While we're all about using proper terms for our anatomy (know the difference between vagina and vulva please), there's something pretty titillating about all the unique ways people avoid saying the words "oral sex". There are the basics, like eating pussy, going down, and giving head, but the more creative slang terms for cunnilingus (AKA pleasuring a vulva with one’s lips and/or tongue) are way more interesting, and a lot of them are pretty funny.
What is cunnilingus?
Before we get into the more creative aspects of this article, let’s get a few definitions out of the way. The word “cunnilingus” is the proper (or more official) term for performing oral sex on a person with a vulva. The vulva refers to the outer part of the genitals and includes the area around the opening of the vagina (sometimes called the “vestibule”), the labia majora (the outer lips), the labia minora (the inner lips), and the clitoris. The visible part of the clitoris, the glans, is often the most pleasurable part of the genitals, but the tissue and oh-so-pleasurable nerves of the clitoris actually extend all over the vulva, so there are a lot more sensations to be had with just a little exploration.
Cunnilingus can be extremely arousing for both the giver and the receiver, and it can be the main event, part of foreplay, or an integrated part of sex throughout the experience. There really are infinite possibilities for pleasure.
Want to have better oral? Check out our All About Cunnilingus article!
If you're looking to explore some mouth on vulva action, but might not want direct skin-to-skin contact quite yet (maybe your partner has a scruffy beard, you're on your period, or you're feeling a bit sensitive that day), Lorals latex undies can be a great way to ease into the experience. They're silky latex undies that are lightly vanilla scented so both you and your partner can enjoy every little stroke, while having a bit of a barrier.
Want to see Lorals being used for oral? Check out Reddit for our spicier content!
A little bit of word history
According to the Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary, cunnilingus derives from the Latin words “cunnus” (vulva) and “lingere” (lick). And interestingly, the term "muff" (as in "muff diving"), has a little bit of its own history.
“From what I understand, the term muff was first used to refer to pubic hair and vulvas in 1699 (per A New Dictionary of the Terms Ancient and Modern of the Canting Crew) — a tale as old as time,” says Justyn Hintze, sexologist, educator, and director of Women Who Tech. “Some of my favorite [slang terms] are the most simple: giving head, going down, and muff-diving. They're all pretty gender-neutral, and are even sexier when paired with some enthusiastic consent.”
106 Slang Terms for Cunnilingus
In search of new euphemisms for cunnilingus, we scoured the internet from top to bottom. We waded through Reddit, scrolled down one too many Quora responses, and took a quick peek at the infamous Urban Thesaurus.
Throughout the list we call out a few of our favorites here at Lorals, and we share a bit about their history. So get your Scrabble pieces ready — here we go
- Adult happy meal
- Australian kiss — Lorals are great for cunnilingus and rimming down under (@amor.next.door wearing Lorals Bikinis in Black):
- Barking at the ape
- Bikini burger
- Bite the dog-end
- Blow some tunes
- Boating
- Bush dinner
- Canyon yodeling
- Carpet munching
- Chew the cooch
- Chow box
- Clam diving
- Clam jousting
- Clam lapping
- Cleaning the cage out
- Cleaning the fish tank
- Connie Lingus
- Cunning linguistics
- Cunninglinguist — Someone good with their tongue could be a good orator, but we're hoping it's much more related to oral sex skills. Although we can’t pinpoint when this term was first used, we do know that there’s a 1970 erotic novel called The Cunning Linguist by Troy Conway.
- Dine at the Y
- Dinner beneath the bridge
- Dip the brush
- Dive a muff
- Dive in the bushes
- Do downstairs for breakfast
- Do it the French way – paint with your tongue (@paintslut in Lorals Bikini in Black):
- Don the beard
- Doormat bashing
- Down under
- Downstairs
- Drinking at the fuzzy cup
- Drinking from the furry cup —To shave or not to shave, that’s the question, right? And the answer: Do whatever the hell you want, bb! Also, this phrase is much sexier in French—le déjeuner en fourrure, which means “the luncheon in fur” and refers to an iconic 1936 sculpture of a fur-covered teacup, saucer, and spoon by surrealist Meret Oppenheim!
- Eat muff pie
- Eating bearded clam
- Eating hair pie
- Eating on the Ritz
- Eating squirrel
- Eating the tuna taco
- Egg McMuff
- Face job – enjoy a little face time with your favorite person (@badass_jones_ wearing Lorals Shorties in Sheer)
- Facetime downstairs
- Fall in love
- Fanny noshing
- Flaming Amy
- French culture
- French lessons
- Fur burger
- Fuzz sandwich
- Fuzzburger
- Genital Slurpees
- Give a length of tongue
- Giving face
- Giving head
- Gnash the gash
- Go south
- Go way down South in Dixie
- Going down
- Gorilla in the washing machine
- Growl at the biter
- Hat job
- Having a box lunch
- Husband’s supper
- Kissing the Wookie
-
Kneel at the altar — This one just conjures up so many scrumptious images.
- Labia lapping
- Labial titillation
- Lapping at the lint trap
- Larking
- Lay the lip
- Lick the envelope
- Lickety-split
- Licking the beaver
- Licking the mango
- Licking the spoon
- Lip service — This phrase sounds so rock-and-roll, doesn’t it? (Kind of Aerosmith like, right?) The true origin of “paying lip service” is a little murky, but some say that the term made its debut in 1590 in A Treatise Against Witchcraft by Henry Holland and simply means giving insincere support. But in modern times it’s been adopted by those of us who find service in giving or receiving oral pleasure.
- Lip-synching
- Monster munching
- Muff-diving
- Mumbling in the moss
- Oklahoma moon pie
- One-man band
- Parting the fuzz
- Pearl diving — Isn’t this a cute phrase? Plus, it’s referring to the clit, so of course we’re into it. Vulvas and labia have often been compared to oysters, so it’s only fitting that the jewel of pleasure herself be compared to a shiny, valuable pearl. But actual pearl diving began in the 1850s on the coast of Western Australia. And, as the name suggests, it literally means diving for pearl shells.
- Peaches and cream
- Pink lemonade
- Playing in the sandbox
- Pug noshing
- Redwings – giving oral during during someone's period can earn you your redwings (@whatsyourpositionpodcast wearing Lorals for Protection Bikinis in Black)
- Rug munching
- Rusty trombone
- Sixty-nine
- Slurping clam
- Smoking the fur
- Smooch the cooch
- Speak in tongues — Ooh, we love this one! Oral pleasure is just another love language that everyone should be fluent in. The original phrase “speaking in tongues” (which is also known as “glossolalia”) actually refers to the words or sounds people utter while they’re under a divine spell (or religious “ecstasy”). Some consider this other-worldly phenomena a gift, but it sounds exactly like the best tonguing of your life, if you ask us.
- Stamp collecting
- Sucking the dead fish
- Tasting the rainbow
- Tongue lashing
-
Velvet buzzsaw — A velvety vulva is always a favorite (and we're just going to ignore the movie of the same name).
- Wearing the beard
- Whistle in the dark
- Whistling in the weeds
- Worship at the altar
- Yummilingus
Whew, that's a pretty exhaustive list of ways to express your desire for more cunnilingus! We hope you'll be integrating a few of these into your lexicon – we definitely have.
Written by Tabitha Britt, a freelance writer and editor. She's also the founding-editor-in-chief of DO YOU ENDO, the first (and only) no-BS digital magazine for individuals with endometriosis by individuals with endometriosis in the US. You can find her byline in a variety of publications including Insider, Medical News Today, and Kinkly.
Reviewed and Edited by Sarah Brown, a sex and intimacy educator with 10 years of experience designing and marketing intimate wellness and pleasure products.
