slut
Hussy or trollop
Slut originally meant a slovenly woman, careless about housekeeping or personal cleanliness—a slob or slattern: She keeps house like a slut.
This sense is now largely obsolete.
The dominant modern meaning is a derogatory term for a woman considered sexually promiscuous.
The word is meant to shame—it implies that female sexuality, beyond some undefined limit, is contemptible.
Slut has been partially reclaimed by some women who reject the premise that promiscuity is shameful: She calls herself a slut and means it as liberation.
But in most contexts it remains an insult.
Sex worker
- slagIndustrial metalworking byproduct
- hoExclamation seeking attention
- skankPromiscuous or disreputable person
- trampWandering homeless person
hussy · trollop · tart · floozy · strumpet · harlot · bitch · wench
Sexually undiscriminating
- looseNot firmly secured
- easyRequiring minimal effort
- wantonDeliberately cruel without reason
- libertineOne lacking moral restraint
fast · bed-hopping · sleeping around · one-night stand · casual sex · hookup · player · philanderer
Gender-based prejudice
- misogynyHostility toward women
- objectificationReducing humans to things
- patriarchyMale-dominated social order
- degradationDecline in condition
demeaning · derogatory · chauvinist · disrespect · double standard · controlling · policing · oppression
Unequally applied moral code
- reputationCollective opinion of someone
- gossipInformal talk spreading rumors
- scandalDisgraceful public affair
- judgmentReasoned decision-making capacity
morality · purity · chastity · puritanical · prudish · victim-blaming · label · scarlet letter
Gaining authority or confidence
- reclaimTake back possession
- sex-positiveAccepting of consensual desires
- feministGender equality proponent
- agencyPower to act
autonomy · destigmatize · pride · ownership · defiance · protest · solidarity · activism
whore
Sex worker
- slagIndustrial metalworking byproduct
- hoExclamation seeking attention
- skankPromiscuous or disreputable person
tramp · hussy · trollop · tart · floozy · strumpet · harlot · bitch · wench · scrubber
promiscuous
Sexually undiscriminating
libertine · fast · bed-hopping · sleeping around · one-night stand · casual sex · hookup · player · philanderer · nymphomaniac
sexism
Gender-based prejudice
- misogynyHostility toward women
- objectificationReducing humans to things
- patriarchyMale-dominated social order
degradation · demeaning · derogatory · chauvinist · disrespect · double standard · controlling · policing · oppression · subjugation
double standard
Unequally applied moral code
- reputationCollective opinion of someone
- gossipInformal talk spreading rumors
- scandalDisgraceful public affair
judgment · morality · purity · chastity · puritanical · prudish · victim-blaming · label · scarlet letter · walk of shame
empowerment
Gaining authority or confidence
- reclaimTake back possession
- sex-positiveAccepting of consensual desires
- feministGender equality proponent
agency · autonomy · destigmatize · pride · ownership · defiance · protest · solidarity · activism · reappropriation
slattern
Slovenly, untidy woman
slob · messy · disheveled · dirty · careless · housekeeping · maid · drudge
- gender stereotypesboys will be boys, pink for girls, blue for boys, man up, strong men
- Counterculture Symbolsanarchy symbol, peace sign, raised fist, Guy Fawkes mask, black flag
- seducersseducer, lothario, womanizer, philanderer, rake
slutnun
Hebrew alphabet's fourteenth
bride of Christ · sister · novice · abbess
- slut shamingCriticizing someone's sexual behavior
- slut it upAct sexually provocative