of having one of the sexes existing in two forms, or varieties, differing in color, size, etc., as in many species of butterflies which have two kinds of females.
Etymology [L. sexualis, fr. sexus sex: cf. F. sexuel.]
Sources: Wiktionary · WordNet 3.0 · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “sexual”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details