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Synonyms

foreplay

American  
[fawr-pley, fohr-] / ˈfɔrˌpleɪ, ˈfoʊr- /

noun

  1. sexual stimulation of one's partner, usually as a prelude to sexual intercourse.

foreplay British  
/ ˈfɔːˌpleɪ /

noun

  1. mutual sexual stimulation preceding sexual intercourse

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of foreplay

First recorded in 1925–30; fore- + play

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

No foreplay of nuanced chitchat here, just a relentless barrage of aspersions, which led me to the thought: Do I really believe these people sneering their way through this evening?

From New York Times • Dec. 30, 2020

The specimen that forms the core of the description is gorgeous, with dark grey bones preserved in exquisite detail, and that palaeontological happenstance is what has set off the hubbub over tyrannosaur foreplay.

From The Guardian • Apr. 3, 2017

To be clear, nothing in this movie makes any kind of emotional sense; there is zero narrative foreplay.

From Slate • Feb. 10, 2017

A main character dies, and after 16 hours of foreplay The Walking Dead has the arrogance to not even show the audience who it was.

From The Verge • Apr. 4, 2016

More and more, it seems eureka is foreplay for your IPO.

From BusinessWeek • Oct. 2, 2014

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.