foreplay

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pulmonary veins and arteries, circulation, cardiovascular system, human anatomy, (Netter replacement project - SSC)

13 Questions About How the Human Body Works Answered

Normandy Invasion: Omaha Beach. World War II. D-Day. Infographic. SPOTLIGHT VERSION

Facts and Figures About the Landings on Omaha Beach During the Normandy Invasion on June 6, 1944

Artist interpretation of space asteroids impacting earth and moon. Meteoroids, meteor impact, end of the world, danger, destruction, dinosaur extinct, Judgement Day, Doomsday Predictions, comet

Major Mass Extinctions

Salem Witch Trials. Photogravure after the painting by Walter McEwen titled - The Witches - circa 1890s.

How Rye Bread May Have Caused the Salem Witch Trials

Lake Mead (the impounded Colorado River) at the Hoover Dam. The light-coloured band of rock above the shoreline shows the decrease in water level in the first few years of the 21st century.

6 Lakes That Are Drying Up

Time zone map with standard time zones and International Date Line

Why Are Some Time Zones 30 Minutes Off Instead of an Hour?

airplane in flight (plane, aircraft, flying)

7 Puzzling Plane Disappearances

foreplay

sex

Learn about this topic in these articles:

sociosexual activity

In human sexual activity: Sociosexual activity
…involving genital stimulation, known as foreplay, may be done for its own sake as an expression of affection and a source of pleasure, and it may occur as a preliminary to coitus. In a minority of cases, but a substantial minority, these forms of contact can lead to orgasm and…
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In human sexual activity: Social control of sexual activity
…as a prelude to coitus—as foreplay—rather than as an end in itself. In some parts of sub-Saharan Africa, however, petting is used as a premarital substitute for coitus in order to preserve virginity and avoid pregnancy. There is great variation in petting and foreplay techniques. Kissing is by no means…
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zoophilia

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Salem Witch Trials. Photogravure after the painting by Walter McEwen titled - The Witches - circa 1890s.

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zoophilia

sexual behavior

Also known as: bestiality

Written and fact-checked by The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica

Article History

Related Topics:: animal; human sexual activity

zoophilia, sexual attraction of a human toward a nonhuman animal, which may involve the experience of sexual fantasies about the animal or the pursuit of real sexual contact with it (i.e., bestiality). Sex between humans and animals is illegal in many countries. (See also human sexual behaviour: Legal regulation.)

This article was most recently revised and updated by John P. Rafferty.