As long as there have been dicks, there have been nicknames for them includes terms like “fescue,” “long plum,” and “kicky-wicky” dating back to Elizabethan England, and Shakespeare himself was no stranger to genital wordplay.
Among this plethora of terms for the genitals, many could be classified as pet names used primarily outside of the bedroom names that seem intended to neutralize or “defang” the penis, if you’ll pardon the imagery. Here we have our Moby Dicks, our Johnnies, our Napoleons. And then there are the names used in intimate encounters when the aural qualities and clinical connotations of “penis” simply don’t measure up and one has to pronounce something more powerful.
Let’s start with the obvious: The main event in the battle of the dick names has to be “dick” versus “cock.” These are the two terms most people tend to, uh, reach for. They’re simple. They’re punchy. They’re well-known unlikely to raise an eyebrow or inspire a group text about your preferences.
Notes that “‘dick’ feels extremely jokey, [but] outside of intercourse, ‘cock’ is way too vulgar. Dick sounds diminutive, belittling. It almost sounds like a joke. In addition to having comical versus serious connotations, the two terms may even evoke size differences.
It’s not just about connotations, though “dick” and “cock” have very different sounds, or mouthfeels if you will. Here, it provides a full-throated defense of the sonic qualities of “cock,” noting that “it has a full, open-mouthed sound. It’s hard to even use the word in an insulting manner it just doesn’t have the bite. There’s something slightly awed about it, while still having room to be playful. It’s a more inviting, inclusive sound.
