sexual
adjective
- predicated on biological sex
Wiktionary
Pronunciation: /sɛk.ʃuː.əl/ / /sɛk.sju.əl/ / /sɛks.jəl/
adj
Etymology: Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *sek-der. Proto-Indo-European *séks-u-sder. Proto-Italic *seksus Latin sexus Proto-Indo-European *h₂el-der.? Proto-Italic *-ālis Latin -ālis Latin sexuālisbor. English sexual Borrowed from Latin sexuālis. By surface analysis, sex + -ual.
- 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.”
- Capable of sexual reproduction; sexed, sexuate.
- Pertaining to sexual intercourse or other intimate physical contact.
“Giving oral sex is my favorite sexual act.”
“The church was tighening up on matters sexual. Until the middle of the tenth century it had been quite routine for priests to be married.”
- Characterised by sexual feelings or behaviour; possessing sexuality.
“She's a very sexual woman.”
“We don't often think of Jesus as a sexual person, but He certainly was not asexual. He was not just God on earth. He was fully human and […] He was sexual, single, and celibate.”
- Pertaining to sexuality as a cultural phenomenon; relating to sexual behaviour or conduct.
“a sexual innuendo”
“one's sexual preferences”
- Experiencing sexual attraction; not asexual.
“[…] “You know, there are asexuals with sexual partners.” His ears flicked, and he grinned. “There's things both of us can try to do[…]””
“Izzy tells me that at her high school the most useful distinction is not between heterosexuals and homosexuals but between those who are sexual and those who are not. The abstainers call themselves “aces,” short for “asexuals.””
- Pertaining to the female sex.
“[T]he inquiry is whether she have reason or not. If she have, which, for a moment, I will take for granted, she was not created merely to be the solace of man, and the sexual should not destroy the human character.”
noun
Etymology: Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *sek-der. Proto-Indo-European *séks-u-sder. Proto-Italic *seksus Latin sexus Proto-Indo-European *h₂el-der.? Proto-Italic *-ālis Latin -ālis Latin sexuālisbor. English sexual Borrowed from Latin sexuālis. By surface analysis, sex + -ual.
- A species which reproduces by sexual rather than asexual reproduction, or a member of such a species.
- A person who experiences sexual attraction, a person who has interest in or desire for sex (especially as contrasted with an asexual).
“The findings suggest that asexuality is best conceptualized as a lack of sexual attraction; however, asexuals varied greatly in their experience of sexual response and behavior. Asexuals partnered with sexuals acknowledged having to 'negotiate' sexual activity.”
“In this article we use absence of sexual attraction to others as a definition but recognise that this definition is contested. […] [A survey] was also advertised online (without explicitly mentioning asexuality in the advert), thus aiming to reach a mixture of asexuals and sexuals.”