
Sex Ed Gender Dictionary
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Advocate
noun
Agender
adjective


A person who identifies as not having a gender; or, being without gender.
Updated on 11-10-2021Androgynous
adjective


A balance of the feminine and the masculine that includes aspects of both. Androgynous individuals may identify as "gender-neutral", "genderqueer", or "non-binary"
Updated on 11-12-2021Biological sex
noun
A complex group of physical factors assigned to male, female, and intersex. The preferred term for this is “sex assigned at birth” because many people consider “biological sex” to be an offensive term.
Updated on 06-22-2022Bottom surgery
noun
A surgical procedure that changes a person’s genitals to align them with their gender identity. Some transgender people choose to have bottom surgery, and some choose not to. Many do not have the financial resources to have surgery even though they prefer or desire it. It is never polite to ask about a person’s genitals, regardless of gender identity.
*Note to medical staff - Sometimes in a medical context it will be necessary to ask if the patient has had any gender-affirming surgical procedures, as part of an overall medical and surgical history.
Butch
noun
Cis normative
adjective
The assumption that cisgender people are "normal" and those who are gender minorities are not.
Updated on 06-22-2022Cisgender
adjective
Cissexism
noun
Treating cisgender people as though they have more rights and moral authority than people who are gender minorities.
Updated on 06-22-2022Coming out
verb
This is commonly understood as the first time that someone discloses their sexual orientation or gender identity, coming out is actually something that sexual minorities do throughout their lifetimes. For example, for some LGBTQ+-identified people, sharing details of their social lives with new coworkers often discloses their sexual orientation.
Updated on 06-29-2022Correct gender pronoun (CGP)
noun
The pronouns (she/her/hers, he/him/his, ze/zir/zirs, they/them/theirs, etc.) that a person feels most comfortable being referred to as. Using a person’s CGP is a critical part of being respectful. They may also be referred to as preferred gender pronouns (PGP); however, this should be avoided as it implies that a person’s pronouns are merely a preference rather than a personal truth.
Updated on 06-22-2022Cross-dresser
noun
A person who wears clothing typically assumed to belong to a different gender. In the past, this person might have been called a transvestite. This term is no longer appropriate to use, and is considered offensive.
Updated on 06-29-2022Dead name
noun
The way some transgender people refer to the name they were given at birth. Deadnaming refers to calling trans, nonbinary, gender fluid, or other non-cis people by the name they were given at birth rather than their chosen name.
Updated on 06-22-2022Desister
noun
Drag king
noun
Drag queen
noun
Estrogen
noun
A naturally occurring steroid sex hormone produced by the ovaries and, in lesser amounts, by the adrenal cortex, placenta, and testes. Estrogen promotes female secondary sexual characteristics such as breasts and body shape and regulates menses; in males, estrogen promotes sperm maturation. Some transgender people choose to take this hormone so that their bodies will be more feminine.
Updated on 06-22-2022Gender
noun
A social construct often assumed to be aligned with aspects of biological sex, but that is far broader than biological sex. Different cultures have understood gender in dramatically different ways, with some incorporating an understanding of three or more genders.
Updated on 06-22-2022Gender binary
noun
A categorization of gender as either male or female rather than on a spectrum. This is a harmful understanding of gender for all people because it categorizes them in ways they might not feel comfortable with.
Updated on 06-22-2022Gender confirmation surgery
noun
A group of medical procedures that changes a person’s body to align it with their gender identity. Also called sexual reassignment surgery; most people prefer the language gender confirmation surgery.
Updated on 06-22-2022Gender dysphoria
noun
When a person’s gender identity directly conflicts with their physical body, causing mild to extreme psychological distress. “Gender dysphoria” is a classification of mental disorder in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders IV (DSM IV).
Updated on 06-22-2022Gender expression
noun
Gender fluid
adjective
A person who incorporates all genders into their identity and flows easily between them.
Updated on 06-22-2022Gender identity
noun
Gender nonconforming
adjective
Gender normative
adjective
Gender norms
noun
The indicators that a culture assigns to specific sex-related biology, primarily including aspects of a person unrelated to biology, such as hobbies, personality traits, and academic models of success.
Updated on 06-22-2022Gender, Sexuality, and Relationship Diversity (GSRD)
adjective
Genderqueer
adjective
A gender identity that describes a person who falls outside of the stereotypical “woman” or “man” binary system. This umbrella term also describes many gender identities outside of the gender binary. Genderqueer is sometimes shortened to queer. Historically, this term has been used in negative contexts. Many have reclaimed it because it is more descriptive of them and their communities and experiences than LGBTQ+ or GSRD.
Updated on 06-22-2022Hermaphrodite
adjective
An organism that has fully developed male and female reproductive tracts. While this term was historically used to describe intersex individuals, true hermaphroditism does not occur in humans (a human reproducing as both male and female). This term is inaccurate offensive.
Updated on 06-22-2022Hormone therapy
noun
Intersex
adjective


A sex assigned at birth and sometimes discovered after birth that indicates attributes associated with typical males and females. Historically, some people used the word hermaphrodite to describe people who were intersex, but this is not an appropriate term and is offensive.
Visit interAct Advocates for Intersex Youth for more information.
Updated on 06-22-2022Misgender
verb
Name change
noun
When a person is transitioning, they often choose a new name. This can be an important part of the transitioning process and should be respected. Asking a transgender person for their “real” name (referring to the name they were given at birth) is offensive.
Updated on 06-22-2022Niblet
noun
Also sometimes called a nibbling, this is a gender-neutral word to refer a sibling’s children.
Updated on 06-22-2022Nonbinary
adjective
Nuncle
noun
Outing
verb
Passing
verb
When a trans person is accepted in public to be the sex that is in alignment with their gender identity rather than their sex assigned at birth. Sometimes this is a sought-after feature of transitioning, and sometimes it is not.
Updated on 06-22-2022Persister
noun
Primary sexual characteristics
noun
Puberty
noun
A period during which an individual develops secondary sexual characteristics and often becomes fertile.
Updated on 06-22-2022Queer
adjective
Questioning
verb
Secondary sexual characteristics
noun
Nonreproductive-related body parts or characteristics that may appear during puberty (or via medications or surgery) and are connected to sex and gender. Examples are axillary (underarm), facial, chest, and pubic hair, changes in breasts and vulva, hip size, shoulder and chest size, voice changes, and muscle mass.
Updated on 06-22-2022Sex assigned at birth
noun
T
noun
Short for testosterone.
Updated on 06-22-2022Testosterone
noun
A naturally occurring steroid sex hormone produced by the testes and, in lesser amounts, by the adrenal cortex and ovaries. Testosterone promotes male secondary sexual characteristics such as facial hair, muscle mass, and voice depth, and influences erection frequency and libido. In females, testosterone primarily gets converted to estrogen. Some transgender people choose to take a synthetic form of testosterone so that their bodies will be more masculine.
Updated on 06-22-2022Third gender
noun
Top surgery
noun
A surgical procedure that changes a person’s chest to align it with their gender identity. Top surgery can be expensive. Some transgender people choose to have top surgery, and some choose not to. As with bottom surgery, many do not have the financial resources to have this surgery even though they may prefer or desire it.
Updated on 06-22-2022Transgender
adjective
A person whose gender identity is different than the culturally assumed gender identity assigned at birth. Historically the term transsexual was used, and is now considered offensive.
Updated on 06-22-2022Transitioning
verb
Two-spirit
adjective