notch on one's bedpost

English

Alternative forms

• notch in one's bedpost
• notch on the bedpost

Etymology

From the practice of keeping track of the number of one's sexual liaisons by carving notches into the post of one's bed.

Pronunciation

• Audio (General Australian):

  (file)

Noun

notch on one's bedpost (plural notches on one's bedpost)

1. (idiomatic, slang, offensive) A sexual conquest; a casual sexual partner.

   Synonyms: notch in one's belt, notch on one's belt; see also Thesaurus:sexual partner

   • 2002, Anne McAllister, The Great Montana Cowboy Auction, Silhouette Books, published 2002, →ISBN, page 22:

     He was a notch on her bedpost, a stepping stone on her quest for stardom.

   • 2007, Melinda Curtis, Count on Love, Harlequin, published 2007, →ISBN, page 167:

     She'd confused Sam's attentions with real feelings, and now she was just another notch on his bedpost.

   • 2010, Jenna Black, Glimmerglass, St. Martin's Press, published 2010, →ISBN, page 138:

     Bad enough to think he'd wanted me as just another notch on his bedpost, but to think he'd tried to seduce me for cold-blooded political purposes was unbearable.

   • 2011, Peter Robinson, Before the Poison‎^[1], McClelland & Stewart, published 2011, →ISBN:

     […] He wasn't a notch on her bedpost. They were in love, for crying out loud.

Usage notes

• Considered offensive because it is objectifying or regarding an individual as a conquest.

See also

• notch count