Sexual intercourse usually means penetrative sex: penis in vagina in the narrowest everyday use, and more broadly any penetrative act including anal and sometimes oral. Legal and religious texts define it in their own ways, which is why the plain conversation still needs extra words.

It is one menu item. It is not the proof that sex happened. People who cannot have intercourse because of pain or preference are still sexual if they want to be.

Pregnancy risk attaches to vaginal intercourse. STI risk attaches more widely. Lube, consent, and a pace that matches the tighter of the two bodies are the unfashionable skills that prevent a large share of bad nights.

If intercourse hurts every time, stop repeating it as a test of love and get the pain looked at.