Choosing words carefully when we speak can help to affirm someones identity and challengediscriminationagainst them.
On the other hand, choosing not to use the words someone prefers can be disempowering and demeaning.
In addition, terms may not be standard across cultures, languages, and different groups of people.
Verywell / Alex Dos Diaz
A Through E
AFAB:Acronym with the meaning assigned female at birth.
AMAB:Acronym with the meaning assigned male at birth.
Ally:Ally is a term to describe anyone who actively and fully supports the LGBTQIA+ community.
Synonyms include null-gender, androgyne, genderless, and neutrosis.
Assigned Sex at Birth:A medical assignment given at birth based on physical characteristics of the body.
This can refer to male, female, or also intersex.
Bigender:Referring to a person who identifies with two different genders at the same time.
Similarly, a person assigned the sex of female at birth and who identifies as female gender would becisgender.
However, cisgender individuals can also begender non-conforming.
The Latin prefix cis means on the same side.
Cisgender Privilege:Referring to the experience of never having ones natural sexual identity be questioned by society.
Cross-Dresser:A person who wears clothing that is not typical for their gender.
Usually, the term is used for men who prefer to dress in womens clothing.
This may be done for self-expression or other reasons.
Synonyms include transvestite or drag queen.
Being a cross-dresser does not automatically equal being transgender, some people may just do this to express themselves.
Being deadnamed can cause trans people to experience dysphoria.
Other related terms include demienby and demitrans.
F Through L
Family of choice:The circle of friends, partners, etc.
Female-to-male (FTM):Referring to people who were assigned female at birth but who identify as male.
This may or may not involve changing the body through medical procedures or surgeries.
Feminine-presenting:Referring to a person with an outward gender expression that appears feminine.
For example, this could be shown through style, mannerisms, body language, etc.
Femme:Referring to a person with a gender identity or expression that leans toward being feminine in general.
Gender Affirmation Surgery:Surgery to affirman individuals gender identity that involves changing primary or secondary sex characteristics.
This can be necessary to alleviate gender dysphoria.
In other words, they do not identify with any particular gender.
Also known as gender presentation.
Gender Bender:Referring to an attack on stereotypes about gender that questions norms and expectations in society.
May also be referred to as a genderf***.
Gender Identity:A core sense of the self as being a woman, man, or neither.
This does not always align with the sex assigned at birth and can develop and change over time.
It also cannot be assumed based on outward physical characteristics.
Gender-Inclusive Pronouns:Pronouns that are neutral and can be used by both transgender and cisgender people.
This includes people who areandrogynous, feminine men, masculine women, etc.
This can include trans people but not all people who are gender non-conforming identify as trans.
People of any gender can be gender nonconforming (e.g., cis, nonbinary, trans).
Gender Queer:Referring to a person who does not align with the gender binary of man vs. woman.
Gender Roles:Societal norms about what it means to belong to a certain gender.
These can change over time and refer to behaviors, interests, etc.
They may also differ across cultures.
Intersex people may identify with their assigned sex, identify with the opposite sex, or identify as intersex.
They do not usually identify as trans (transgender or transsexual).
LGBT:An acronym representing lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender.
LGBTQ+:An acronym representing lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer/questioning, etc.
This acronym is internationally recognized.
LGBTQ2:An acronym representing lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer/questioning, and two-spirit.
LGBTI:An acronym representing lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and intersex.
This may or may not involve changing the body through medical procedures.
Masculine-of-Center:People who identify as masculine.
These individuals may or may not identify as a man.
Being masculine-of-center does not indicate a persons assigned sex at birth.
Masculine-presenting:People with a gender expression that they consider to be masculine.
This includes outward expression through such things as body language, mannerisms, physical characteristics, and style.
This term does not indicate anything about assigned sex at birth.
Maverique:A person who experiences their gender identity to be separate from current categories and descriptions.
Misgender:Calling someone by the wrongpronounor using language that is not inclusive to their gender identity.
Multi-gender:People who identify with more than one gender.
Neutrois:People who have a gender that is neither male nor female.
This includes nonbinary, genderless, genderfluid, and agender identities.
Some people simply identify as non-binary and some identify as a specific key in of nonbinary identity.
Examples include genderqueer, genderfluid, agender, bigender, etc.
Out or Out of the Closet:Being open about ones gender identity with others.
My friend Stacy told her parents I’m trans when I didn’t want them to know yet.
Outing someone can beveryharmful as they might not be in a safe environment to come out on their own.
Omnigender:A person who identifies with all gender identities.
Pangender:A gender identity that involves experiencing many different gender identities simultaneously.
Passing:The experience of passing for ones gender identity.
This typically involves cues originating from physical characteristics, behaviors, and mannerisms.
Polygender and Pangender:The experience of displaying different parts from multiple gender identities.
Questioning:People who are in the process of questioning their gender identity and wish to explore different options.
If these are ambiguous, sex is assigned based on internal genitalia, hormones, and chromosomes.
Sex Assigned at Birth:The sex assigned to a person at birth based on the existing classification system.
It can also be a result of ones own behavior that is at odds with their gender identity.
Third Gender:The term third gender comes from native and non-Western cultures.
It refers to a gender category that does not divide simply into male or female.
Transfeminine:Having a feminine gender identity but being assigned a different sex at birth.
This includes trans men or women and non-binary identities such as genderfluid, genderqueer, and agender.
This can include medical treatments such as hormone therapy, sex reassignment surgery, etc.
Transmasculine:Having a masculine gender identity but being assigned a different sex at birth.
Transpositive:This term refers to the opposite of transphobia.
This throw in of attitude is validating and accepting of transsexual and transgender individuals and celebrates their rights.
Transsexual:A person whose gender identity is different from the sex that they were assigned at birth.
Transsexual generally means the individual has had gender-affirming surgeries and has fully gone through with their transition.
Trigender:The experience of having three gender identities at the same time.
Two-Spirit:Two-Spirit is an important term in many indigenous cultures.
It has no set definition but is mainly used to describe a spiritual view of gender or sexuality.
It can be used to describe sexual orientation, gender identity, or spiritual identity.
It is a term specific to Indigenous cultures and using it as a non-indigenous person would be cultural appropriation.
Government of Canada.Gender and Sexual Diversity Glossary.
Persad I.Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Glossary.
Ontario Human Rights Commission.Appendix B. Glossary for Understanding Gender Identity and Expression.
Government of Canada.LGBTQ2 Terminology.
Glossary and Common Acronyms.
