R • S • T • U • V • W • X • Y • Z

Glossary A-D
Glossary E-I
Glossary J-Q

R

RAPE: One kind of sexual abuse. It is forced sexual intercourse. The person could be a husband, friend, date or stranger. Any person who makes someone have sex with them when they don't want to do it, makes RAPE happen. This is against the law. The person who is RAPED might feel guilty, like they did something wrong, or ashamed. This is not true. It is important for the person to find someone they trust to talk to about it.

REPRODUCTION: This is the whole process involved in making a baby. REPRODUCTION begins with VAGINAL INTERCOURSE, and includes the entire PREGNANCY, as well as rearing the child after birth.

REPRODUCTIVE ORGANS: The parts of a human body that do things to help make babies. Each part has a different job to do. In the female these parts would be the fallopian tubes, ovaries, uterus, cervix and the vagina. In the male the parts would be the penis, scrotum and testicles.

RHYTHM METHOD: A way that some people use to keep from getting PREGNANT. People try to do this by not having sex on the days that a woman would usually get PREGNANT. This is usually a few days before, during and after ovulation. Because it's hard to figure out when this happens in each woman, it usually doesn't work very well. It also doesn't stop germs that cause STIs from getting into people's bodies when they do have sex.

RIMMING: Someone putting their mouth, lips or tongue in or around the ANUS (butt hole) of another person. It is one kind of ORAL SEX. People can get STIs from doing this. It doesn't matter if someone is doing it or having it done to them. A person can place MOISTURE BARRIER around the ANUS to prevent the spread of an STI during RIMMING.

RISK: Taking a chance. Having any kind of sex without a latex condom are RISKS for getting STIs, Sharing drug needles can put you at RISK for getting HIV and other blood borne infections including HEPATITIS B.

RUBBER: A slang term for CONDOM.

SAFER SEX: There are ways to have sexual contact that allow little to no chance of getting a sexually transmitted infection. These include properly using latex condoms and other moisture barriers, mutual or self-masturbation, and abstinence from sexual contact.

SALIVA: Another word for spit. It is the fluid in a person's mouth. Most STIs can not be SPREAD by a person's SALIVA.

SANITARY NAPKIN: A pad of cotton with a strip of tape on one side that a woman can stick onto her underwear during her period. This soaks up the flow of blood that comes out of her vagina.

SCROTUM: The soft sac of wrinkled skin that cover, hold, and protect a man's TESTICLES.

SEMEN: The clear, whitish liquid that squirts out of a man's penis when he ejaculates. It is sticky. SPERM are in the SEMEN. There are about one million inside one drop of SEMEN. SEMEN gives the sperm something to swim in, otherwise they couldn't move around. Slang terms: Jism, cum, juice, jit.

SEX: This means many things. Sex can be another word for gender. Or sex can be any activity that causes someone to have a good feeling inside his or her body or genitals. It could be kissing, hugging, body rubbing, touching or sexual intercourse.

SEX ORGANS: Another word for GENITALS.

SEX WORKER: Another word for PROSTITUTE.

SEX TOYS: Things that people might buy in a store and use during sex with themselves or with another person. They could be DILDOS, handcuffs or costumes.

SEXUAL ABUSE: When someone mistreats another person in a sexual way. It is wrong for someone to SEXUALLY ABUSE another person. SEXUAL ABUSE happens whenever someone touches or does something to the private parts/genitals of another person's body that person does not want her/him to do. SEXUAL ABUSE also happens when someone makes another person touch or do something to her/his private parts/genitals that they do not want to do. This "someone" could be someone the person knows, someone the person loves, or a stranger. SEXUAL ABUSE does not mean just forced sexual intercourse or activity, it can also include unwanted touching, fondling, watching, and talking in a sexual way. It can also include people forcing others to look at their genitals. Rape is one kind of SEXUAL ABUSE.

SEXUAL CONTACT: Another way to explain being with someone in a close, physical way.

SEXUAL DESIRE: A strong interest or attraction for another person. SEXUAL DESIRE is how the body feels that person. It is not the same as love. People can have SEXUAL DESIRE with or without love. Many people are happiest when they have love and SEXUAL DESIRE.

SEXUAL FLUIDS: The wetness that comes out of a man or a woman's genitals. For men it is semen and pre-seminal fluid and for women it is vaginal and cervical secretions. These SEXUAL FLUIDS have HIV in them if the person is infected.

SEXUAL INTERCOURSE: Any type of activity that involves the sharing of body FLUIDS, or the penetration of an oriface (the mouth, vagina, or anus) between two or more people. SEXUAL INTERCOURSE can describe when a man puts his penis inside a person's anus or inside a woman's vagina. SEXUAL INTERCOURSE also includes ORAL SEX (when someone licks or sucks another person's GENITALS). People can get STIs, including HIV, if they do this without a safe BARRIER that prevents the fluids from getting from one person to another.

SEXUAL ORIENTATION: Whether people are homosexual, heterosexual or bisexual. A person can not choose their SEXUAL ORIENTATION. Their body chooses it for them before they start to have sex or even before they start going through PUBERTY. SEXUAL ORIENTATION might even be figured out before birth, just like gender.

SEXUAL PLEASURE: A good feeling that people get when they have sex with someone else or are physically close to another person.

SEXUALITY: Everything in our daily lives that makes us attractive and sexual humans. It is made up of GENDER, sexual desire and feelings, and sexual contact.

SODOMY: Could refer to: 1) anal sex; 2) oral-anal contact; 3) oral-genital; 4) sexual acts with animals; 5) or a vague term for "unnatural" sexual acts. Also called buggery.

SORE: A spot on the body made by an ulcer, being rubbed or a cut that hasn't healed. A SORE is an opening on the body that germs, including HIV, could get into.

SPECIMEN: A sample.

SPERM: Little tiny living things that are made in a man's testicles. If you were to look at them under a microscope you would think they look like tadpoles because they have tails to help them swim. People can't see them. When a man ejaculates, semen squirts out of his penis. There are SPERM swimming around in the semen and pre-seminal fluid. If this happens in or near a female's vagina, the SPERM can swim around and try to find an egg. If a SPERM does and then gets inside of the woman's egg she becomes pregnant. SPERM can live in the vagina up to five days. If a male doesn't ejaculate then the SPERM is soaked up by his own body.

SPERMICIDE: A chemical that kills sperm. People can buy it without a doctor's prescription as a foam, cream or jelly. SPERMICIDE can be placed on the outside of a condom or inside a woman's vagina. This helps to stop pregnancy. It cannot be used by itself to stop HIV from getting into someone else's body. SPERMICIDE can be used with a latex condom. A SPERMICIDE is not a lubricant but it is found in many brands of lubricants. Some people may be allergic to one or more chemicals in spermicide.

SPONGE: Birth control that kills sperm. A woman puts it into her vagina before vaginal sex. SPONGES alone do not protect a man or a woman from getting STIs. They only stop pregnancy.

STERILIZATION: A permanent kind of contraception. Usually older people do this when they do not want to have any more children. It is a simple operation that stops egg and sperm from meeting each other. STERILIZATION can be done to a man or a woman.

STRAIGHT: Someone who has a sexual attraction for members of the opposite sex. Another word for heterosexual.

STILLBIRTH: When a fetus dies before or during childbirth.

STI (Sexually Transmitted Infection): An INFECTION that is passed from one person to another through sexual contact. This could happen during unprotected oral, anal or vaginal sex or other close contact with another person. STIs are caused by germs like bacteria and viruses which like to grow in warm, moist places of people's bodies. Many times there are no symptoms so people do not even know if they have one. Even if a person doesn't know they have a STI they can still give the germs to someone else. Many STIs can harm the body permanently without showing symptoms. Women and girls might not be able to have children. Some STIs can be passed on to the fetus during pregnancy. Some can cause death. STIs do not go away by themselves. People shouldn't wait too long to get checked. Some infections have cures but others don't. There are about 30 different kinds of SEXUALLY TRANSMITTED INFECTIONS. Most birth control does not protect a person from the germs of STIs. Some of these include the pill, withdrawal, sterilization, and spermicide. Only latex condoms can reduce the risk of getting an STI.

SYMPTOMS: A sign or a signal. Medically speaking, a SYMPTOM is something that a person can notice about him or her self or about someone else that is a sign of a disease. Common SYMPTOMS for STIs include bumps, blisters, or warts near the GENITALS, burning sensation when a person URINATES, or a discharge or drip from the GENITALS. Many people with STIs may not have any signs or SYMPTOMS. There is no sure way to tell if someone has an STI by looking at a their body or their genitals. Only a medical test can tell a person for sure.

SYNDROME: A collection/group of many diseases and illnesses. They would be different for each person. AIDS is a SYNDROME because people die from different diseases and illnesses, not from AIDS. For people with AIDS, the syndrome is like a cycle of illnesses that they can't break free from.

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T

T-CELLS: Special kind of white blood cells that are part of the immune system. They help kill germs in the body. Doctors can count a person's T-CELLS. Most healthy adults have about 1000 of them. If someone has HIV and a T-CELL count lower than 200 a doctor can tell the person they have AIDS. Counting T-CELLS is a way doctors try and measure how the immune system is working. T-CELLS can go up and down. They do not tell a person how they are feeling or when they will die. People can have a low number and still feel perfectly healthy.

TAMPON: A long skinny tube made of cotton with a string attached to one end. A female can put it inside her vagina during her period to soak up any blood that will come out of her body. The vagina walls hold it in place. TAMPONS don't hurt if they are put in properly. They can easily be pulled out by the string that hangs out of the vagina.

TESTICLES: Two small egg-shaped organs. They are soft and squishy and are covered and protected by the scrotum. They hang behind the penis of a male. The TESTICLES are what make sperm. They need to be kept at a certain temperature. When it is hot they get larger and when it is cold they shrink closer to the body. Slang terms: Balls, family jewels.

TRANSFUSION: A transfusion is donated blood from one person given to another person when a loss of blood has occurred through surgery, an accident, or other medical needs. The donated blood supply in the United States is screened (or tested) for HIV, hepatitis, and other types of blood diseases before it is used by others.

TRANSMISSION: The ways that any kind of infection, including a STI, can be spread. Having unprotected oral, anal, or vaginal sex, are the main ways STIs are transmitted. STIs can't pass through human skin. They can get through open cuts or sores and through places that have mucous membranes like in someone's mouth, anus, vagina or penis tip. Blood, semen, pre-seminal fluid, vaginal and cervical secretions and breast milk are all fluids that can transmit STIs.

TRICHOMONIASIS (TRICH): An STI which can cause VAGINITIS in women and URETHRITIS in men. TRICHOMONIASIS can be cured with ANTIBIOTICS.

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U

URETHRA: The small tube that carries URINE from someone's bladder to the outside of his or her body. The opening to the URETHRA for a male is the hole at the tip of the penis. The opening to the URETHRA for a female is just above the opening to the vagina, and just below the clitoris. A mucous membrane covers the URETHRA. Germs that cause STIs can get inside someone's body through the URETHRA.

URINE: The liquid waste that comes out of a person's URETHRA when they URINATE (pee). Urine contains materials that the body needs to get rid of. People cannot get STIs from other people's URINE.

URETHRITIS: An infection of the urethra, the tube that URINE (pee) goes through to leave the body. URETHRITIS is often caused by an STI. A person with URETHRITIS often feels a burning sensation when he or she urinates. URETHRITIS can be cured with ANTIBIOTICS.

UTERUS: An empty/hollow organ that is found inside the lower pelvic area of a female's body. It is connected to both of the fallopian tubes and to the vagina. It is the shape and size of an upside down pear. This is the place where a fetus grows if a woman gets pregnant. The UTERUS is muscular and can stretch bigger as the fetus grows. After nine months the muscles of the vagina push the fetus out of the UTERUS. Each month, during a part of a woman's menstrual cycle the UTERUS gets ready to help a baby grow by making thick walls of blood. If a woman doesn't get pregnant then this blood flows out of the body.

V

VACCINE: A weak mixture of VIRUSES (a kind of germ) that a scientist makes. Since the VIRUS is either killed or weakened, the body can easily defeat it. After the body defeats the VIRUS, it can make ANTIBODIES that kill and easily recognize the VIRUS. The next time the VIRUS infects the person, the body's IMMUNE SYSTEM is already prepared. Only VIRUSES are affected by VACCINES. VACCINES only work if they are injected BEFORE someone gets a virus.

VAGINA: The place in a female that leads from the uterus to the outside of the body. It is like a tunnel. It is also called a birth canal because when a woman has a baby it comes out through here. The VAGINA is also the place where an erect penis goes during VAGINAL SEX. The walls of the VAGINA can stretch bigger or smaller to help the PENIS fit. MUCUOUS MEMBRANES line the VAGINA, like a plastic bag lines a garbage can. This makes it easy for germs that cause STIs or other germs to get inside the body of a female. This could happen even if the penis doesn't get inside but is near the VAGINA. Semen or pre-seminal fluid from the penis could have germs that can cause STIs in it and then get near/touch the opening to the VAGINA. Some STIs are transmitted without any fluids getting inside someone else's body. Slang terms: Box, cunt, muff, pussy, slit.

VAGINAL SECRETIONS: A clear and slippery fluid that comes from the walls of the vagina. It is a natural lubricant that comes out before and during sex. This helps the penis get inside the vagina easier. It also protects the lining of the vagina and the skin on a man's penis. It is also a fluid that can give STIs to another person. Slang terms: Pussy juice, honey.

VAGINAL SEX: Sometimes called "regular" sex or intercourse. It happens when a man puts his penis into the vagina of a woman. This can make a woman PREGNANT if they don't use birth control. A person can also get STIs this way if their partner has the germ. A LATEX CONDOM can prevent PREGNANCY and transmission of a STI.

VIRGIN: A person who has never had sex. Some people think it means someone who has not had oral, anal or vaginal sex. Other people feel that a virgin is someone who has had oral sex but nothing else. The word VIRGIN means many different things to many different people. Sometimes it is good to ask a boyfriend or girlfriend what they mean when they say that they are a VIRGIN. Depending on what their definition of a VIRGIN is, they might have already contracted a STI.

VIRUS: A kind of germ that is so small it can't even be seen with a regular microscope. Some VIRUSES can be prevented by VACCINES. VIRUSES are the smallest and simplest of all germs, but they are also some of the deadliest. A STI caused by a VIRUS can not be cured, but it can be treated to help make the symptoms disappear. Herpes and HIV are two STIs that are caused by VIRUSES. Viruses also cause the flu, chicken pox, and malaria.

VULVA: The sex organs outside of a female's body. They include the LABIA and the CLITORIS. It is possible that just touching the VULVA with the penis can cause pregnancy because sperm could swim up into the vagina and uterus.

W

WATER-BASED LUBRICANT: A LUBRICANT in which the main ingredient is water. This is good for a LATEX CONDOM because, unlike OIL-BASED LUBRICANTS, WATER-BASED LUBRICANTS won't make or eat holes in it.

WET DREAMS: A man or a boy might have dreams about sex while he is sleeping. If he has an erection and then ejaculates this is a WET DREAM. It can happen to someone without that person knowing about it. WET DREAMS are perfectly normal and can happen at any age. WET DREAMS are sometimes called "nocturnal emissions."

WHITE BLOOD CELLS: One of the cells that are part of person's IMMUNE SYSTEM. All fluids that transmit HIV have WHITE BLOOD CELLS in them.

WITHDRAWAL: Also known as pulling out. During sex a male takes his penis out of another person's vagina, anus or mouth before EJACULATION. This stops semen from getting inside the person. WITHDRAWL is not effective at preventing pregnancy or at preventing the spread of a STI. A man's penis can leak PRE-SEMINAL FLUID which contains SPERM, into a woman's VAGINA, without knowing it. PRE-SEMINAL FLUIDS from a man, and VAGINAL FLUIDS from a woman, can also spread STIs before a man EJACULATES.

WOMB: Another word for uterus.

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Y

YEAST INFECTION: A woman can get a YEAST INFECTION in her VAGINA when small amounts of yeast that normally grow there go out of control. YEAST INFECTIONS are treatable with medicine. Yeast can grow faster if a person takes antibiotics or birth control pills for a long time, has an allergy to yeast, or changes their diet and eats a lot of sugar. A common SYMPTOM of a YEAST INFECTION is a white, thick, fluid coming out of their VAGINA, but many women with YEAST INFECTIONS have no SYMPTOMS.

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Z

ZYGOTE: A ZYGOTE is formed when a man's sperm FERTILIZES a woman's egg. It is the first step in what will later develop into an EMBRYO, and then a FETUS, and finally a baby.

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