What does dicking mean?
Dicking is an informal, explicitly vulgar verb with two established uses. In its principal sense, especially in British English, it means to have sexual intercourse with someone. It is formed from the vulgar noun dick, meaning the penis, and is correspondingly crude rather than clinical. The second use occurs chiefly in the phrasal expression dick around, meaning to idle, fool about, or waste time; this use is especially common in North American informal speech. The word’s tone makes it unsuitable for formal writing and potentially offensive in many settings, although its emphatic or comic register can work well among speakers sharing that style. It also appears in the participial form dicking around, as in a complaint that someone is wasting time. Because dicking can refer both to sexual activity and to aimless idling, context is needed to determine the intended sense. It is worth knowing chiefly as a marker of vulgar, colloquial register rather than as a formal dictionary term.
verbTo have sexual intercourse with someone. In the phrasal expression with around, it means to idle, fool about, or waste time.
- To have sexual intercourse with someone; this is explicitly vulgar and especially associated with British English.
- To idle, fool around, or waste time, typically in the phrasal expression dicking around; this use is common in informal North American English.
"They were dicking in the back of the car."
"They were dicking in the back of the car."
"They spent the afternoon dicking around instead of studying."
Four letters carry the punch of “dick”—but add “around” and the word becomes a comic complaint about wasting time.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does dicking come from?
Dicking is formed from the vulgar noun dick, which is attested in the 16th century as a word for the penis. The noun dick is commonly traced to the familiar form Dick of the personal name Richard, and the same name underlies forms such as Dickens. The verb dicking is developed with the ordinary present-participle ending -ing.
How dicking is actually used
Strongly vulgar in the sexual sense and unsuitable for formal, polite, or professional contexts. The phrasal sense is considerably milder and is especially common in North American informal speech.
Easily confused with dicking
Dick is chiefly a vulgar noun meaning the penis, whereas dicking is a verb referring to sexual intercourse or, in its phrasal use, wasteful idling.
Diking means constructing or maintaining dikes, whereas dicking belongs to the unrelated vulgar word dick and its verbal derivatives.