This term can include people who are genderqueer or gender expansive too. People who identify as non-binary express their gender and identity in a way that lives outside of and inherently rejects the socially-constructed gender binary. Non-binary - Non-binary refers to gender identity rather than sexual orientation.
Some pansexual folks might say that gender and sex are not determining factors in their attraction. Pansexual (“pan”) - Pansexual refers to people who are attracted to any/all genders or who don’t limit their attraction to the confines of the gender binary. Lesbian - Women and non-binary people use this term to identify as people who are emotionally, romantically, or sexually attracted to other women. They may or may not identify with the sex they are assigned at birth (just like non-intersex people). Intersex - Intersex people are born with anatomy or sex characteristics that don’t fit into the “male” or “female” binary boxes. Gender expression - Gender expression is the external way people convey their gender identity through behavior and physical appearance like clothing choices, body characteristics, speech patterns, etc. Gender identity - Gender identity is an internal feeling of how individuals perceive themselves as male, female, genderqueer, non-binary, etc.
Gay - While this adjective has historically described men who are attracted to other men, the term now is used to refer to anyone who experiences romantic, emotional, or physical attraction to people of the same gender. People who use this umbrella term might experience a range of sexual attraction, from zero desire for sex, to occasional sexual attraction, or attraction only alongside a strong emotional bond (demisexuality).īisexual (“bi”) - The term bisexual refers to attraction to people of the same gender and another gender. After all, it’s hard to define a key part of someone’s experience in a single word! But to give you the basics of LGBTQ+ terms, we’ve put together a glossary of common terms you might see or hear.Īsexual (“ace”) - Asexual refers to a lack of interest in sex or sexual contact with other people.
What do the letters in LGBTQ+ stand for? These terms don’t have universal definitions since everyone who identifies with a certain label gets to pick what that identity means to them.