性行為的基本類型

理論學者常常覺得需要對人們在做愛時他們相互做了什麼進行詳細解釋和分門別類。例如：即使沒有直接的身體接觸的性交也能夠被劃分為若干個亞類。因而，把通過接到猥褻電話和實際上鼓勵打來電話者打猥褻電話而受到性刺激的人說成是在參與“聲音或聽覺性交（vocal and aural intercourse）”。以同樣的口吻，有人也可能會說人與人之間的“郵寄性交（postal intercourse）”或“互聯網性交（internet intercourse）”，因為他們相互郵寄、發送產生性喚起的信件、照片和電子郵件或者相互觀看對方的（暴露身體的）視頻。

不過，在日常生活中，這種術語的分類是不必要的，而且可能聽起來顯得迂腐和自命不凡。所以，為了講求實效，大多數專業人員已經認可了數個基本的術語，這些術語只定義那些涉及與至少一個參與者的性器官發生直接接觸的性交方式。這樣的處理在相當程度上簡化了這件複雜事物。所以，在此我們遵照這種用法，並把性交區分為4種基本的類型：（參見同性性交的基本類型。）

2. Heterosexual Intercourse

Basic Types of Sexual Intercourse

Academic writers often feel the need to specify, classify, and categorize what people do to each other when they make love. For example: Even sexual intercourse without direct physical contact can be divided into several subcategories. Thus, a person who is stimulated by an obscene phone call, and who actually encourages the caller, may be said to engage in "vocal and aural intercourse". In the same vein, one could speak of "postal intercourse" or “internet intercourse” between people who send each other sexually arousing letters, photographs, and e-mails, or who watch each other’s web cams.
However, in everyday life, this kind of terminology is unnecessary and can easily sound pedantic and pretentious. For practical purposes, therefore, most professionals have agreed on a few basic terms which describe only those forms of sexual intercourse that involve direct physical contact with the sex organs of at least one of the participants. This simplifies the matter considerably. Therefore, we follow this usage here and distinguish between four basic types of sexual intercourse: