In human sexuality, top, bottom, and versatile are sex positions or roles during sexual activity, especially between two men. A top is usually a person who penetrates, a bottom is usually one who receives penetration, and someone who is versatile engages in either or both roles. These terms may be elements of self-identity that indicate an individual's usual preference and habits, but might also describe broader sexual identities and social roles. The terms top and bottom are often used as verbs for the person's actions. The terms do not necessarily refer literally to physical position during sex.
Top
A top is usually a person who engages in the penetrative role during sexual activity; for men who have sex with men, this often involves penetration using the penis during anal or oral sex. Top is also used as a verb meaning "to penetrate another". Top may also describe a broader personal identity involving dominance in a romantic or sexual relationship; however, this stipulation is not a requisite element of being a top. Several related terms exist. With regard to gay male sexuality, a ' is one who assumes an exclusively penetrative role for sex. A ' is one noted for their great skill or aggressiveness in topping. A ' is "one who tops under the direction of an eager bottom". A ' is one who prefers to top but who bottoms occasionally. The terms ' or ' are synonyms of top, created to describe the act of penetrating without implying non-egalitarian relations among participants. Trevor Hart of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that self-identified tops were more likely to act as the penetrative partner in other sexual activities, including oral sex and sex toy play.
Bottom
A bottom is usually the receptive partner during sexual penetration. This frequently refers to MSMs who are penetrated via the anus during anal sex. Bottom is also used as a verb meaning "to be penetrated by another, whether anally or orally". Bottom may also describe a wider social context of submission within a romantic or sexual relationship, though this element does not apply to all people who prefer to bottom. In gay male sexuality, a total bottom is someone who assumes an exclusively receptive role during anal or oral intercourse. A ' is someone who aggressively enjoys being the receptive partner. A ' is one who prefers to bottom but who tops occasionally. The term or may be preferred by some. An oral bottom is the exclusively receptive partner in oral sex, providing the penetrative partner, or oral top, with unreciprocated fellatio and irrumatio.
Versatile
Versatile refers to a person who enjoys both topping and bottoming, or being dominant and submissive, and may alternate between the two in sexual situations. Flip-flop or flip fuck commonly describes switching from top to bottom during one sexual encounter between two men. Each participant penetrates the other and is penetrated in his turn. Versatility is a concept of lifestyle. Versatility, though, is not limited to the simple acts of anal, oral, or vaginal penetration, but also includes the splitting of duties and responsibilities in the relationship. According to some, living a versatile lifestyle implies a certain openness to new things and an opposition to labels, stereotypes and generalizations. Therefore, this concept differs from heterosexual relationships where sexual compatibility does not begin with guessing who will end up as top or bottom. In self descriptions of men seeking sex with other men, they may refer to themselves as a versatile top or versatile bottom in addition to other commonly used terms. A 2009 Austrian study on gay pornography has shown that at least 82.4% of all men performing in the male porn industry are versatile at some point during their career. In this study, the performances of 5,556 actors were considered. 10.8% performed only in the top role, 6.8% only as bottoms. The study also found that the actor with the larger penis was more likely to act as the top. Versatility is a common theme of erotic artistTom of Finland.
Prevalence
No extensive scientific study has ever been conducted as to firmly determine what percentage of the gay and bisexual male population prefers any given role. A tally of 55,464 profiles on gay.com from the United States showed that 26.46% preferred top, while 31.92% preferred bottom, and the largest group preferred versatile. The preferences seemed to vary by state, however. In Wyoming, for example, 16% preferred top, 44% preferred bottom, and 40% preferred versatile. In West Virginia, tops outnumbered bottoms by a slim margin. In Oregon, "versatile" profiles made up nearly half.
Other
General
In the hanky code, a person flagging the top or active role would wear the hanky in the left pocket, the bottom or passive role on the right. Acts which were not divisible into distinct roles however, such as "69" or "anything" followed a pattern where one flagged interest by wearing the hanky on the right, uninterest by wearing it on the left, and preferences that did not relate to sexual mechanics, such as uniform fetishism or prostitution, followed a pattern where the seeker flagged on the left and the object of desire flagged on the right. The term side has been proposed by Huffington Post contributor Joe Kort for gay men who are not interested in anal sex. The cowboy position is anal sex in which the bottom straddles the top. The position is often cited as being advantageous for bottoms who are new to anal sex, as it allows the receiving partner to lower himself on to the other's penis at his own pace.
Alternative terminology
Other terms for top/bottom include active/passive and pitcher/catcher. The intended meanings of activevs. passive in reference to oral sex vs. anal sex can be unclear, however. Switch is sometimes used for versatile.
Role vs. position among sexualities
The terms top, bottom and versatile do not necessarily refer literally to physical position during sex. For example, if the inserting partner lies on his back and the receptive partner straddles him, the inserting partner is still considered the top, and the receptive partner the bottom, despite their reverse physical arrangement. However, when used in reference to heterosexual and lesbian sex, the terms top,bottom and versatile usually refer only to position and not to the penetrative role.
