LGBTQIA2S: Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer/Questioning, Intersex, Asexual, Two spirit.

 Here are some definitions of sexual orientations and gender identities:

Asexual: Asexual folx are not sexually attracted to people of any gender. 

Bisexual: Bisexual is both a specific identity referring to folks who are attracted to two or more genders, and also sometimes used as an umbrella term for non-monosexual identities (non-monosexual refers to any orientation that includes attraction to more than one gender). Bisexual does not necessarily mean “attracted to men and women” (though some bisexual folks are only attracted to men and women!) and it is not inherently transphobic. 

Cisgender: Cisgender folks have a gender identity that is in alignment with their assigned sex at birth, meaning that if they were assigned female at birth, they are a woman, and if they were assigned male at birth, they’re a man. (The sex you are assigned at birth refers to what the doctors put on your birth certificate.)

Gay: Gay has a few meanings. At its broadest, gay folks are anyone who is attracted to people of their own gender. But gay also, and perhaps most commonly, refers to a man who is attracted to men. Both transgender and cisgender men can be gay. Gay is also sometimes used to refer to anything that isn’t straight.

Intersex: Intersex refers to a wide range of sexes outside of simple male and female. Intersex folks are born with a variety of sex characteristics (including chromosomes, gonads, sex hormones, and/or genitals) that are outside the standard definitions of male and female. Intersex folks can have a range of gender identities, and some identify as non-binary while others identify as women or men.

Lesbian: Lesbian refers to a woman who is attracted to women. Both transgender and cisgender women can be lesbians.

Resource: Inclusive Language Handbook

Non-binary: Non-binary gender refers to a wide range of gender identities that are not “man” or “woman.” Some of these are genderqueer (an identity without a clear definition, see Queer), agender (not having a gender), bigender (having two genders), or genderfluid (a gender identity that shifts regularly). Many non-binary folks use the gender neutral pronouns “they/them/theirs,” but other gender neutral pronouns also exist. Some non-binary folks identify as transgender, and some do not.

Pansexual: Pansexual sometimes refers to attraction to all genders, and sometimes refers to attraction regardless of gender.

Queer: Queer is an identity that essentially means not straight, and it is often used as an umbrella term for the whole non-heterosexual community. It is also a political statement, because queerness intentionally has no single definition beyond “not straight.” When someone says they are queer, there is no way to know exactly what that means, and that is often intentional.

Straight: Straight (or heterosexual) folks are either men who are attracted to women, or women who are attracted to men. Both cisgender and transgender folks can be straight.

Transgender: Transgender is not a sexual orientation (transgender folks can be gay, straight, bisexual, asexual, or any other orientation). Transgender refers to having a gender identity that is not in alignment with the assigned sex at birth. Trans folks can be trans men (men who were assigned female at birth, previously referred to as FTM, though this terminology is no longer commonly used), trans women (women who were assigned male at birth, formerly referred to as MTF), or a wide range of non-binary (meaning not man or woman) genders.

Two Spirit: Two spirit is an Indigenous-created word for traditionally recognized identities. It means different things in each nation and to each person who holds that identity, and it is an identity that is culturally-specific, meaning that it belongs to Indigenous communities and cannot be used by non-Indigenous.