vulva
Americannoun
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vulvae,
plural
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vulvas
plural
noun
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vulvas
plural
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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nonvulvaladjective
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nonvulvaradjective
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vulvaladjective
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vulvaradjective
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vulvateadjective
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vulviformadjective
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of vulva
Borrowed into English from Latin around 1540–50
Compare meaning
How does vulva compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:
Explanation
The vulva is the external parts of the vagina, and the vulva is important for both sex and birth. While many words have many meanings, vulva is not one of those words. The only thing this word refers to is the external (outside) parts of the vagina. This includes the labia, the opening of the urethra, and the clitoris, which is the female sexual organ. You can think of the vulva as the opening to the vagina, but it is also very important in itself.
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:
In a well-reported case last year, a group of feminist artist-activists vandalised a 19th-Century painting of a woman's vulva by French artist Gustave Courbet, calling it misogynistic.
From BBC ● Jan. 9, 2026
A 2014 survey by British charity The Eve Appeal found that one-third of young women avoided going to the doctor for gynecological health issues, and 65 percent struggled to say the words vagina or vulva.
From New York Times ● Sep. 21, 2021
I am an 18-year-old person with a vulva, and I have no interest in having sex with other people, partly due to gender dysphoria.
From Slate ● Jun. 14, 2021
"For some people, artificial scents and colors could cause irritation to the vulva; for others it may be a specific ingredient; and not all people will have a reaction."
From Salon ● Mar. 20, 2021
As pregnancy advances the mucous membrane lining the vulva becomes swollen and of a darker, bluish-red hue; the mucous secretion also increases, becoming very abundant just before calving.
From Special Report on Diseases of Cattle by United States. Bureau of Animal Industry
Pruritis vulvae is due to parasites, or to irritating discharges, as leucorrhoea, and is frequent in diabetic subjects.
From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 12, Slice 7 "Gyantse" to "Hallel" by Various
But still I lifted out The ovaries, fallopian tubes and uterus, The vagina and vulvae.
From Domesday Book by Edgar Lee Masters
Perhaps one of the most annoying and obstinate symptoms of the menopause is pruritus vulvae.
From The Four Epochs of Woman's Life; a study in hygiene by Anna M. (Anna Mary) Galbraith
Kraurosis vulvae, first described by Lawson Tait in 1875, is an atrophic change accompanied by pain and a yellowish discharge; the cause is unknown.
From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 12, Slice 7 "Gyantse" to "Hallel" by Various
This oversight has the potential to harm women, as well as trans men and other people with vulvas.
From New York Times ● Oct. 17, 2022
“Any kid can have any type of body,” the presentation states, adding that boys can have vulvas and girls can have penises.
From Washington Times ● Aug. 1, 2022
Shame is one factor that contributes to women, transgender men and nonbinary people with vulvas receiving worse or delayed care.
From New York Times ● Sep. 21, 2021
Actress and liberal activist Debra Messing apologized this week after her Instagram photo of cupcakes decorated as vulvas offended members of the trans community.
From Washington Times ● Mar. 12, 2019
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.
