Skip to main content
intercourse

intercourse

89 7.8
Sex that involves a man's penis entering a woman's vagina
  • noun
  • /ˈɪntərˌkɔrs/
  • NSFW
translation icon : relación sexual
  • And so we did not have sexual intercourse with each other until the first night of our marriage.
  • sexual intercourse
  • vaginal intercourse
  • unprotected intercourse

I know they did some sexual things but he claims they never had full blown intercourse.

Autoplay Next

Examples

  • Women with endometriosis often complain of deep pain during intercourse because penetrative sex causes pressure against this area.

    Academic text (2012)
  • I only have intercourse with my husband, Phil.

  • Are you guys having sexual intercourse?

  • Henry, I asked you if you and Mary had sexual intercourse.

  • For me, when I started engaging in intercourse, I started out using protection.

  • We ought to in fact have sexual intercourse, otherwise the species dies out, right?

  • Women received their first information about sexual intercourse from parents at the earliest age.

    Academic text (2008)
  • The moment that we did have intercourse, I regretted it.

  • Was intercourse pleasurable for you?

  • They decided to wait until marriage for intercourse to honor their beliefs.

Synonyms

fucking
vsintercourse
  • Offensive
598 9.9

Sex between two people

is neutral and clinical rather than crude or offensive
relation
vsintercourse
  • NSFW
103 8.3

Sex between people

is broader, including orgasm and nonpenetrative relations
sexual relation
vsintercourse
  • NSFW
62 3.4

Sex between people, for example in a romantic or casual relationship

is focused on penetration and orgasm, not relationship status
sexual intercourse
vsintercourse
  • NSFW
31 3.2

An act in which one person's penis enters another person's vagina

is broader, adding orgasm and wider sexual relations
sexual activity
vsintercourse
  • NSFW
31 3.0

Physical acts between people, like touching or having sex, that give pleasure

is narrower, naming the specific penetrative sexual act
sex act
vsintercourse
  • NSFW
19 3.7

Sexual activity between people, often intercourse

is more specific about penile vaginal penetration and orgasm
copulation
vsintercourse
  • NSFW
8 8.2

Sex in which a male inserts his penis into a female's vagina

is broader, including orgasm and other sexual relations
coitus
vsintercourse
  • NSFW
8 8.5

An act in which a man puts his penis into a woman's vagina

is more general, covering desire and relationship aspects
carnal knowledge
vsintercourse
  • NSFW
2 8.3

Sex between people, usually meaning one person entering another, used in legal texts

is the everyday term covering pleasure and consent aspects
sexual congress
vsintercourse
  • NSFW
1 7.5

To have sex with someone

is the standard neutral and anatomically specific term
coition
vsintercourse
  • NSFW
9.9

Sex when a man's penis goes into a woman's vagina

is broader, stressing orgasm and wider sexual meaning
sex activity
vsintercourse
  • NSFW
3.1

Private actions between people that involve touching for pleasure

is focused on the specific penetrative act and climax

Compounds

31 3.2

An act in which one person's penis enters another person's vagina

anal intercourse
  • Offensive
2 7.7

Sex in which a penis goes into another person's anus

1 7.4

Talking and sharing feelings with other people

How Intimate

intercourse
  • NSFW
89 7.8
kissing
  • NSFW
100 1.0

Surface Forms

intercourse singular
intercourses plural

Morphology

intercourse = course (opaque) = inter + course

Although historically formed from 'inter' + 'course', the sexual sense is a specialized semantic shift that learners cannot reliably derive from the components.

Etymology

Intercourse comes from the parts inter- 'between' and course 'a running' or 'path'. The idea of 'running between' two people — or two people coming together along a path — is how the word came to mean sexual relations.