Top, bottom, switch

Top

In BDSM, top can mean either a dominant partner in BDSM play or a partner who applies stimulation to another, and who may or may not be dominant.

Topping from the bottom refers to a person simultaneously adopting the role of bottom and dom. An example would be a gay man who prefers to be penetrated (a bottom) yet is the one who "runs the show". The bottom decides when, how, and for how long the top will penetrate him, and the top goes along with the bottom's desires. The bottom is not the one doing the penetrating, yet he is not being submissive; he's the dom and the penetrating top is the submissive one in the dynamic.

A service top is a person who applies sensation or control to a bottom, but does so at the bottom's explicit instructions.

Bottom

Bottom can mean either a submissive partner in sexual play, or a partner who receives stimulation from another who may or may not be submissive.

A bottom in BDSM does not have to be the submissive; for example, a female dominant may command her submissive to penetrate her.

Switch

A switch is someone who participates in BDSM activities sometimes as a top and other times as a bottom or sometimes as a dominant and other times as a submissive. This is sometimes referred to as being versatile.

Dominant and submissive

Those who take the superior position in dominance and submission scenes and relationships are called dominants, doms, or dommes (feminine), while those who take the subordinate position are called submissives or subs. A top filling the dominant role is not necessarily a dominant, and vice versa, and a bottom is not necessarily submissive. Other labels may be used depending on the individual or the relationship.

The main difference between a dominant and a top is that the dominant exhibits control within a power exchange dynamic, while a top exhibits control within a scene. A top may or may not be a dominant.

The main difference between a submissive and a bottom is that a submissive cedes power in a power exchange dynamic. A bottom may or may not be a submissive, as power exchange does not have to be a component of their kinky play.

Many distinguish top/bottom from dominant/submissive by seeing top/bottom as an expression of physical power, while dominant/submissive is an expression of psychological power. In both types of relationships - top/bottom and dominant/submissive - consent, negotiations, and mutual respect and support for one another are keys to healthy dynamics.

Beginning in the 1970s, in some American contexts, people would identify their interests by wearing a set of keys on the side of their belt or a color-coded handkerchief in their rear pockets. This practice, called flagging, began in the gay male subculture.

References

References

1. Jones, Angela. (2013). "A Critical Inquiry into Queer Utopias". Springer.
2. "Dominant Honorifics in BDSM".
3. "Submissive Honorifics in BDSM".
4. (2007). "Safe, Sane and Consensual: Contemporary Perspectives on Sadomasochism". Palgrave Macmillan.
5. "Switches and Switching in Kink & BDSM".
6. "Dominant Honorifics in BDSM".
7. "Submissive Honorifics in BDSM".
8. (2021). "Sadomasochism and the BDSM Community in the United States: Kinky People Unite". Routledge.
9. "Sadism & Masochism".