Allosexual

refers to people who do not identify as asexual – that is, people who regularly experience sexual attraction, regardless of their sexual orientation.

Asexual

A person who does not experience sexual attraction. Unlike celibacy, which people choose, this is an intrinsic part of who someone is.

Being outed

When someone else decides to tell people about your sexual orientation, gender identity or history, without your permission.

Biphobia

Hatred, hostility or a prejudicial attitude directed towards bisexual people – or those assumed to be bisexual – based on who people are and their perceived lifestyle, culture or characteristics. It can include believing that bisexual people are: deceitful or perverse; greedy, promiscuous or exotic; ‘going through a phase’; or damaging to lesbian and gay rights.

Bisexual

A person who experiences romantic, emotional, physical & sexual attractions to people of the same & other genders to themselves, whether trans or cisgender.

Cis/cisgender

A person whose gender identity matches the gender that they were assigned at birth.

Coming out

Telling other people about your sexual orientation or gender identity.

Discrimination

The unjust or prejudicial treatment of groups of people, especially on the grounds of protected characteristics, defined by the Equality Act (2010).

Gay/lesbian

A person whose primary romantic, emotional, physical and sexual attractions are to people of the same gender as themselves.

Gender expression

The choices we make on a daily basis regarding what we wear and how we present ourselves and behave, that indicates our gender.

Gender identity

Someone’s sense of themselves as being a boy/man, girl/woman, both or neither.

Gender marker

Designations such as male/female or Mr/Mrs which are found regularly on ID documents.

Genderqueer

Genderqueer, sometimes also known as non-binary, is an umbrella word for gender identities that are not exclusively masculine or feminine— identities which are outside the gender binary and cisnormativity. Genderqueer people may express a combination of masculinity and femininity, or neither.

Heterosexual

A person whose primary romantic, emotional, physical and sexual attractions are to people of an opposite gender to themselves.

Homophobia

Hatred, hostility or prejudicial attitude directed towards LGB people. It can include believing that LGB people are unnatural, immoral, sexual predators or paedophiles; can be corrected or cured; or that LGB is a lifestyle choice.

Intersex

An umbrella term used for a variety of conditions in which a person is born with physical, hormonal or genetic features that don’t fit the typical m/f definitions.

Misogyny

Hatred, hostility or prejudicial attitude directed towards women or girls. It can be acted out through sexual discrimination, denigration of women, violence against women, and the sexual objectification of women. It affects women and girls as individuals and as a gender. It affects all women and girls, whatever their sexual orientation or gender history.

Non-binary

A person who does not identify as male or female. They may identify as both a man and a woman, or neither.

Pansexual

A person whose romantic, emotional, physical and sexual attractions are towards people regardless of their sex or gender identity.

Pronouns

Words that can be used to refer to a person in place of their name, e.g. he/she, him/her, they/them.

Queer

Queer is an umbrella term for sexual and gender minorities who are not heterosexual or cisgender and in current usage can imply an activist perspective to LGBTI+ identity. It is a term used pejoratively against LGBTI+ people in the past and, as such, is not liked by all LGBTI+ people.

Sexual orientation

Who you’re attracted to and want to have sexual relationships with.

Stereotype

A common preconception about a group of people – for example how they look and act – often incorrect or based on biased and prejudiced assumptions.

Trans/transgender

A person whose gender history, identity or expression does not fit what others assumed they were at birth or what others think men and women ‘should’ be like. Some undergo a process of medical, surgical and/or hormonal transition. Some do not, for many different reasons.

Transitioning

A process of social, legal and/or medical change about gender identity to enable someone to live as the person they know themselves to be. LGBTI+ An umbrella term to describe people of all minority sexual orientations and gender identities, including lesbian, gay, bisexual, pansexual, trans, non-binary, queer, genderqueer and asexual identities, and intersex people.

Transphobia

Hatred, hostility or prejudicial attitude directed towards trans and gender non-conforming people. It can include believing that trans people are not “real” women/men; that non-binary genders are invalid; that trans people are gay people in denial; or refusing to use the correct name or pronoun of a trans person.

*Adapted with thanks to http://www.survivorsgateway.london/