Glossary

Below is a short description of some of the terms used in this book. It’s important to remember that these descriptions are not to be seen as the right way to define these terms, as they differ between cultures and through time, and language is constantly progressing and changing along with our perception and understanding of certain things. Our understanding of sex and gender has been changing rapidly for the last decade and will continue to do so. It’s important to remember that while these terms can be useful, we shouldn’t necessarily be completely bound to definitions or terminology – in the end, they are a simplification of our reality to help us understand things better.

This is in no way a conclusive list of all terms related to gender or sex (we could write an entire book on that). We will only be giving you a very short explanation of a few terms, simply to jog your memory in case you get confused about what is what.

AFAB: Assigned female at birth. Less common terms include CAFAB (coercively assigned female at birth) and DFAB (designated female at birth).

AMAB: Assigned male at birth. Less common terms include CAMAB (coercively assigned male at birth) and DMAB (designated male at birth).

Cisgender: Cisgender refers to people whose gender identity aligns with the sex and gender they were assigned at birth – basically, people who are not trans.

Demigirl: Demigirl describes someone who partially, not wholly, identifies as a woman, girl or otherwise feminine, regardless of what they were assigned at birth.

Demiguy: Demiguy describes someone who partially, not wholly, identifies as a man, boy or otherwise masculine, regardless of what they were assigned at birth. Demiguy and demiboy are often used interchangeably.

Dyadic: Dyadic refers to people who are defined as male or female at birth – basically, people who are not intersex.

Gender: Gender is assigned to us at birth, based on our sex characteristics, and refers to socially constructed ideas and expectations of what it is to be a man or a woman. Gender differs between time and cultures, and there are many different ideas about what gender is across the world. Gender is also sometimes used synonymously with the term gender identity (see below), and can therefore refer to a person’s personal experience.

Gender expression: Gender expression refers to how we express ourselves and how we are perceived by others: as masculine, feminine, or androgynous. People who express themselves in a feminine way aren’t automatically women; and those who express themselves as masculine aren’t automatically men; and those who are androgynous aren’t automatically non binary (see below). It’s important to disconnect our ideas of expression from gender identity, as many people don’t conform to rigid gender expectations.

Gender fluid: Gender fluid refers to people whose gender identity feels fluid and fluctuates between feminine, masculine or non binary.

Gender identity: Gender identity refers to our inner sense of self and the gender that we are. It is an intrinsic part of who we are and relates to our understanding and experiences of who we are in this gendered world. It’s important to remember that our sex characteristics and our gender expression do not govern our gender identity.

Intersex: People are defined as intersex when their sex characteristics fall outside the binary categorisation of male and female. There are over 40 different variations of sex, so intersex covers a vast array and is much more common that people believe. It can describe people who are visibly intersex, but it can also relate to people’s genitalia, hormonal glands and/or chromosomes. Some variations are not visible at birth and there are people who are intersex without ever knowing it.

Non binary: Non binary is a term under the trans umbrella that encompasses all identities that don’t fit within the binary of men and women. It can refer to those who are gender fluid (see above), those who are both men and women, those who fall completely outside of that binary or those who don’t feel they have a gender. It’s important to remember that non binary refers to your gender identity, but not your sex characteristics.

Sex and sex characteristics: Sex refers to the categorisation of our sex characteristics, such as chromosomes, hormonal glands, genitalia and reproductive organs. There are three major categories: male, female and intersex. Sex is a very tangled web, and it’s important to remember that these categories are simplifications that are entirely socially constructed around our ideas and perceptions of bodies.

Stealth: Stealth refers to living in society without people knowing that you are trans (see below).

Trans(gender): Trans (or transgender) is an umbrella term for people who don’t identify with the gender they were assigned at birth. It can refer to those who are trans men, trans women or those who have non binary gender identities.