Glossary of Terms

A guide to common terms and definitions used in the LGBTQIA2S+ community

AFAB/AMAB

Assigned female at birth / assigned male at birth

Affirmed name

A name a person chooses to use, often different from their legal name, to better reflect their identity, particularly when it aligns with their gender identity or expression.

Ally

Individuals who actively advocate for and support LGBTQIA2S+ people. It includes both straight and cisgender individuals, as well as members of the LGBTQIA2S+ community who stand by and uplift one another.

Asexual

Someone who does not experience sexual attraction. It exists on a spectrum, with some experiencing none at all, while others may feel little sexual attraction or only under specific conditions. It is sometimes shortened to ace.

Assigned sex at birth

The classification given to an infant at birth based on visible sex characteristics, such as genitalia and other physical traits.

Bisexual

Someone who experiences emotional, romantic, or sexual attraction to more than one gender. This attraction may vary in timing, manner, or intensity. The term bi or bi+ is often used, with bi+ serving as an inclusive umbrella for identities such as bisexual, pansexual, fluid, and queer.

Bottom surgery

Surgical procedures involving the reproductive system as part of gender-affirming care. Not all trans individuals choose medical interventions as part of their transition.

Cisgender

Individuals whose gender identity aligns with the sex they were assigned at birth. It is often shortened to cis.

Fluid

Describes an identity that can change or shift over time. It is often used with another term, such as gender-fluid or fluid-sexuality.

Gay

Someone who experiences emotional, romantic, or sexual attraction to members of the same gender.

Gender

The roles, behaviors, activities, and attributes that society defines as appropriate for boys and men or girls and women.

Genderqueer

Individuals who reject fixed gender categories and embrace gender identity as fluid. They may identify as both male and female, neither, or outside traditional gender definitions.

Gender affirming surgery

Surgical procedures that modify the body to align with a person's gender identity.

Gender binary

The incorrect belief that there are only two genders, male and female, and that everyone must fit into one of these categories. It is often wrongly used to claim that gender is biologically predetermined. This concept also perpetuates the notion that men and women are opposites with distinct roles in society.

Gender expansive

An umbrella term for individuals who expand their culture's traditional definitions of gender, including expectations around its expression, identities, roles, and other societal gender norms.

Gender expression

The diverse ways individuals present their gender identity, such as through clothing, voice, hairstyle, or makeup. It may not conform to societal expectations and is not a reliable indicator of a person’s gender identity.

Gender fluid

A person who does not consistently identify with one fixed gender and may shift between different genders.

Gender identity

An individual's internal, deeply held sense of their gender.

Intersex

Individuals whose biological traits do not fit typical medical definitions of male or female. Variations may occur in hormones, chromosomes, internal or external genitalia, or a combination of primary and secondary sex characteristics.

Lesbian

A woman who is emotionally, romantically, or physically attracted to other women.

LGBTQIA2S+

This acronym stands for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer or questioning, intersex, asexual, Two-Spirit, with the plus symbol acknowledging the diverse and expansive range of sexual orientations and gender identities within the community.

MLM

This acronym stands for men loving men, and who are romantically or sexually attracted to other men, including those who identify as gay, bisexual, pansexual, or same-gender loving.

Non-binary

A spectrum of gender identities that are not strictly masculine or feminine, existing outside the traditional gender binary. Non-binary individuals may identify as both a man and a woman, somewhere in between, or entirely outside these categories.

Pansexual

Sexual attraction or romantic love toward individuals of all gender identities and biological sexes.

PEP

An acronym for post-exposure prophylaxis. It is a short course of antiretroviral medications to reduce the risk of getting HIV after a potential exposure.

PrEP

An acronym for pre-exposure prophylaxis. It is a medication taken by individuals who do not have HIV to protect themselves from getting HIV.

Pronouns

The terms used to refer to someone other than their name. Common pronouns include they/them, he/him, and she/her. Neopronouns are gender-neutral pronouns created specifically for this purpose, such as xe/xem, ze/zir, and fae/faer. For those who use pronouns—and not everyone does—they are not merely preferred; they are essential.

Queer

Used to describe a spectrum of identities and orientations that challenge mainstream norms. Queer serves as an umbrella term, encompassing individuals who do not identify as exclusively straight or who have non-binary or gender-expansive identities. While it was once used as a slur, it has been reclaimed by many within the LGBTQ+ movement.

Questioning

An individual who is exploring their sexual orientation or gender identity and is in a period of reflection or uncertainty regarding their identity formation.

Same-gender loving

A term some individuals prefer to use instead of lesbian, gay, or bisexual to describe attraction to and love for people of the same gender.

Sexual orientation

Sexual attraction to others or lack thereof. A person’s sexual orientation is separate from their gender identity.

SOGI

An acronym for sexual orientation and gender identity. Pronounced SOH-jee.

Top surgery

Surgical procedures on the chest or breasts as part of gender-affirming care. For AFAB individuals, this may involve chest reduction or full removal, while for AMAB individuals, it can include augmentation with saline or silicone.

Transgender

A gender identity that does not align with the sex assigned at birth. Transgender individuals may or may not pursue hormonal or surgical changes to reflect their gender identity. Often shortened to trans.

Transitioning

A series of steps some transgender individuals take to align their lived experience with their gender identity. This may include social transition, such as changing name and pronouns; medical transition, which can involve hormone therapy or gender-affirming surgeries; and legal transition, such as updating legal name and sex on identification documents. Each person’s transition is unique, and they may choose to pursue some, all, or none of these steps.