noun
masturbation
mas-tuh-BAYSHN
noun
1
Sexual stimulation of one's own genitals, often to orgasm.
"The health class covered masturbation as a normal part of sexuality education."
2
Any activity pursued purely for self-satisfaction with no real benefit to anyone else.
"Critics dismissed the film as pure directorial masturbation, all style and no story."
How to Use Masturbation
Learner’s notesIn plain EnglishSelf-stimulation for sexual pleasure; also used loosely for indulgent, pointless self-satisfaction.
When to use it
The figurative sense ("mental masturbation") is informal and often dismissive.
Word Forms
masturbations plural
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Etymology
Borrowed from French masturbation, from New Latin masturbatio.