sexuality
Americannoun
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the state or quality of being sexual
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preoccupation with or involvement in sexual matters
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the possession of sexual potency
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of sexuality
Explanation
The noun sexuality can refer to sexual matters of all kinds. It often describes having sexual feelings. A novel about a teenager growing up may examine the awakening sexuality of its main character. Sexuality also describes a person's sexual preferences and orientation — meaning whether you're gay or straight. Sexuality can refer to erotic experiences, but it can also be used broadly to refer to how organisms — whether human or animal — reproduce. There are scientists who exclusively study sexuality, from the mating habits of animals to the peculiarities of how humans pair up.
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.
See Examples For:
The first, “My Body,” dropped in 2021 and was a bestselling collection of essays exploring gender, power dynamics, sexuality and the commodification of female beauty in the modeling and entertainment industries.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 11, 2026
People fleeing persecution because of their political beliefs, gender or sexuality, and how they pray will face certain peril.
From Salon ● Jun. 28, 2026
There are fears those who are not open about their sexuality, or are still too ashamed to admit what happened to them, could miss out on up to £70,000 and other support.
From BBC ● Jun. 22, 2026
“Not only is male sexuality more on a spectrum than people suppose, but bisexuality itself is also a spectrum,” Savin-Williams says.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 14, 2026
It is one thing to try to understand how genes influence human identity or sexuality or temperament.
From "The Gene" by Siddhartha Mukherjee
The results were weighted to try to represent the views of the wider LGBTQ+ population - including those of different sexualities, gender identities, races and abilities.
From BBC ● Mar. 28, 2025
If Americans have learned anything from the past few years, rational, unhinged, unethical, and deceitful are characteristics that come in all ethnicities, genders, and sexualities.
From Slate ● Aug. 1, 2024
The individuals interviewed for the study represented a broad range of education levels, occupations, sexualities, and racial and ethnic backgrounds.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 1, 2023
Gypsy Sport castings and fashion shows became — and remain — legendary, cherry picking models from a diversity of sexualities, genders, ethnicities, walks of life.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 11, 2023
Moreover, a man counts no more than a woman in their sum total of daily pleasure, and when they choose a comrade it is for human qualities, not sexualities.
From Seven Miles to Arden by Sawyer, Ruth
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.
