blue balls

plural noun

chiefly US slang
: pain of the testes and scrotum occurring after prolonged sexual arousal without orgasm
His price for such an unselfish evening is to spend several succeeding hours in stiff-legged waddling pain we call blue balls.Richard Woodley, Playboy, September 1974
The term is blue balls, and whether a man's testicles actually turn any colors I don't know, but they can absolutely ache from the need for sexual release.Ruth K. Westheimer, Sex for Dummies, 3rd edition, 2011
Films, books and adolescent folklore are peppered with references to the pain of "blue balls," and its link to frustrated sexual desire.Sandi Doughton, New Tribune (Tacoma, Washington), 2 Oct. 2000

Word History

First Known Use

circa 1920, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of blue balls was circa 1920

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Cite this Entry

“Blue balls.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/blue%20balls. Accessed 29 Mar. 2024.

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