The clitoris quiz: test how well you actually know it

You’ve probably enjoyed hundreds, or even thousands, of orgasms because of it. But can you also explain what it looks like, exactly how big it is, or what’s going on beneath the surface? Most people literally don’t get past the tip. That’s hardly surprising, as for a long time the complete picture was missing in school books and even on medical drawings. Here are six questions to change that.

The questions

1. How many nerve endings are there in the glans of the clitoris (approximately)?
   a) 4,000
   b) 8,000
   c) more than 10,000

2. What you see of the clitoris from the outside is:
   a) the whole organ
   b) about half of it
   c) only the tip of something much larger

3. When was the complete anatomy of the clitoris first fully mapped?
   a) in the 1950s
   b) 1998
   c) 2015

4. What percentage of women reach orgasm from penetration alone, without any form of clitoral stimulation?
   a) about 18 percent
   b) about 50 percent
   c) practically everyone

5. In an embryo, the clitoris and penis develop from:
   a) completely different tissue
   b) the same tissue
   c) they have no connection to each other

6. The tissue of the clitoral hood is comparable to:
   a) the labia
   b) the foreskin of the penis
   c) nothing, men don’t have a similar part

The correct answers

1. C. Recent research from 2022 involved a direct count of the nerve fibers, and came to over 10,000, about 20 percent more than the previously assumed 8,000. By comparison: the glans of the penis has approximately 4,000. So the clitoris wins hands down.
2. C. What you see is just the glans. Beneath it, the organ continues into two crura (legs) and two bulbs that extend deep around the vaginal wall, together amounting to about nine centimeters of unseen tissue. An iceberg, but even better.
3. B. It wasn’t until 1998 that Australian urologist Helen O’Connell mapped out the complete structure in detail for the first time. Before that, the organ was often simply not fully depicted in medical textbooks.
4. A. Research by sexologist Debby Herbenick showed that only about 18 percent of women climax from penetration alone. The rest needs direct or indirect clitoral stimulation, and that’s completely normal.
5. B. Both originate from the same embryonic tissue, the genital tubercle. That’s why they share so many anatomical similarities, from the glans to their sensitivity.
6. B. The hood is the female equivalent of the foreskin. Same origin, different appearance.

What your score says

How many questions did you get right?

• 0 to 2: you’re a curious newbie, and that’s fine, this article was written just for you.
• 3 to 4: you’re well above average.
• 5 to 6: congratulations! You can officially call yourself a clitoris expert!

Feel free to share this quiz with someone who still thinks it all stops at that one little button.