Find over 25,000 psychological definitions


sadomasochism

n.

1. sexual activity between consenting partners in which one partner enjoys inflicting pain (see sexual sadism) and the other enjoys experiencing pain (see sexual masochism).

2. a paraphilia in which a person is both sadistic and masochistic, deriving sexual arousal from both giving and receiving pain. —sadomasochist n. —sadomasochistic adj.

Browse dictionary by letter

a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z

Psychology term of the day

February 23rd 2025

Krause end bulb

Krause end bulb

a specialized sensory nerve ending enclosed in a capsule in the skin. It is associated with temperature sensations. [Wilhelm Krause (1833–1910), German anatomist]