sex

Meanings

1. 1
   noun

   Whether a person or animal is male or female, based on their body and reproductive role.

   It doesn't matter what sex you are.

2. 2
   noun

   Physical activity between people for pleasure or reproduction.

   They had decided that they both wanted to have sex.

3. 3
   verb

   To find out whether an animal is male or female.

   The farmer sexed the chicks soon after they hatched.

Common collocations

• safe sex Adjective + noun
• have sex Verb + noun
• casual sex Adjective + noun
• consensual sex Adjective + noun
• premarital sex Adjective + noun
• sex offender Noun + noun
• anal sex Adjective + noun

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *sek-der. Proto-Indo-European *séksusder. Proto-Italic *seksus Latin sexusder. Old French sexeder. Middle English sexe English sex From Middle English sexe (“sex [distinction between male and female] and gender”), from Old French sexe (“genitals; gender”), from Latin sexus (“gender; gender traits; males or females; genitals”), from Proto-Italic *seksus, from Proto-Indo-European *séksus, from *sek- (“to cut, cut off, sever”), thus meaning "section, division" (into male and female). Usage for women influenced by Middle French le sexe (“women”) (attested in 1580…

Topics

External links

• Cambridge Dictionary
• Wiktionary
• Google Images