Top

The vocabulary inside BDSM separates two axes that newcomers often collapse: who performs an action in a scene (top versus bottom) and who holds psychological authority in the relationship (dominant versus submissive). Wikipedia's entry on top, bottom, switch is explicit that “the main difference between a dominant and a top is that the dominant exhibits control within a power exchange dynamic, while a top applies sensations within a scene.” A top may or may not be dominant; a dominant may or may not be the one wielding the implement.

The distinction matters in practice because it lets people negotiate scenes accurately. A rigger who ties beautiful suspensions for a paying client at an event is topping without claiming any authority over the bottom outside the rope. A massage-candle scene between two friends is sensation play with a top and bottom but no power exchange. Conversely, a dominant in a long-term D/s relationship may direct a submissive to do the topping in a particular scene and remain the one in charge of the framing.

Stunt-style and skill-based kink (rope, single-tail, fire, needles) tends to attract people who identify primarily as tops or bottoms rather than as Doms or subs, because the technical mastery is what they care about. The term “switch” covers anyone who genuinely moves between roles, either across partners or within the same scene, and is widely accepted as its own valid identity rather than indecision between the other two.