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Sexual attraction: What's the difference between romantic attraction and sexual attraction?

320 Answers
Last Updated: 01/20/2020 at 3:57pm
Sexual attraction: What's the difference between romantic attraction and sexual attraction?
★ This question about LGBTQ+ Issues was starred by a moderator on 5/12/2016.
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Top Rated Answers
ashbradbury42
December 17th, 2015 11:15pm
Romantic attraction is when you are purely attracted to someone on an emotional level. Sexual attraction involves the physical side of a relationship.
Anonymous
December 17th, 2015 11:37am
Romantic attraction is maybe when you'd see yourself with someone holding hands or hugging and sexually attracted to someone is if you image the two of you alone it escalates quite quickly and you find yourself fantasizing about them and imagine yourself doing stuff sexually with them.
benevolentHeart55
December 16th, 2015 4:01pm
That is a very thin line in all honesty. Caring about what your emotions feel and not just lust is romantic. lust and desire of that person's physique is sexual.
oliverjayy
December 16th, 2015 1:48am
Sexual attraction is only wanting anything physical and sexual. Romantic attraction, in my personal opinion, is something more than just the physical and sexual aspects. Of course, it includes the sexual attractions, but also involves the little things, like just being able to spend time together, without saying anything, and just being in each other's presence. Romantic attraction is a very special thing, and it's important to hold onto something like that if you can find it :)
Anonymous
December 12th, 2015 11:23pm
Romantic: wants to date them, kiss them, cuddle with them, hang out with them, etc, Sexual: wants to have sex with them and that's all
Anonymous
December 12th, 2015 12:49am
Romantic attraction is being attracted to the way someone acts, the way they talk to you or how safe you feel with them. Sexual attraction encompasses that but is to the persons body instead of their actions
BethanyRuth
December 11th, 2015 11:17pm
The most simplistic way to explain it is that sexual attraction is just that: a natural desire to have sex with a specific person, it can be an immediate desire upon seeing them or a more gradual one that develops over time, but in the end the base desire is for sex with that person. Romantic attraction is a desire for whatever you perceive is a romantic relationship with a specific person, can also be immediate or more gradual.
fairmindedMap1086
December 4th, 2015 6:34pm
Both are just the worse. getting attracted proposing, proceeding and then all ends up in beak up. A real relationship is supposed to happen automatically. Of course there are exceptions. I see there is no difference between them both but on the other end i think an unconditional attraction would be the ideal one.
DoseOfEuphoriaMaybe
November 9th, 2015 1:38am
Romantic attraction is attraction to the sum total of a person, while Sexual attraction is the attraction to the physical qualities of a being.
ThatPersonSkylar
October 25th, 2015 1:55pm
Romantic attraction is where you mainly just love the person for who they are and you'll hug them and like kiss them, have a nice romantic relationship, just most of the time there isn't sex in these relationships. Asexuals feel this attraction. Sexual attraction is where you want to partake in sexual activities with the person.
CaringDemon6
September 21st, 2015 12:17pm
Well from experience I can tell you that the two are very different. A romantic attraction is when you are attracted to the person because of their personality, you are head over heels for the person and you rarely daydream about them sexually. Now a sexual attraction is when you only imagine the person as a sex toy. That feeling you get when they are shirtless. You constantly daydream about them sexually.
Avi001
September 21st, 2015 11:10am
I think the difference is in romantic attraction you are attracted to the other person emotionally, on the other hand, in sexual attraction you are attracted to the person sexually.
Anonymous
August 16th, 2015 6:43pm
Sexual attraction is a desire to be physically intimate with someone, whereas romantic attraction is a desire to be emotionally intimate with someone. As these are different experiences, romantic and sexual attraction may or may not correspond with one another, for example - one could be sexually attracted to men and women, but only romantically attracted to women.
itsstupid
August 16th, 2015 8:53am
What's the difference between asexual and homo/hetro/pan/bi? Romantic attraction and sexual attraction. Sexual attraction is when you feel the urge to have sexual relations when you are attracted to a particular person. While romantic will just mean that you would like to stay by the person you are attracted to, with no thought of having sexual relations with them
hxlfbloodprincess
August 16th, 2015 5:42am
Romantic attraction is feelings based on a desire to enter an emotional relationship. Sexual attraction is feelings based on a desire to enter a physical relationship
OpenSpace84
August 15th, 2015 9:05pm
A romantic attraction is a desire to share an emotional connection with someone, where a physical attraction is a desire to share physical closeness.
LadyListner1313
August 15th, 2015 5:47am
Romantic attraction is wanting someone for the opportunity to know them as a person, find out what makes them tick. Sexual attraction is the purely instinctual desire to have sexual relations with someone. The relationship is not necessarily important.
Anonymous
August 14th, 2015 9:52pm
Romantic attraction is where you wanna date them, hold hands, cuddle, get married, go on dates, all that fun stuff. Sexual attraction is where you basically just wanna have sex with them.
Anonymous
August 14th, 2015 11:24am
Sexual attraction is when a person desires to have a sexual intercouse with another person. Eg."Do I wanna have sex with them?" Romantic attraction is when a person has romatic feelings for another person (love them, like them but not quite there yet...). Eg."Do I want to spend the rest of my life with them?"
Anonymous
August 14th, 2015 10:00am
I think someone you are romantically attracted to is more someone you would go on a date with, like going out to the movies, holding hands, cuddling, maybe kissing. Sexual attraction is someone you would have sex with..
Anonymous
August 13th, 2015 10:55pm
The sexual attraction is specific to the way another person looks or moves. Therefore you can be sexual attracted by a certain gender or hair color for example. The romantic attraction on the other hand is limited to the personality of another person. That means you are only attracted towards the person because of the personality. This is what is broadly defined as love.
AnnaLs
August 13th, 2015 8:37pm
Romantic attraction means you love everything about the signifiant other, from personality to looks. Sexual attraction means you only love what you see with your eyes or the sexual plesure they might offer you.
Anonymous
August 13th, 2015 2:06pm
The person would want to spend more and more time with their crush, whereas if it's a sexual attraction it's purely physical.
Rift
August 13th, 2015 3:06am
Romantic attraction is in regard to falling in love. You could fall in love with men, women, both or neither for example. Sexual attraction is more about your sexuality rather than love. For example, you could have sexual feelings towards men, women, both or neither. And it is perfectly possible for romantic attraction and sexual attraction to not be the same! For example, you could fall in love with both men and women (romantic attraction) but only ever have sexual feelings towards one of the two (sexual attraction).
Anonymous
August 13th, 2015 12:26am
Romantic attraction: you are in love with the person Sexual attraction: you just want that person for just sex
KindSunflower17
August 12th, 2015 5:46pm
I believe that when you are romantically attracted by someone, you really care for that person, you want to know them better and to try to understand their feelings. You want to commit to that person, to be with them in happiness and in sadness also, you feel the need to mean something to them, to cherish and be cherished. While sexual attraction means that you only find this person physically attractive, you are willing to have a sexual relation with them, but nothing more.
sleepypoett
August 12th, 2015 9:52am
For some, they are one in the same. For others, the attractions can be quite different, where romantic attraction involves your emotional feelings for a person, and sexual attraction involves your physical desire towards a person.
Anonymous
August 12th, 2015 5:21am
Physical penetration is sex, which is a very superficial thing. Psychological penetration is love, which is far more deep, far more significant, far more beautiful, far more human. And then there is a third kind of penetration: when two consciousnesses meet, merge, and melt into each other. -Osho
Supergirl94
August 12th, 2015 4:45am
Romantic attraction is wanting to have a relationship with them, to talk to them everyday about everything. To want to be with them, do things with them and share your life with them. To start with a basic date and work your way up, moving in together, getting married, growing old together. You have goals to do things with them and to love them fully, just the two of you. Sexual attraction is when you aren't interested in a relationship or growing old with them. You love how they look physically and crave their bodies but may not feel the need to form an emotional bond with them, to share everything with them or talk to them everyday, to not make goals between each other or anything really personal and indepth. You may just want the surface things, more like friends with benefits or just the benefit with that person.
Anonymous
August 12th, 2015 12:39am
Sexual attraction is not necessary for a person to be healthy. ... their sexuality falls somewhere on the spectrum of sexuality between asexuality and sexuality