How well do you know your penis?

Or, maybe it is something your partner(s) own… have you mapped it out well?

I wanted to create a dicktionary for you all, whether it be useful or simply the excuse to giggle at the words that make up this little (or do you prefer large?) guide to the P-E-N-I-S! (I just imagine a jingle being created for that word, but I already think we have enough songs glorifying this one statement of a persons body, or, as Sigmund Freud has attempted to theorize, I just have penis envy). I put more of a focus on the more external parts of the penis, with back up info on certain details of the inside, because… let’s be honest, no one wants to read through a boring high school biology textbook.

But anyways, let’s break down this fun stick.

1.The Foreskin/The Prepuce

The area that delivers all that rubbalicious pleasure, containing over 20, 000 nerve endings! This covers basically the “protruding” area of the penis (shaft + head), besides the testes. When born, the foreskin is actually attached to the glans of the penis, making it not retractable from the head. This is one reason that parents decide to circumcised their child for reasons that don’t involve religion, with worries that if they aren’t able to “clean” down there and it may be infected, though now there is a lot of information on how to clean this puppy properly. What is this process?

Just use some soap and water during bath time and wipe during diaper changes! DO NOT PULL TO TRY AND CLEAN UNDERNEATH!

For all you grown-ups out there… Please do retract your foreskin and clean underneath, for the benefit of you and not bacteria.

2.The Head/ The Glans

Probably one of the more spongier parts of the penis, it also contains more concentrated nerve endings. Difference between circumcised and uncircumcised?

The uncircumcised penis, because of the extra foreskin (also called prepuce) situated around the “rim” of the glans base (before it connects to the shaft), it provides an extra sensitivity, seeing as the “internal” prepuce hasn’t been exposed to much sensation by making itself all snug with it’s extra rug. A study has shown that people who do have circumcised pals possibly can experience more pain during sex… Just think of a tugging motion with both a banana and also a banana with a sock on it.

Which one do you think would be easier to tug up and down?

There is a lot less “flexible” room for the foreskin to move, so instead of massaging the shaft, it is pulling/tightening the already taught skin. Lube is a great invention for helping that not happen to those that have been “cut”- better to be slippery than dry!

3.The Shaft

Otherwise seen as the “chimney” of the penis, this is the area that makes a difference between a small, or a large package. Girth and length varies, with each one having it’s own style/structure (some are stick-rod straight, some are curvy).

About curvy penises, they have their own advantages (certain spots of a partner(s) erotic areas are just serenaded in certain positions). If a penis is very curvy, they might have Peyronie’s Disease- a condition that has built up scar tissue on one part of the shaft and causes the erection to bend because of the unflexible hold the tissue has grasped. Simple penis physics.

WARNING: Rough masturbation/pulling and masturbation without lubrication can cause Peyronie’s Disease from attempting to heal!

This is the area that has a large amount of corpus cavernosum, the main erectile tissue found in both the vagina and penis. When you get hot and steamy, the blood does too, which travels into this tissue to engorge it.

4.The Scrotum

Just like a present is wrapped with paper, the scrotum holds all the precious treasures inside. Being the skin barrier between the testes and the outside world, this is a pretty cushy area- that does NOT mean it is a wall fortress though, it is still holding those sensitive jewels! Because these “jewels” need to be kept cool until they are ready to explore the outside world, the muscular tissue in the skin of the scrotum can contract and release for temperature control… How cool is that?!

There still exists nerve tissue, though it isn’t from the skin of the scrotal sac itself…

You can feel these nerves, especially when you play with the testicles hidden in the scrotum (holding, massaging, etc.), though the sensitivity varies from owner to owner, as well as preference of the act! These sensations come from the spermatic cord that is attached to the testes inside. The spermatic cord is a structure off of the Vas Deferens and is the bridge between the testes and the internal anatomy of the penis.

For those that are saying “Vas Deferens?! Too complicated of words.” I shall let you know in simple analogy… the Vas Deferens is the “wine bottle” to the sperm, which actually is produced as infertile/immature from the start. Grapes are not what we came here for though, so when the sperm is released through the tube of Vas Deferens, they “age” themselves into a fertilizing little mixture, like wine!

5.The Gouch/ The Perenium

“What is that one space that is behind it all?”

Caught in between the anus and the testes, the gouch is an area that, when pressure is applied, can externally stimulate the prostate gland! This can definitely be a pleasurable experience for some (I have personally encountered those that think my hand is closer to their anus than feels comfortable, which is also okay)!

Fun fact: This perineal area is twice as long with people that have penises compared to those with vaginas!

6.The Testes/ The Balls

Generally only two per person, except in rare cases, the balls are where the pools of sperm is manufactured and stored, along with the testosterone hormone (hence why we associate M.I.’s with testosterone, though F.I.’s carry it as well)!

There is a reason why they dangle there in their scrotum hammock. Instead of being kept inside like the ovaries of the female sex, they need to stay cool long enough to endure the heated journey through the inwards part of the penis to the egg, which is also indoors. The sperm is created through a process of spermatogenesis and stored in both the epididymus and testes. Generally the size of large grapes, sometimes one ball is larger than the other, just like how breasts can be.

On the topic of large and small… does size matter?

A recent blogger, who has a penis, decided to put the question to the test, “Does a bulge give you any more attention?” The quick end of the summary here is no, not really… the inadvertent glances that were mostly inspired to advert away after noticing his bulging crotch for both M.I.’s and F.I.’s (Male and Female Identified).

We see here, from a societal psychology perspective, that a penis does not carry the same type of sexualization/attention compared to areas of a F.I.’s body Most of these areas aren’t even erotic parts. Breasts and butts are notoriously scavenged by drooling stares and sometimes even worse… comments.

People who have sex with partner(s) who have a penis will mostly say that size doesn’t matter… to an extent.

The mean average, the bell curve of all sizes, is seen as desirable, simply because it is more common of what we see in media, besides porn (68% of males in one survey reported having a erect penis length of 4.6-6 inches). People who do report on having size matter, are more concerned with girth than how far the shaft can stretch.

Have you felt any pressure to have a different penis? Do you have any concerns about your partner’s? I offer sexual relationship coaching and one-on-one sessions that can help you explore any hindered communication or confidence in your intimate body!

Now, time to go personally study some anatomy (whatever genital you choose)!

Jaylene Cherie

Sex + Intimacy Coach

Creator of Femme Forth