LGBTQ+ terms from A-Z
March 13, 2017
This list is comprised of well known terms and a few many do not know. It is not a complete list, as these terms can mean something different to everyone. It would also be longer than a book if we included them all. This is intended to inform readers on the different members of the LGBTQ+ community.
Agender– a person who does not conform themselves as a specific gender. This can also be called genderless, or gender neutral.
Aromantic– a person who does not want not be in a romantic relationship
Asexual– a person who does not feel sexual attraction towards other people. This is different from aromantic because not all asexuals are aromantic.
Bicurious– someone who is unsure of liking 2 genders
Bigender– someone who identifies as 2 or more genders, not always just boy and girl.
Bisexual– a term used to describe a person who is attracted to two genders, not always specific to boy and girl. This can be shortened to “bi”.
Cisgender– describes a person who is comfortable with the gender they were assigned to at birth.
Demiboy-a person who doesn’t feel entirely like a male, whether or not their assigned sex at birth was a male or not. A demiboy may or may not fluctuate to another gender.
Demigirl– a person who does not fully identify as a girl, whether or not their assigned sex at birth was a female or not. A demigirl may or may not fluctuate to another gender.
Demiromantic– a person who experiences little to no romantic attraction until a strong emotional connection is formed.
Demisexual– a person who experiences little to no sexual attraction until they have developed a strong emotional connection.
FtM/F2M– an abbreviation for a person who identifies as a male, but the sex assigned at birth was female. (Female to male)
Gay– attracted to, romantically and/or sexually, to the same gender.
Gender Binary– the societal idea that there are only 2 genders, that are parallel to their assigned sex at birth
Gender dysphoria– a condition that your true gender identity does not match to your biological sex. This can cause feelings of depression, anxiety, and suicidal thoughts.
Genderfluid– someone who fluctuates between identifying as multiple genders.
Genderqueer– an umbrella term for someone who doesn’t conform to the 2 genders society conforms them to (agender, nonbinary, demiboy, demigirl, genderfluid, etc.)
Graysexual– does not always experience sexual attraction, but does sometimes
Gray-romantic– does not always experience romantic attraction, but does sometimes
Gynesexual– sexually attracted to females(both born with the female ex and trans) and femininity
Homosexual– a person who is attracted to the same sex
Heterosexual– a person who is attracted to the opposite sex
Intersex– a person born with both XX and XY chromosomes
Lesbian– A person who identifies as a female who is attracted to another female
Metrosexual– despite some confusion on it being a sexuality, metro sexual actually just refers to a man who prefers to spend a lot of time grooming and time on their appearance
MtF/M2F– an abbreviation for a person who identifies as a female, but the sex assigned at birth was male. (Male to Female)
The Closet– a term used to describe when a person keeps their sexuality and/or preffered pronouns to themselves.
Transgender– a term to describe someone who wants to transition into the opposite sex, an umbrella term
Third Gender- a person who does not identify as a male nor female but an entirely different gender.
Pansexual– a person who is attracted to all genders on the gender spectrum. This can be shortened to “pan”
Questioning– a person who is not sure of their sexuality or gender. This does not stand for the “Q” in LGBTQ.
Queer– someone who is not straight. This can be used as a replacement for a term not generally known, or as a replacement for the term a person has not yet found to label themselves
Skiliosexual– the attraction towards people who fall under the genderqueer umbrella.
Pronouns– the words that replace a person’s name (she, he, they, their, hers, his, zie, hir)
To read more on LGBTQ+ terminology:
https://lgbt.wisc.edu/documents/Trans_and_queer_glossary.pdf
