Glossary of LGBTQ+ Terms
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2SLGBTQ+: Acronym that stands for Two-Spirit, lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer. The plus sign represents additional sexual orientations and gender identities.
Ally: Person who uses their position of privilege to create opportunities and advocate for people who do not have that same privilege, including for the LGBTQ+ community.
Agender: Refers to a person who identifies as not having a gender identity.
Androgenous / Androgyny: is the possession of both masculine and feminine characteristics. Androgyny may be expressed with regard to biological sex, gender identity, or gender expression.
Aromantic: Experiencing no romantic feelings or desires; not feeling romantic attraction to anyone.
Asexual: Experiencing no sexual feelings or desires; not feeling sexual attraction to anyone.
Assigned Sex: Refers to the initial classification of an individual's reproductive anatomy and chromosomal configuration at birth based on the presence of either male (XY) or female (XX) biological attributes.
Assumed Gender: Attribution of a gender identity to an individual based on societal norms and expectations, often relying on superficial physical characteristics and stereotypical gender roles, without considering their self-identified gender or the complexity of gender as a social construct.
Bicurious: Individual who experiences an exploratory or questioning attraction towards both same-sex and opposite-sex individuals, suggesting a potential fluidity or non-monosexuality within their sexual orientation.
Bigender: Gender identity in which a person has or experiences two genders. The genders may be any combination of two genders, and those genders can be binary ("man" or "woman") or non-binary.
Bigender Lesbian: An individual who identifies with two distinct genders and is also attracted to people of the same gender, particularly women.
Biphobia: Prejudice and fear towards individuals who identify as bisexual, often rooted in previously learned social constructs.
Bisexual: Attraction to more than one gender. Similar to pansexual, which is a more encompassing term.
Cisgender: Individuals whose gender identity aligns with the sex assigned to them at birth, implying congruence between their assigned sex and their gender identity
Deadnaming: Usage of a person's former given name in place of the name the person has transitioned to and currently uses.
Demisexual: Sexual attraction to someone only after there is a strong emotional bond.
Fluid: A form of sexual orientation where the person’s sexual orientation is not fixed.
Gay: Term used to describe people who are attracted to people of the same sex. Sometimes lesbian is the preferred term for women.
Gender: A person’s deeply felt and innate sense of their own gender: being a man, a woman, a girl, a boy, non-binary, fluid, in between, or outside of the gender binary. This may or may not correspond to the sex they were assigned at birth.
Gender Binary: Classification of individuals into two distinct and mutually exclusive categories, man/woman and or male/female, based on a rigid framework of binary sex characteristics and associated gender roles
Gender Dysphoria: Clinical condition characterized by a persistent and clinically significant incongruence between an individual's assigned sex at birth and their experienced gender identity, resulting in distress and impairment.
Gender Expansive: Individuals who identify outside of the traditional binary constructs of gender, encompassing a spectrum of diverse gender identities beyond the male-female dichotomy.
Gender Expression: Outward appearance of an individual's gender identity through behaviors, clothing choices, hairstyles, and other means of communication, which may align with binary or non-binary gender norms.
Gender Fluid: A form of gender identity where the person’s gender identity is not fixed.
Gender Non-Conforming: A form of gender expression where a person does not conform to the cultural and/or social norms of their gender identity.
Genderqueer: An umbrella term that refers to non-normative, or cisgender, identities.
Gender Roles: Socially constructed expectations assigned to individuals based on their perceived gender identity that dictate specific behaviors within a given cultural context.
Gendered Language: Practice of language use to differentiate between masculine and feminine gender roles, often perpetuating societal gender norms and reinforcing gender-based inequalities.
Hermaphrodite: See Intersex for the preferred term
Heterosexual: Term used to describe people who are attracted to people of the opposite sex or gender. Often used colloquially as "straight"
Homophobia: Refers to the prejudice towards gay or lesbian individuals but often used in reference to fear of larger part of the LGBTQ+ community
Homosexual: Term used to describe people who are attracted to people of the same sex or gender. Gay or lesbian may be the preferred terms in place of homosexual.
Intersectionality: Concept that individuals experience oppression and privilege differently based on their own identity. Individuals are shaped by factors such as race, gender, sexuality, class and ability. These same individuals are also affected by the varying degrees that the opposing forces of privilege and oppression change their experiences and perspectives. Intersectionality highlights the importance of understanding and addressing the ways in which these different variables are connected in our lives.
Intersex: Refers to a range of variations in sex characteristics that do not fit typical binary notions of male or female, resulting from atypical combinations of chromosomes, hormones, gonads, or anatomical structures
Latine / LatinX: English term used in place of Latino / Latina to be inclusive of non-binary individuals, as those terms may be considered gendered language. LatinX is more commonly used in the English language while Latine is a term that is used more often in Spanish.
Lesbian: A term used to describe women who are attracted to other women, but the definition may be broadened to non-men loving non-men.
LGBTQ+: Acronym for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer and other members of the community.
LGBTQIA2S+: Acronym for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, Intersex, Asexual, 2 Spirit and other members of the community.
Misgender: Act of assigning or using gendered terms or pronouns that do not align with an individual's gender identity.
Non-Binary: An umbrella term for gender identities that are not solely man or woman.
Pansexual: Attraction to people regardless of their gender identity.
Queer: An umbrella term that refers to any sexual orientation that is not heterosexual or straight.
Questioning: Refers to the process of determining one’s sexual orientation and/or gender identity.
Sex: Refers to the expression of an individual's sex chromosomes, internal and external reproductive organs, secondary sexual characteristics, and hormonal profiles, determining their categorization as male, female, or intersex.
Sexual Orientation: A person’s sexual and emotional attractions, not necessarily dependent on behavior. Terms associated with sexual orientation include: gay, lesbian, bisexual, pansexual, heterosexual, asexual, and more.
Straight: Term used to describe people who are attracted to people of the opposite sex or gender. The term heterosexual can be used interchangeably.
Third Gender Term used to describe gender identities that don't identify as neither man nor woman.
Transfeminine: An umbrella term that refers to people who were assigned male at birth but identify with femininity.
Transgender: Term that refers to people whose gender identity or gender expression is different from the gender they were assigned at birth.
Transmasculine: An umbrella term that refers to people who were assigned female at birth but identify with masculinity.
Transitioning: The process of changing one's gender presentation or sex characteristics to accord with one's internal sense of gender identity people. This can be a social, medical or legal transition.
Two-Spirit (2S): Two-Spirit is a Native American and Indigenous term for a third gender identity, embodying a fluid and spiritual blend of masculine and feminine aspects, transcending colonial gender and sexual orientation categories, and holding a sacred role within Indigenous and Native American communities.
