lgbt: Glossary

The Office of LGBT Affairs recognizes that language can be a barrier to communication between members of the lesbian, gay, and bisexual community and the heterosexual community. To promote healthy dialog, please refer to the following terms and definitions.

Term	Meaning
Lesbian	A woman whose primary sexual and romantic attraction is to other women.
Gay	A man whose primary sexual and romantic attraction is to other men.
Bisexual	A person who has sexual and romantic attraction to both men and women.
Transgender	Some people describe themselves as transgender when they experience a gender identity different from their birth sex. For example, a person born into a male body, but who feels female and may live as a woman, may describe herself as transgender. Some transgender individuals alter their physical appearance through attire and/or the use of hormones and surgery to match their internal sense of gender, including male-to-female, and female-to-male.
Gender Identity	One’s internal sense of whether one is male or female.
Transsexual	A male or female who has gone through a surgical procedure to alter or change their birth sex.
Transvestite	An outdated term used by heterosexuals to describe cross-dressers, usually men who dressed as women, primarily in a negative context.
Bulldagger	An outdated term used by heterosexuals to decribe women who dressed like men, primarily in a negative context.
Intersex	Someone born with both male and female reproductive organs.
Androgenous	Exhibiting approximately equal proportions of masculine and feminine characteristics simultaneously.
MSM	Men having sexual relations with other men.
Sexual Orientation	A descriptive term comprised of three elements - attractions, behavior, and identity. Many individuals have romantic or sexual relationships that correspond to their attractions, but attractions, behavior, and identity do not always match. A man who considers himself heterosexual or straight may occasionally have sexual relationships with other men. A woman who has relationships with women, but who feels attraction for men, may identify as bisexual, lesbian, heterosexual, or in some other way.