How many girlfriends/boyfriends have you had?

[DJ's left nut]

Originally Posted by Rain Man

I was struggling to define the term, and that's an interesting topic in an of itself. For simplicity, I'll use the term 'girlfriend' below, but it could apply to either.

"Girlfriend" implies a romantic relationship, though that doesn't necessarily have to be a sexual relationship.

"Girlfriend" implies some length or duration of the relationship, but it doesn't have to be long. Maybe it's more about intensity, so it's not just 'this girl I had a date with'.

To many, 'girlfriend' would imply some exclusivity, but that's not necessarily ironclad. A person could conceivably have two girlfriends if they're okay with the deal. (Or if they don't know, then it still implies some exclusivity on the female's part, right?)

"Girlfriend" implies familiarity. It means that you're past the point of dressing to impress as a requirement, even if you still do it. And it implies that you know each other well enough that you can use this honorific as a title.

"Girlfriend" implies a preference. She's your default date to the movies on Friday and you're hers.

Agree? Disagree? The definition may be changing over time, too, and it's been a long time since I've had to consider my own use of the term. So maybe I'm out of date.

That's overcomplicated as !@#$.

Have you ever stood alongside her and introduced her to anyone of importance as 'my girlfriend...'

If no, she's not. If yes, she is.

It takes a fair amount of understanding between the parties involved to get to holding each other out as boyfriend/girlfriend. You don't do it in front of her if you haven't gotten there yet. And if you won't do it yet, it don't count.