Educate Yourself

A brief lexicon of common vocabulary and rhetoric of the trans community and of the greater lgbtqia community

(Note this will not be in alphabetical order)

Cis/cisgender: A person who identifies as the gender they were assigned at birth

Trans/transgender: A person who does not identify as the gender they were assigned at birth; this can include people who identify as nonbinary

Non-binary: A group of genders that differ from the Western ‘male’ and ‘female’. Any gender that is not wholly, statically, and exclusively male or female may be considered non-binary

Truscum: A noxious ilk who insist that a prerequisite to the trans experience is having bodily dysphoria, despite the APA not listing bodily dysphoria as one of the requirements for being trans. These vile toads often will exclude non-binary people as well

Radscum/T[w]e[r]f: A radical “feminist” who, in their own words, prioritize “womyn born womyn”; many simply refuse to take responsibility for their cis privilege, but equally many even go so far as to deny the existence of transgender as a feasible identity, and are transmisogynists in the extreme

Transmisogyny: The social system of stratification which marginalizes trans women/transfemininity and other trans people who were assigned male at birth; the foundation for all cissexism and arguably all heterosexism too

Cissexism: The sociological system of stratification placing cis people above trans people on a social hierarchy; erasing trans experiences; normalizing and ubiquitizing cisness; promoting ignorance and entitlement on transness among cis people; etc.

Transphobia: The violent aversion to trans people, constituting harmful and toxic beliefs and fostering moreso harmful and toxic actions committed against trans people (mostly trans women); cf cissexism, which is the ‘idea’ that allows transphobia to exist and flourish. Cissexism is the gun, and transphobia is the bullet

Cishit: (pronounced cis-shit) A cis person who is particularly transphobic; usually unapologetic; sometimes it is extreme ignorance and entitlement (read: the hate breeds hate scum); sometimes used to insult an oppressive person regardless of the axis of oppression in question (i.e. able people and ableism);

Cishet: A cisgender heterosexual (heteroromantic) person; totes a slur

Straight/heterosexual: A man who is sexually attracted exclusively to women/a woman who is sexually attracted exclusively to men; possible debate about the role that non-binary genders fit into this; outdated term all-around

Heterosexism: A social system of stratification privileging/normalizing/and enforcing heterosexuality above all other sexual orientations

Bi/bisexual: A person who is sexually attracted to two or more genders; a person who is attracted to their own gender and another

Biphobia: The prejudicial treatment/attitudes toward bisexual individuals

Pan/pansexual: A person who is sexually attracted to all genders; a person who does not consider gender when processing their sexual attractions; part of the polysexual spectrum

Gay/homosexual: A man/woman who is exclusively attracted to their own gender; a person of any gender that is exclusively attracted to their own gender; only gay people can say homosexual

Lesbian: A woman who is only attracted to other women

Homophobia: The prejudicial treatment/attitudes toward homosexual individuals; a social system excluding homosexuality/other identities on the acronym

Androsexual: Sexual attraction to men/masculinity

Gynosexual: Sexual attraction to women/femininity

Ceterosexual: Sexual attraction to non-binary genders; might be fetishistic (see: chasers); formerly called skoliosexual

Ace/asexual: A person who experiences no sexual attraction; a person who is not sexually attracted to any genders; may experience romantic attraction

Gray asexual/graysexual/gray ace/grayce/grace: A subset of the asexual spectrum who do feel sexual attraction, but not enough/not in a way that makes those who use this identity feel they are allosexual. You might say, “mostly asexual”. See demisexual for a specific and rather common kind of gray asexuality. Named for the so-called “shades of gray” between the traditionally viewed black and white “dichotomy” between asexual and allosexual.

Aromantic: A person who experiences no romantic attraction; a person who is not romantically attracted to any genders; may experience sexual attraction

Allosexual: A person who does experience sexual attraction; used in asexual circles

Demi/Demisexual: A person who is only sexually attracted to people they have formed close emotional bonds with; may or may not be romantically attracted to said person; may or may not consider themselves attracted to specific genders; part of the asexual spectrum

Demiboy/demigirl/demigender: A person who only partially identifies with a gender, binary or non-binary; the label is pretty indeterminate of birth assignment

Nanoboy/nanogirl/nanogender (sometimes spelled nan0-): A person who identifies with a specific gender only very minutely, though not a quantifiable amount. They are less x-gender than a demigender person, but again, not in any quantifiable way.

Magiboy/magigirl/magigender: Contrary to first glance, a gender identity not associated with magic, but rather a term for someone who identifies with a certain gender, but not quite enough to actually be that gender. Much like nanogenders, this isn’t quantifiable in any way.

Note that demi/nano/magi genders may all coexist with genderfluidity

Sexual attraction: The feeling separate from but comprised of arousal, desire, and impetus; often considered a qualia; the will to engage in sexual activities with a specific person/group of people; not to be confused with simply wanting sexual satisfaction, which doesn’t need sexual attraction to occur (c.f. many asexuals actively want and achieve sex, simply because it feels good, not because they’re attracted to their partner(s), and to conflate such feelings with sexual attraction is allosexist oops); occurs on a primary and secondary level

Primary sexual attraction: Sexual attraction based on immediate interaction and assessment of personality, looks, charisma, charm, and/or chemistry Secondary sexual attraction: Sexual attraction based on more intimate knowledge of the object of affection’s body and personality; the will to engage in sexual relations with someone you know/have gotten to know; not to be confused with demisexuality, which certainly operates on this level exclusively, but to a much more selective degree (a large number of people only feel secondary sexual attraction, but are not demisexual)

Romantic attraction: The intense emotional need for a relationship wherein two (or more) partners consider themselves to be engaged in a particular bond of great intimate intensity- “love”; the will to seek such relationships; see limerance; not to be confused with lithromanticism

Sensual attraction: The will to engage in tactile/sensual activities with a specific person/group of people; not to be confused with a vague desire for affection; c.f. sexual attraction, but on a sensual level

Aesthetic attraction: The artistic appreciation of the human body/face/other factors; many consider a universal feature among humans; many also consider all humans to be “panaesthetic” and therefore able to appreciate beauty in all genders

Intersex: Any number of experiences wherein an individual cannot be easily or exclusively classified as either binary male or female; not a “third sex”; usually determined by “ambiguous genitalia” and comprising a part of a spectrum of “sex” as defined biologically

Transfeminine: Any gender/gendervoid experience which occupies a spectrum that is feminine in essence (e.g. trans women, demigirls); a political, social, and cultural alignment with transfemininity and the liberation of trans women NOTE: only non-male camab trans people may identify as transfeminine

Transmasculine: Any gender/gendervoid experience which occupies a spectrum that is masculine in essence (e.g. trans men, demiboys)