Definitions Common to the LGBTQ Community<\/p>\n\n\n\n
This list of definitions is by no means complete. The whole LGBTQ community adds new words on a regular basis. This LGBTQ \u201cdictionary\u201d is far from inclusive. If you do not find a definition, please send me an email. I will add them to this list.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Advocate:<\/em><\/strong> \u2014 <\/em>A person acting on behalf of a marginalized group. They may\nprovide education, promote social equity, and confront intolerance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Agender:<\/em><\/strong> \u2014 This term encompasses many\nother genders. Agender is people who do not feel a gender or who feel their\ngender is neutral. Many agender people are outside the binary (trans*). Agender\nis a newer term. It is best, as with anyone\u2019s gender to ask what gender they\nare or let them tell you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n AFAB and AMAB:<\/em><\/strong> \u2014 Acronyms meaning \u201cassigned\nfemale\/male at birth\u201d. (also designated female\/male at birth or female\/male\nassigned at birth). No one gets to pick their assigned sex at birth. Trans*\npeople prefer this term over biological male\/female. There are other derogatory\ndesignations also.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Affectional orientation:<\/em><\/strong> \u2014 <\/em>Politically correct phrase used instead of sexual orientation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Ally:<\/em><\/strong> \u2014 Cisgender and heterosexual\npeople who advocate and support the trans* community. A person should not\nself-identify as an ally but show that they are one through their actions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Allyship:<\/em><\/strong> \u2014 Building relationships based\non trust, consistency, and accountability with marginalized individuals and\/or\ngroups.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Androgyne\/Androgynous\/Androgyny:<\/em><\/strong> \u2014 A person with masculine and feminine physical traits.\nCentered in the gender spectrum.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Assigned sex at birth (ASAB):<\/em><\/strong> \u2014 Assumed sex at birth a person is what sex a doctor claims\nyou are. This term applies to intersex babies but applied to trans* people\nalso.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Bias incident:<\/em><\/strong> \u2014 An act intended to harm and\/or harass a person based on\ntheir demographic background(s). For trans* people this is because of their\ngender variance usually. For some it also applies to other marginalized\ndemographics that apply to them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Bigender:<\/em><\/strong> \u2014 This refers to people\nwho identify as two genders. A person can also identify as many genders (two or\nmore genders). This does not include two-spirit. Two-spirit is a term used by\nnative Americans and First Nations. See Two-spirit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Binary:<\/em><\/strong> \u2014 Describes the genders\nfemale\/male or woman\/man. Binary genders are the only ones recognized by most\nof society as legitimate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Body Image:<\/em><\/strong> \u2014 How\na person feels, acts, and thinks about their body. Communities, families,\ncultures, media, and our perceptions form our attitudes about body image.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Bottom Surgery:<\/em><\/strong> \u2014 Affirming surgery. Also known as Gender Confirmation\nSurgery (GCS).<\/p>\n\n\n\n Butch:<\/em><\/strong> \u2014 This is an identity\nthat tends to lean toward masculine. This term is not limited to masculine\nlesbians. Associated with masculine queer\/lesbian women, it may describe a\ndistinct gender identity and\/or expression. This does not imply they identify\nas a female.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Cisgender:<\/em><\/strong> \u2014 Relating to a person whose\nsense of personal identity and gender corresponds with their birth sex. A\ncisgender person is not transgender. Cisgender is not a slur. It differentiates\nbetween gender variant and non-gender variant people. Cisgendered is not a\nword.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Cisnormativity:<\/em><\/strong> \u2014 A belief in only the gender binary male\/female. This is\nan assumption that only cisgender is right and trans* is wrong. This is a way\nto provide superiority for cisgender people over trans* people.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Cissexism\/genderism:<\/em><\/strong> \u2014 A system of discrimination, harassment, and exclusion.\nThis oppresses those whose gender and\/or gender expression falls outside of\ncisnormativity. This also normalizes the belief that sex, and gender are the\nsame thing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Closeted:<\/em><\/strong> \u2014 A trans* \u2014 person who knows they are trans* but has not come out\nyet. They may wait for their body characteristics to start to change in an\nattempt to pass.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Cross-Dressing (also crossdressing):<\/em><\/strong>\n\u2014 The act of dressing and presenting as a different gender.\nTransvestite, a pejorative word, is an old term for cross dressing. Drag\nperformers are cross-dressing performers. They take on stylized, exaggerated\ngender presentations. They do not identify as a crossdresser. Cross dressing is\nnot tied to a person\u2019s gender. A person who has transitioned is not a cross\ndresser. Please do not address them as such.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Demigender:<\/em><\/strong> \u2014 A\npartial gender identity. They may not feel male or female. Demigender people\nare non-binary.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Designated Sex at Birth (DSAB):<\/em><\/strong> \u2014 The interpreted sex at birth. This is the same as\nassigned sex at birth. Ninety-eight percent of the population have sex\ncharacteristics identifiable as male or female. The other two percent may have\nambiguous genitalia, such as intersex people. (These percentages are\napproximate)<\/p>\n\n\n\n Discrimination:<\/em><\/strong> \u2014 Unjust or prejudicial treatment of marginalized people.\nExamples is not allowing trans* people to use the appropriate bathroom.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Drag:<\/em><\/strong> \u2014 Exaggerated, theatrical,\nand\/or performative gender presentation. Used most to refer to cross-dressing\nperformers (drag queens and drag kings). Anyone of any gender can do drag. This\nhas nothing to do with a person\u2019s sex assigned at birth, gender identity, or\nsexual orientation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Femme:<\/em><\/strong> \u2014 This is an identity\nthat tends to lean toward feminine. This term is not limited to feminine\nlesbians. It can imply a woman to a woman to \u201cfemme up\u201d, meaning to woman up.\nAlthough associated with feminine queer\/lesbian women, it’s used by many to\ndescribe a distinct gender identity and\/or expression. It does not imply that\none also identifies as a female.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Fluid:<\/em><\/strong> \u2014 When applied to gender, a person whose gender moves\naround and is not static.<\/p>\n\n\n\n FTM (female to male):<\/em><\/strong> \u2014 See trans woman\/trans man.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Gender:<\/em><\/strong> \u2014 Gender is who you feel you\nare in your brain. A person\u2019s primary sex characteristics used to determine\ngender. They now find that it is how a person feels and not tied to a person\u2019s\nsex. This determination is hard for some people to accept.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Gender Binary:<\/em><\/strong> \u2014 The system where people view gender as only male or\nfemale. This system is oppressive to anyone who defies their sex assigned at\nbirth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Gender Dysphoria:<\/em><\/strong> \u2014 Anxiety and\/or discomfort of one\u2019s sex assigned at birth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Gender Expansive:<\/em><\/strong> \u2014 A person who goes outside the boundary of the societal\nnorm for gender. \\Anything beyond male and female. A synonym of gender variant.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Gender Expression:<\/em><\/strong> \u2014 the way in which a person\nexpresses their gender identity. Usually through their appearance, dress, and\nbehavior. Gender expression is not tied to your gender. Gender expression is\nexpressing any gender at any time. Most trans* people use gender expression to\nmatch their gender identity. Someone with a gender nonconforming gender\nexpression may or may not be transgender.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Gender Fluid:<\/em><\/strong> \u2014 A changing or \u201cfluid\u201d gender identity. See fluid.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Gender Identity:<\/em><\/strong> \u2014 A person\u2019s internal sense of\nself. Everyone has a gender identity. Trans* peoples sex assigned at birth and\ntheir gender identity are not the same.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Gender Identity Disorder\/GID:<\/em><\/strong>\n\u2014 <\/a>DSM-III and DSM-IV diagnosis\nidentifying transgender and other gender-nonconforming people. This term views\ntransgender as a disorder. It may be offensive by some because of what it\nimplies. The American Psychology Association replace this term with \u201cgender\ndysphoria\u201d in the DSM-5. Even though they replaced GID with gender dysphoria,\nthe stigma remains.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Gender-Neutral:<\/em><\/strong> \u2014 All-inclusive\ngender quality such as gender-neutral bathrooms.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Gender Non-Conforming (GNC):<\/em><\/strong> \u2014 Gender\nidentity and expression are not aligned with societies norms.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Gender-Normative:<\/em><\/strong> \u2014 When a person\u2019s\ngender identity and presentation align with societies norms. Opposite of gender\nnon-conforming.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Gender Outlaw:<\/em><\/strong> \u2014 Person who refuses\nto live by societies gender normative attitude.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Gender Presentation:<\/em><\/strong> \u2014 Outward\ngender expression of one\u2019s internal sense of gender. Synonym of gender\nexpression.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Genderqueer:<\/em><\/strong> \u2014 A person does not\nidentify in the gender binary. Genderqueer encompasses many of the other gender\nidentities. Those who do not like labels may use this term. Binary and\nnon-binary people may use this term. Genderqueer is neither trans* or\nnon-binary.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Gender Role:<\/em><\/strong> \u2014 A role or behavior\nlearned by a person as appropriate to their gender. Usually determined by the\nprevailing cultural norms.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Gender Variant:<\/em><\/strong> \u2014 <\/a>Gender variant is a behavior or\ngender expression by an individual not matching societal norms. When a person\u2019s\ngender identity and expression are no longer the gender binary. Synonym of\ngender expansive.<\/p>\n\n\n\n