Sexual suggestiveness is visual, verbal, written or behavioral material or action with sexual undertones implying sexual intent in order to provoke sexual arousal.

There are variations in the perception and display of sexual suggestiveness, including but not limited to gender, culture and generation. Different cultures and different generations have varying views on what is considered to be sexually suggestive. For example, in British culture, it is normal for a woman to wear shorts and bare her legs on a hot, sunny day, but a woman with naked flesh exposed would be considered promiscuous in certain cultures around the world. In evolutionary terms, sexual suggestiveness is a mode from which sexual mates are gained. Therefore, the ability to use sexual suggestiveness effectively is a trait that is part of sexual selection.

Displays of sexual suggestiveness include things such as; women in swimsuit adverts, sexually themed music or music with a strong beat meant for dancing, sexting, erotic lingerie or "wolf whistling". Sexual suggestiveness may also involve nudity, or the exposure of the nipples, genitals, buttocks or other taboo areas of the body. Even a brand name or phrase can be considered to be sexually suggestive if it has strong sexual connotations or undertones.

In some cases, displays of sexual suggestiveness may be misinterpreted which may lead to dangerous or harmful situations.

From an evolutionary point of view, sexual suggestiveness evolved in order to aid in securing a sexual partner or mate. Once the individual has decided on a mate to pursue, sexual suggestiveness helps in attracting the mate - this is a skill which has been sexually selected (sexual selection) for during evolution. Sexually suggestive behaviors include things such as "showing more skin" and flirting. Both of these examples are behaviors which the individual would intentionally display. There is also research to suggest that sexually suggestive behaviors may not always be deliberate. Unbeknownst to the individual, factors such as the menstrual cycle, voice pitch and rate of money spending can all have an effect on sexual success and sexually suggestive behavior. For example, when women were in the work place and ovulating they were more likely to engage in sexually suggestive behaviors e.g. showing more skin; further, women who work as lap dancers earn more money when they are in the ovulating stage. This may be because the female unwittingly behaves in a more sexual way and therefore puts out more sexually suggestive cues. There is not, however, any evidence to show that these women are aware that their actions or earnings are intrinsically linked to their menstrual cycle.^{[citation needed]}

The rise of the media, advertising and film industries as well as the growth of the fashion industry are all contributing factors to increase sexually suggestive content in an every-day setting. There are far more displays of sexually suggestive behavior in modern-day life than there ever has been before and not just within advertising. The idea that sex sells is evident in many aspects of daily modern life particularly within social media and film where female sexual ornaments are a focal point. For example, many films include additional sex scenes and sexually suggestive female characters regardless of the film's narrative.

The progression of the Internet and social media means that sexual content is far more available and accessible in the 21st century than ever before. This has a knock on effect on people's sexualization and sexual behavior. Children's sexuality develops at an earlier age if they have been exposed to more sexual content when young. For example, young adolescents engage in more sexual behaviors if they have been exposed to more sexual content in the media or on television. On average, females become pubescent earlier in their development if they have been exposed to sexual content or sexual behavior. Most psychologists agree that this physical display of sexuality is due to evolutionary reasons and that girls develop their sexuality (e.g. behaving sexually suggestively) at an earlier age in order to sexually compete with other women and successfully reproduce.

The increase in sexual content in modern society often results in a more nonchalant approach to sexually suggestive behavior. People, predominantly women, often act in a way that they themselves do not consider to be sexually suggestive but which can be misinterpreted by others. For example, wearing clothes or skirts/shorts that show skin is not something that most Western women would consider to be overtly provocative but it is still regarded as sexually suggestive by others. Misconstruing people's behaviour can have disastrous consequences, contributing to harassment and rape culture.