Do you use the correct language to describe...

I use the terms 'willy' and 'fanny'. I can't remember what I called them when I was little. A friend of mine was bought up to call her vagina her 'purse'. How odd ?

Well vagina wouldn't be strictly correct either as that is a specific part. I would find it strange to hear a little one referring to vagina or vulva though. Not really sure why? It just, well, doesn't sound right.

Likewise little boys referring to their penis. Winky, willie etc fine but it just wouldn't sound right to me.

My 5 year old nephew knows the correct term is penis, but he still calls it his 'boaby' which is fine by his parents.

When I was a child my lady bits were known as 'cookie' - I used to be terrified of the Cookie Monster on sesame street ?

With Jamie (18 months) I use 'willy' and 'front bottom' (clearly the latter is if referring to me, I'm not suggesting he has both!).

I have no objection to using the 'correct' biological terms, for me it's simply what ends up being front of mind (and not too offensive should he happen to repeat it in public!). No idea what my parents called them when I was younger, I'm fairly sure some sort of surreal euphemism was employed which avoided them actually having to mention anything at all ...

Well, vagina would probably be anatomically incorrect for whatever a little girl was refering to. So, that's a clear no-go for me. Vulva from the lips of a 3 year old just feels, well, completely wrong. I haven't heard the word used in polite society, probably ever, so I wouldn't enforce it on an unsuspecting toddler who would have no idea of the connotations behind what she was saying.

I go with front-bottom rather than a made up word because if she ever needs to talk about her genitals when I am not around, her adult carer would be able to gleant an idea about what part of her body she might be referring to.

As Maxi says, it's tricky with girls because it's both vagina and vulva. I don't have a problem with children knowing and using the proper names, but equally I really don't see the problem with them using other names either.

At some point, it's pretty important they learn the proper names, but I think it's most important that it's something that they feel they can talk about, no matter what the name is.

It'll be willy for penis in this house and it's currently the slightly twee "lady bits" because it's ever so hard to find something that sounds right for girls.

I'd make a rubbish doctor because I just can't say the word vulva without smirking

I'm slightly phobic about the hard 'p' (fnar) hence I hate the word 'penis'. I also shudder at the name 'Peter' for the same reason, so there you go ?

To answer the question, I can't remember what we called them as children. Probably not the correct anatomical names, but I can't remember what.

It's a rubbish word, isn't it. Hardly likely to feature high on a list of the nation's favourite words.

My Mum used to call it "bits and corners". God knows where that name came from.

When I was little it was tiddler for penis (my dad must have loved that) and front bum.

It'll probably be front bum and pee pee when we have kids.

The weirdest ones I've heard for vaginas were froofroo (a little girl told me she came out of mummys froo froo) and falula.

To be honest I think the only time we as parents would mention genitals in front of our daughter would be in regards to some toilet function. So whether it was a boy or a girl we would probably go with 'wee wee'. Being bought up in our culture, Islam, no one ever used the correct terminology and I'm fairly sure my mum just refered to it as the bottom area in general and never more specific than that.

Having said that my in laws refer to the genitals as 'shamey' with their kids which I find strange. Basically they mean it's the area to be ashamed of. If one of the kids was to pull down their pants my sil would say 'shame on you, everyone can see your shamey, you better cover it up quick'.

I cannot for the life of me think of what my bits were called when i was little. My brother had a winky though ?

After a lot of thinking, I have embraced vagina ? It's not anatomically correct but I struggle with vulva- it just seems strange for such a young child. Not keen on "front bottom" as, although I always just assumed it meant the bit at the front of one's bottom (IYSWIM) I understand that people sometimes see it as referring to the fact a vulva looks a bit like a bottom- I'm not really keen on connecting the two things that much as I fear over-connection, with connotations that one's vagina is somehow a bit unpleasant (as little children come to think of bottoms/poo). I didn't want anything twee or family specific. So vagina is the least worst option- clear, no unpleasant overtones and despite not being 100% accurate, it's accurate enough.

For boys- willy. If only there were a word like willy for vagina. But I may at some point soon start talking about penises as well. And love truncheons and pork swords obnov.

I am forever grateful I have boys as their genitals are so much easier to name! For the boys, I say willy or 'bits'. For my neices, I just say 'bits'.

I kind of think as 'fanny' as the female equivalent. We had willies and fannies in our house growing up.

In my day to day life, it's penis, vagina and vulva all the way.

But at work - I use what the punters use, so have been heard to utter some fairly fruity euphemisms.

We use "bits" for the girls and willy for the man of the house. Mind you the girls are 3 and 20 months so the topic doesn't come up much at the moment (I have more concerns that breakfast is prounounced Bastard at the moment ?). We aren't particularly imaginative so if the topic comes up a bit more then I will use vagina and penis I should think.

Boy1's Dad's Auntie (god aren't blended family relationships difficult to pin names round!) was very strict around correct names for genitals. Her girls used to call lady bits 'ginas - which seemed to work,

It was fannies and willies when I grew up. Although I hate the word fanny, and in fact don't like any euphemisms for the female genitalia. Especially 'foof' *shudder*

I don't remember ever referring to mine as anything until I was old enough to call it a c unt. I've got no problem with the word, but I totally see that one might not want one's three-year-old hollering it in Tesco ?. KN is right, willy is much easier. I suppose growing up in an all-woman household it wasn't ever necessary to compare and contrast.

Without much input from us girl has taken to calling hers her 'tinky' harmless enough and when i have to explain anything more in depth i will use proper terms - for now i am happy she has a term she is comfortable with/finds amusing

the boys go through a broad range of descriptive terms - often in one discussion - they clearly enjoy naming and celebrating

God I cant remember what we called it with Ryan - Willy Woo Woo or something.

With Niamhy its front bottom which is hateful

Its so difficult.... when she asks properly I'll tell her.

Ryans talk began with his asking what a *** was...thought we may as well tell him....

C l i t is banned!?

Willie and winkie in our house. The rhyme Wee Willie Winkie confused me, as I kept wondering how (what I'd now know as) a hermaphrodite without any other body parts (as I rather literalistically envisioned it) would run through a town.

Still, I think I'd probably go with that myself if I had children. They seem to be fairly connotation-free and at least have the same treatment. Penis and vagina (despite its incompleteness) as they grew older.

This just made me laugh out loud as my nieces call my husband 'Uncle Bits' ?

I have no idea why, but my lady area was called my 'tuppence' when I was little ?

I never liked it much, so have no idea what I shall do if bambino turns out to be a bambina. I know a fair few names that would be entirely unsuitable for a small child to use, but distressingly few that would be appropriate and that I like (not a big fan of 'fanny').

We used willy and fairy in our house.

I have no idea how I'll explain it to a child, we've only had baby boys in our family and I'm pretty sure that they all call them willies. In fact my nephew told me proudly one day that my dad had told him if he didn't stop playing with his willy it would drop off ?

I don't have children yet, but when I was little, in my family, boys had a "widdler" or "ding dong bell" and girls had "privates". Not sure I like this terminology for any future children we have - probably would use willy for a boy and not sure what for a girl!

My 4 year old refers to his penis as his penis. I suppose like KN I'd use "vagina" for a girl as a general word for female genitals, but luckily I have two boys so I don't have to think about that too much,

A colleague mixed up Uvula & Vulva in her Dental Nursing exam which always amused us.

In our house we just have boy's bits & girl's bits. As we have a William I'm not happy about having a little Willy for some reason.

When I was little, I used to call my brother's penis his 'pull-along'. I'm never going into regression therapy!

I don't remember ever referring to mine or anyone else's, tbh. We'll go for willy I think. Girl - I'm not sure. Possibly 'privates' as it reinforces that message. Around these parts, they call it a tuppence. ?

Funnily enough I have this conversation often in the park. Willy and Fanny. I don't like fanny really, but I think it's the most universal euphemism like willy. I loathe loathe loathe made up family names, floopy being a particular weird one (a friend), but don't want to get too anatomical too early as I'm aware of how people cringe when kids use 'penis' or 'vulva'.

I have told my son that the real word for willy is penis, likewise his nutties (don't ask..MrDD) are actually called testicles if he needs to talk to a doctor about them.

MrDD doesn't like Fanny, and so we have kind of steered away from calling small daughter's parts anything, but that seems a bit stupid. So I've told her it's her fanny. No1Son calls small daughter's parts her 'button'. I'll put him right at a later date as he is 4 and has a habit of chanting things like 'Ladies' bladders Ladies' bladders ad nauseum so I'll leave that for a while.

Mine was called Petal!

Willies were known as willies funnily enough!