sexual intercourse

noun

Definition of sexual intercoursenext
as in sex
sexual union involving penetration of the vagina by the penis many people believe that it's best to wait to experience sexual intercourse until you're mature enough to handle it

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for sexual intercourse
  1. intercourse
  2. relations
  3. mating
Noun
  • After intercourse, the teenager had snapped photos of her naked body on a futon as evidence.
    — Jennifer Smith Richards, ProPublica, 16 July 2026
  • The two counts of rape Høiby was convicted of did not involve intercourse.
    — Gwladys Fouche, USA Today, 15 June 2026
Definition of intercourse
Noun
  • Postwar intellectuals used psychoanalytic ideas in a variety of ways, including to discuss race relations and homosexuality.
    — Livia Gershon, JSTOR Daily, 4 Aug. 2026
  • Rather, the pivotal transactions, graphed like the peaks and valleys of a volatile stock index, are the relations between men and women.
    — Cynthia Zarin, Harpers Magazine, 4 Aug. 2026
Definition of relations
Noun
  • First, there was Green Porno, her series of shorts that launched in 2008 on the Sundance Channel and explored some of the more bizarre mating behaviors in nature.
    — Georg Szalai, HollywoodReporter, 6 Aug. 2026
  • The team recently investigated the mating habits of another species, Leiobunum limbatum, which showed quite a different routine.
    — Christa Lesté-Lasserre, Scientific American, 3 Aug. 2026
Definition of mating
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Browse Nearby Words

sexual assaults
sexual intercourse
sexuality
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Cite this Entry

“Sexual intercourse.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/sexual%20intercourse. Accessed 9 Aug. 2026.

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More from Merriam-Webster on sexual intercourse

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about sexual intercourse

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