While most dudes may want their dicks to be considered ‘big,’ there’s no objective measure. So why does the obsession continue?

In any context, “big” is a messy thing to quantify. That messiness, however, is never more baffling than it is when we talk about bodies. Here, big can mean many things – in a bodily context, bigness can produce stigma and shame from both its presence and lack thereof. But in the case of “big dicks,” the world continues to try.

There are literally billions of Google results pertaining to penis size , and searches for “what is considered a big penis” or “average penis size” have remained relatively steady for the last 15 years. Of course, there is some statistical data to help answer these questions, though the data itself might only complicate things further. Most studies point to a worldwide average of around 5.1 inches in length when erect. “Big” may therefore mean anything above this margin, or might require a number significantly higher. It’s even possible that the average-sized penis is “big.” While we can quantify what is average, we don’t have the precise language to determine what big means.

As such, the abundance of searches for answers is almost more revealing than the potential answers themselves. The searches point to an anxiety and need for assurance that the internet writ large seems unlikely to provide.

Answers from real-life people are similarly confounding. “My personal definition of ‘big dick’ is if someone is bigger than 7.5 inches,” one young woman tells me. “In my sex life, I would say I’ve only fucked one true ‘big dick.’”

The Problem With Quantifying ‘Big Dick’

For her, big doesn’t always mean better, either. Lees verder →