Top / bottom
Top and bottom are terms for the giving and receiving roles during a BDSM activity, and they do not describe who is physically on top in a particular sexual act.[1][2]
Sources: grade C×10, grade D×1. Last checked 8 October 2026. What the grades mean
The words can also point to a broader psychological, social or sexual identity, or simply to someone's usual preference.[1] Top and bottom refer to giving and receiving roles, not to physical position.[2]
A top applies sensations within a scene, while a dominant exhibits control within a power exchange dynamic, so a top may or may not be a dominant.[3] Likewise, a submissive cedes power in a power exchange dynamic, whereas a bottom may or may not be submissive, because power exchange need not be part of their play.[4]
Terms for roles vary widely among subcultures.[5] Top and dominant are widely used for the physically active or controlling participants, and bottom and submissive for the physically receptive or controlled ones.[5] The precise definition of roles and self-identification is a common subject of debate among BDSM participants.[6]
A switch is someone who can act as both a top and a bottom.[7] The older terms active and passive are still often used, and in the context of gay sex the terms are top, bottom and versatile.[7] A pleasurable session is commonly considered to depend strongly on the top's competence and experience and on the bottom's physical and mental state.[8]
Sources
- Source grade CJones, Angela (2013). A Critical Inquiry into Queer Utopias . Springer. pp. 111– 112. ISBN 978-1137311979 . books.google.com
- Source grade CJones, Angela (2013). A Critical Inquiry into Queer Utopias . Springer. pp. 111– 112. ISBN 978-1137311979 . books.google.com; "Dominant Honorifics in BDSM" . KYNK 101 . Retrieved 2022-09-24 . kynk101.com; "Submissive Honorifics in BDSM" . KYNK 101 . Retrieved 2022-09-24 . kynk101.com
- Source grade C"Dominant Honorifics in BDSM" . KYNK 101 . Retrieved 2022-09-24 . kynk101.com
- Source grade C"Submissive Honorifics in BDSM" . KYNK 101 . Retrieved 2022-09-24 . kynk101.com
- Source grade C"Dictionary of BDSM Terms" . Archived from the original on 2 December 2014 . Retrieved 26 November 2014 . xeromag.com
- Source grade CGrau, Johnson (1995). "What do B&D, S&M, D&S, "top", "bottom" mean" . Leather Roses. Archived from the original on 11 January 2008 . Retrieved 27 January 2008 . leathernroses.com
- Source grade CLangdridge, Darren; Richards, C.; John Barker, Meg (2007). Safe, Sane and Consensual: Contemporary Perspectives on Sadomasochism . Palgrave Macmillan. p. 140. ISBN 978-0230517745 . books.google.com
- Source grade CJohn Warren, PhD: The Loving Dominant , Greenery Press (CA), 2nd rev. ed., ISBN 978-1-890159-20-7; Bill Henkin, Sybil Holiday: Consensual Sadomasochism: How to Talk About It and How to Do It Safely , Daedalus Publishing Company 1996, ISBN 978-1-881943-12-9
- Source grade DDavid Stein: S/M's Copernican Revolution:From a Closed World to the Infinite Universe and Safe Sane Consensual: The Evolution of a Shibboleth available at s/m-leather history [ link removed ]
- Source grade CDossie Easton, Janet W. Hardy: The New Topping Book , page 72, Greenery Press (CA) 2002, ISBN 978-1-890159-36-8
- Source grade CWiseman, Jay (1998). SM 101: A Realistic Introduction . California: Greenery Press. ISBN 978-0-9639763-8-3 .; Dossie Easton, Janet W. Hardy: The New Topping Book , page 71, Greenery Press (CA) 2002
Every claim was checked against its source before publication. Last checked 8 October 2026.