Scissoring
Scissoring is a non-penetrative sex position in which two partners interlock or cross their legs so that their genitals can meet and rub together. It is commonly discussed in the context of vulva-to-vulva contact during sex between women, although the activity does not establish the participants' sexual orientation.[1]
The crossed-leg shape describes the overall arrangement of the bodies. It does not guarantee a particular point of contact, an identical sensation for both partners or an orgasm.
Scissoring and tribadism
Tribadism, or tribbing, is a broader term for rubbing the vulva against a partner's body, including their vulva or thigh. Scissoring is one possible arrangement for this kind of contact.[2]
Informal descriptions sometimes use scissoring for genital rubbing more generally. This article uses the narrower meaning for the crossed-leg position, while recognizing that real-world terminology overlaps.[3]
Genital rubbing describes an activity; scissoring describes a position. Someone can enjoy tribbing in another posture without enjoying scissoring, or enjoy scissoring as only one part of a sexual encounter.
Which body parts touch?
The vulva is the external genital region, including the outer labia, inner labia and clitoral region. The vagina is the internal canal. Vulva-to-vulva contact therefore does not require either vagina to be penetrated.
The visible clitoral glans sits toward the front of the vulva and may be partly covered by the clitoral hood. The clitoris also has internal components; the visible tip is only part of its anatomy.[4]
Contact with a partner's genitals can stimulate the external clitoris, but stimulation need not look like two exposed clitoral tips touching. Direct glans pressure can also be too intense for some people; what feels good differs between individuals.[4]
A close-up can show which visible surfaces meet. It cannot show the pressure transmitted through those tissues or establish how much sensation either person experiences.
What does scissoring feel like?
Mechanically, scissoring combines body contact, pressure and sliding movement rather than internal penetration. Moving the pelvis changes the contact area, so the outline of the legs alone is a poor guide to the sensation.
Sex-education guidance describes changing the angle and pressure to suit the partners' preferences. These are practical options, not evidence that one alignment works best for everyone.[3]
Pleasure can involve clitoral stimulation, but a partner's enjoyment is not a direct measure of one's own. Sharing a movement does not mean that both partners receive the same pressure in the same place.
The sources cited here do not provide a validated, scissoring-specific description of sensations before, during and after orgasm. Descriptions of pressure or pleasurable rubbing should not be mistaken for a measured universal response.
Body position and physical comfort
Scissoring can involve sitting, reclining or supporting the upper body on an arm. These differences change how the legs and pelvis are positioned, even when the same name is used.[3]
Comfort includes the hips, knees, back and supporting arms, not just the genitals. If a position strains a joint or makes movement awkward, changing the posture or choosing a different activity is more useful than forcing the pictured shape.[3]
Added lubricant can reduce discomfort associated with dryness and friction. Natural vaginal lubrication varies with arousal, hormones and some medicines; needing lubricant does not establish a lack of attraction.[5]
Pause or stop if contact hurts. Persistent pain, irritation or bleeding deserves medical advice rather than repeated attempts to overcome it.[5]
How common is scissoring?
Scissoring is a real sexual activity, but its visibility in pornography does not establish how frequently couples use it. The name may also mean slightly different things to different respondents.
A 2012 online survey analyzed 3,116 women in the United States, United Kingdom, Canada and Australia who had engaged in sexual activity with a woman during the previous year. In this sample, 90.8% reported a history of genital scissoring.[6]
This was a targeted online sample, not a random sample of all women or all lesbian couples. The finding concerns reported history, not regular use, current preference or orgasm frequency.[6]
Can it lead to orgasm?
Clitoral stimulation can contribute to orgasm, but general evidence about clitoral pleasure is not a scissoring-specific success rate. Neither orgasm nor simultaneous orgasm is guaranteed by adopting the position.[4]
A useful distinction is between a position being possible, being pleasurable for a particular person and producing an orgasm. Those are separate outcomes.
Sexual health
Scissoring does not require penetration, but genital skin contact can still transmit infections such as HPV and herpes. Risk depends on the infection and contact involved, rather than on the label “lesbian sex.”[7]
Discuss symptoms, testing and the activities being combined. Barrier protection has to match the actual contact: covering a toy does not cover skin elsewhere on the vulva or thighs. People with a cervix should continue cervical screening according to local recommendations.[7]
Scissoring involving only vulvas and no sperm exposure does not cause pregnancy. Pregnancy becomes possible if sperm-containing fluid reaches the vulva or vagina, including during another activity in the same encounter.[8]
Adult terms and interpreting images
Related terms include:
- scissoring or scissor position: the leg arrangement and associated genital contact.
- tribbing or tribadism: the broader category of vulvar rubbing.
- vulva-to-vulva contact: an anatomical description of the contact itself.
- genital rubbing or grinding: broader descriptions that do not specify one posture.
- lesbian scissoring: a common adult-media and search phrase.
An image may clearly show interlocking legs while concealing the genitals; a close-up may clearly show vulvar contact without showing the leg arrangement. Neither view alone captures every part of the activity.
Pictures also cannot establish the participants' identities, comfort, consent or orgasm. Images are useful for understanding anatomy and posture, but they do not prescribe how a couple must move or which activities they must enjoy.
For broader context, see Lesbian Sex, Clitoris, Outer Labia and Female Orgasm.
See also
References
- ↑ Planned Parenthood. Glossary of Sexual Health Terms: Scissoring. Definition
- ↑ TERMCAT, Centre de Terminologia. Tribadisme. Terminology entry
- ↑ 3,1 3,2 3,3 3,4 Kassel G. Guide to Scissoring. Healthline. Terminology, variations and comfort
- ↑ 4,1 4,2 4,3 Cleveland Clinic. Clitoris. Medically reviewed, updated 2026. Anatomy, sensitivity and sexual stimulation
- ↑ 5,1 5,2 NHS. Vaginal dryness. Causes and comfort measures
- ↑ 6,1 6,2 Schick V, Rosenberger JG, Herbenick D, Reece M. Sexual behaviour and risk reduction strategies among a multinational sample of women who have sex with women. Sexually Transmitted Infections, 2012. Study
- ↑ 7,1 7,2 CDC. Women Who Have Sex with Women (WSW) and Women Who Have Sex with Women and Men (WSWM). STI Treatment Guidelines, 2021. Transmission and preventive care
- ↑ Planned Parenthood. How effective are abstinence and outercourse? Sperm exposure and pregnancy risk