What is the meaning of an earring in the left ear?

There is no defined or widely accepted meaning behind a piercing in the left ear. While there have been urban myths regarding the meaning of particular ear piercings and homosexuality, none have proven to be consistently true. Personal choice is now the explanation for a specific ear choice.

In the past, it had been believed that a man would choose which ear to pierce based on his sexual orientation: the left meant he was heterosexual and the right meant he was homosexual. However, with the rise in popularity of male ear piercings, the choice in ear has become more of a personal or stylistic one rather than one based on arbitrary rules or urban myths.