intercourse

See also: Intercourse

English

Etymology

From Old French entrecours, from Late Latin intercursus.

Pronunciation

• (General American) IPA^(key): /ˈɪn.tɚˌkɔɹs/, /ˈɪn.tɚˌkoɹs/
• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ˈɪn.təˌkɔːs/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

Noun

intercourse (countable and uncountable, plural intercourses)

1. Communication, conversation.
   • 1604 (first performance), George Chapman, Al Fooles: A Comedy, […], London: […] [George Eld] for Thomas Thorpe, published 1605, →OCLC, Act II, signature [D4], verso:

     Yet do I vnderſtand your darkeſt language, / Your treads ath'toe, your ſecret iogges and vvringes: / Your entercourſe of glaunces: euery tittle / Of your cloſe Amorous rites I vnderſtand, / They ſpeake as loud to mee, as if you ſaid, / My deareſt Dariotto, I am thine.

   • 1667, John Milton, “Book VIII”, in Paradise Lost. […], London: […] [Samuel Simmons], […], →OCLC; republished as Paradise Lost in Ten Books: […], London: Basil Montagu Pickering […], 1873, →OCLC:

     this sweet intercourse of looks and smiles

   • 1906, Edward Suddard, chapter 4, in The Technique of the Modern Orchestra‎^[1], translation of Technique de l'orchestre moderne by Charles-Marie Widor, page 139:

     And indeed, what more reliable authority could Berlioz have found than Cavaillé-Coll, with whom he had frequent intercourse, and who would have been better qualified than any one else to give him correct information?

   • 1918, W[illiam] B[abington] Maxwell, chapter X, in The Mirror and the Lamp, Indianapolis, Ind.: The Bobbs-Merrill Company, →OCLC:

     It was a joy to snatch some brief respite, and find himself in the rectory drawing–room. Listening here was as pleasant as talking; just to watch was pleasant. The young priests who lived here wore cassocks and birettas; their faces were fine and mild, yet really strong, like the rector's face; and in their intercourse with him and his wife they seemed to be brothers.

   • 1952 May, George Santayana, “I Like to Be a Stranger”, in The Atlantic‎^[2]:

     It might seem that with age places gained upon persons in interest to my mind; and that my pleasure grew in intercourse with things rather than with ideas.

2. Dealings between countries.
3. Dealings with people, including commerce and trade.
4. Sexual intercourse usually involving humans.

Synonyms

• See also Thesaurus:copulation.

Derived terms

• anal intercourse

 

Translations

communication, conversation

• Arabic: حِوَار (ar) m (ḥiwār)
• Bulgarian: обще́ние n (obšténie), общу́ване (bg) n (obštúvane)
• Dutch: communicatie (nl) f,conversatie (nl) f
• Finnish: kanssakäyminen (fi), keskustelu (fi)
• German: Beziehungen (de) f pl, Umgang (de) m, Verkehr (de) m
• Greek:

  Ancient: συνουσία f (sunousía)

• Hindi: संवाद (hi) m (samvād)
• Icelandic: mök n pl
• Macedonian: општење n (opštenje), однос m (odnos)
• Old English: ġemāna m
• Portuguese: comunicação (pt) f
• Russian: обще́ние (ru) n (obščénije)
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: сно̏ша̄ј m

  Roman: snȍšāj (sh) m

• Spanish: conversación (es)
• Swahili: uhusiano (sw)

dealings between countries

• Dutch: betrekkingen (nl) f pl ,onderhandelingen (nl) f pl
• Finnish: suhteet (fi) pl
• Georgian: კავშირები (ḳavširebi), ურთიერთობები (urtiertobebi), ურთიერთმიმართება (urtiertmimarteba)
• German: Beziehungen (de) f pl
• Macedonian: однос m (odnos), односи pl (odnosi)
• Portuguese: comunicação (pt) f
• Russian: свя́зи (ru) f pl (svjázi), отноше́ния (ru) n pl (otnošénija), взаимоотноше́ния (ru) n pl (vzaimootnošénija)
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: сно̏ша̄ј m

  Roman: snȍšāj (sh) m

dealings with people, including commerce and trade

• Bulgarian: отноше́ния (bg) n pl (otnošénija)
• German: Beziehungen (de) f pl
• Greek:

  Ancient: ὁμιλία f (homilía)

• Macedonian: однос m (odnos)
• Persian: آمیزش (fa) (âmizeš)
• Russian: отноше́ния (ru) n pl (otnošénija), свя́зи (ru) f pl (svjázi)

sexual intercourse

• Arabic: جِمَاع m (jimāʕ)
• Belarusian: палавы́я зно́сіны f pl (palavýja znósiny), палавы́ акт m (palavý akt), пло́цевы акт m (plócjevy akt)
• Bulgarian: по́лов акт m (pólov akt)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 性交 (zh) (xìngjiāo)

• Czech: styk (cs) m
• Danish: samleje (da) n
• Dutch: geslachtsverkeer (nl) n, sexuele betrekkingen f pl
• Esperanto: koito, sekskuniĝo
• Finnish: sukupuoliyhdyntä (fi), yhdyntä (fi)
• French: relation sexuelle (fr) f
• Galician: relación sexual f
• Georgian: სქესობრივი კავშირი (skesobrivi ḳavširi), სქესობრივი აქტი (skesobrivi akṭi)
• German: Geschlechtsverkehr (de) m, Verkehr (de) m
• Greek: συνουσία (el) f (synousía)

  Ancient: συνουσία f (sunousía), λαγνεία f (lagneía), μίξις f (míxis), ὁμιλία f (homilía)

• Greenlandic: atoqatigiinneq
• Hindi: सम्भोग (hi) m (sambhog)
• Hungarian: közösülés (hu)
• Icelandic: mök n pl
• Italian: rapporto sessuale m
• Japanese: 性交 (ja) (せいこう, seikō)
• Korean: 성교(性交) (ko) (seonggyo)
• Macedonian: полов однос m (polov odnos), сексуа́лен однос m (seksuálen odnos)
• Malayalam: ലൈംഗികബന്ധം (ml) (laiṅgikabandhaṁ), സംഭോഗം (ml) (sambhōgaṁ)
• Maori: aitanga
• Mongolian:

  Cyrillic: хурьцал (mn) (xurʹcal)

• Nahuatl: yecoa
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: samleie (no) n

• Old English: hǣmed n, hǣmedlāc n
• Persian: آمیزش (fa) (âmizeš), آمیزش جنسی (âmizeš-e jensi)
• Polish: stosunek płciowy (pl) m
• Portuguese: sexo (pt) m
• Russian: сноше́ние (ru) n (snošénije), совокупле́ние (ru) n (sovokuplénije), полово́е сноше́ние (ru) n (polovóje snošénije), полово́й акт (ru) m (polovój akt)
• Sami:

  Inari: onâččem

  Northern: anašeapmi

  Skolt: õhttmõõžž

• Scots: intercoorse, shag
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: полни сношај m

  Roman: polni snošaj m

• Slovak: styk m
• Slovene: spolni odnos m, spolno občevanje (sl) n
• Spanish: coito (es) m, acto sexual m, relación sexual (es)
• Swedish: samlag (sv)
• Ukrainian: стате́ві зно́сини f pl (statévi znósyny), стате́вий акт m (statévyj akt)
• Vietnamese: sự giao cấu (vi)

See also

• outercourse

Verb

intercourse (third-person singular simple present intercourses, present participle intercoursing, simple past and past participle intercoursed)

1. (nonstandard, intransitive) To have sexual intercourse.

Synonyms

• fornicate, have sex, make love; see also Thesaurus:copulate

Anagrams

• intersource