Defined by the act performed rather than an object or a body part.
Interests defined by an activity rather than an object: voyeurism and exhibitionism (in their consensual forms), group and multi-partner play, dirty talk, recording, and watching or sharing a partner. The act itself is the source of arousal.
64 entries
CompositionMixed63 sexual · 1 non-sexual
Entries6413.2% of the catalog
Mean index50.9 /100catalog 39.2
Subcategories2424 facets
Entries by index
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Here the organizing principle is something done: watching or being watched, displaying, recording, talking, or arranging multi-partner scenarios such as group play, threesomes, and the candaulist cluster (cuckolding, hotwife, sharing a partner).
The consensual versions live in this category; their non-consensual clinical analogues (voyeuristic, exhibitionistic, and frotteuristic disorders) are documented under Clinical Paraphilias. Consent, privacy, and the law (especially around recording and public exposure) are the dividing lines.
Ultra-common11
Very common11
Common26
Uncommon11
Rare5
Very rare0
Ultra-common11
Very common11
Common26
Uncommon11
Rare5
Very rare0
Entries
Filter and sort within Acts & Activities, or switch categories from the control below.
What makes an interest an act rather than a fetish?
The distinction is where the arousal sits. A fetish attaches to an object, a material or a body part; an act-based interest attaches to something done, and would survive a change of costume or setting. Voyeurism is about watching, group sex about the arrangement of people, dirty talk about language. Many people hold both kinds at once, and the categories describe the interest rather than the person.
Is voyeurism illegal?
Consensual voyeurism, where the person being watched knows and agrees, is legal in most jurisdictions and is the version documented here. Watching or filming someone who has not consented is a criminal offence in most of them, and is catalogued separately as voyeuristic disorder. The dividing line is consent and a reasonable expectation of privacy, not the act of looking.
Is exhibitionism the same as flashing a stranger?
No. Exhibitionism as an interest means being seen by people who want to see: at a club, on camera, or with a partner who has agreed. Exposing genitals to an unconsenting stranger is exhibitionistic disorder and a sexual offence in most jurisdictions. One word covers both, which is why the consensual and the clinical versions sit in different parts of this reference.
What is the difference between a threesome, group sex and an orgy?
Mostly headcount and structure. A threesome involves three people, usually with the whole encounter shared. Group sex is the umbrella term for four or more. An orgy implies a larger, looser gathering in which pairings change, while a gangbang describes several people focused on one. Swinging names a social arrangement rather than any single encounter.
Does watching a partner with someone else count as cheating?
Not when it is agreed in advance, which is the defining feature of this whole cluster. Sharing a partner, swinging and troilism all rest on a negotiated rule about what is permitted and with whom. Infidelity is a breach of the agreement a couple actually holds, so the same act can be either one, depending on what was settled beforehand.
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