Yes, I would call a woman who has multiple sexual partners a slut, just like I would call man who has multiple sexual partners a man-whore.

To the people jacking off to Chad...you make me sick!

No...and if a man or woman does sleep with a lot of partners, I wouldn't call him or her a slut. They probably have their reasons.

Some reasons may be positive (I love this! This feels so good and exciting! This adds to my life!). Some may be negative (I'm a no-good loser anyway; my body and boundaries mean nothing; no one will love me for who I am; I might as well just use my body instead of find greater intimacy).

I have sympathy for people in both situations.

However, when you break a promise to someone by sleeping with another, then that is very hurtful, since you violate trust and potentially put your partner at risk. I still wouldn't call the person a slut, though.

Studies show that women often cheat physically on their mates, so I question how much validity the sociobiological argument has. In the U.S., 25 percent of men and 17 percent of women have had extramarital affairs, according to one study Infidelity Statistics.

Also, note that many men (and women) never have infidelities and not only prefer but enjoy monogamy...so this suggests there isn't a huge inborn desire to be non-monogamous.

I agree the sociobiological argument does seem to make biological sense--the whole idea that women may be "choosier" because the maximum number of children they can have in a lifetime is much less than the number of children a frisky man could potentially have. I think nature is more complicated, though, than the rules you suggest.

For example, it is certainly possible for a woman to pass on her genes even if she sleeps around! :p: The minimum you really need from a man is one sperm to pass on your own genes! :laughing: That's not much. You can get one sperm and a lot of sex with different people and still have a child!

However, I do think people want to know a child is theirs, so they desire a potential mate to exhibit the ability to be monogamous and to care for her or his children. That biological urge is probably one of the main reasons "slut" as a bad term even exists.

If there were no sluts, then a night out at the club with the fellas would be pretty pointless. So I'm for 'em.

I agree with this.

Also, I think if a woman is someone who cheats she is a slut. She could have just a few partners, but if she lacks the respect to keep her legs closed for someone she is with, then she's a slut in my view.

Agree with right-track and Dirty.

Also, is it just me or does the word "slut" in and of itself just suck? It just sounds vile, I think.

I feel like if someone called me a "harlot" or something, I wouldn't be nearly as offended. Harlot actually has a nice ring to it.

I like the world slut. S and L sound really pretty together phonetically. I think I prefer it to the word whore.

Yeah slut is a pretty dirty sounding word, it matches well with the definition. Harlot actually sounds cool.

Anyway, on the issue. I agree with right-track who said that it's not what you do, it's how you do it. You can have a lot of sex and not be a slut/man-slut. If you don't parade it around and at least have some kind of standards, you are not a slut. However someone who dresses provacatively, flirts with a ridiculous amount of people, and has sex more than they should IS a slut.

so does anyone else use the term gigolo instead of man whore/slut? there's more potential for indirect ridicule.

as for the actual question i don't think someone is necessarily a slut if they're comfortable with casual sex, but i do think it reflects a fundamental aspect of their personality that's going to run counter to mine. doesn't make them 'sluts', just means i won't bother.

promiscuous on the other hand, as in, in the bar bathroom or full on on the first night. yeah that's dirty slut action in my eyes. it's one thing for a random one nighter, yeah you were drunk and 'acted' slutty, but when that behavior becomes predictable and therefore reputable, that's when you've crossed the line into being a full fledged slut. regardless of gender.

Maybe I'm just excessively liberal but I don't see anything immoral about a guy/girl behaving in a lecherous manner or sleeping around as much as is humanly possible. If it's because they simply enjoy sex, I really can't fault that. In fact, I think it's perfectly natural behaviour, regardless of whatever collectively self-imposed decorum we think we should uphold as the super-duper civilised and advanced race that we are.

It's only when someone cheats on their partner or has sex for reasons other than enjoyment, with a hidden agenda (so that excludes prostitutes whose agendas are quite clear) that I would condemn them and label them as a slut.