Verbal humiliation is a type of erotic humiliation typically practiced in BDSM relationships. During verbal humiliation the submissive partner is verbally demeaned by the dominant.
While verbal humiliation may seem cruel to an outsider, this type of interaction should always be consensual among BDSM couples. Verbal humiliation may be used during play and punishments.
A dominant partner may use a variety of different terms to verbally humiliate their submissive. During animal play, the dominant partner may refer to the submissive as a pet, bitch, or dog. The word pet may also be used outside of animal play, along with slave, missy, or the child terms, boy or girl. "Boys" or "girls" may also be scolded, as children often are. A more extreme version of verbal humiliation may see the submissive called offensive names such as slut or whore.
Other dominants may prefer to verbally humiliate by drawing attention to aspects of their submissive’s physical appearance of personality. They may call the submissive fat, ugly, stupid, or use ethnic slurs. They may poke fun at parts of the submissive’s body or their behaviors.
Sometimes the verbal humiliation is reversed, and the submissive partner is the one required to speak. They may be forced to ask for permission to perform everyday tasks, such as washing or eating, or requested to repeat and confirm the dominant’s commands. They may also be forced to agree with the dominant and flatter aspects of their personality and behavior.
Verbal humiliation should always be consensual, and some couples institute a safe word which can be used to cease the interaction if it goes too far. Some people consider verbal humiliation edgeplay, as it can be risky if the dominant does not completely understand the psyche of their submissive.
