Gender Resources

TRU TOWN HALL

On November 29th, 2023, we produced a Town Hall with Theater Resources Unlimited to discuss the trans and gender-expansive experience in theater. The Town Hall was moderated by our Literary Manager Jaye Hunt, and featured Gylanni Carrington, Anessa Marie, Futaba Shioda, and Garnet Williams.
Click the image to watch the full Town Hall. Highlights are also available here.

One of the joys of the LGBTQIA+ community is that language is constantly shifting to accommodate a fuller understanding of ourselves and each other. We have organized this list to follow a possible logical flow for someone who is unfamiliar with most or all of these terms (rather than organizing alphabetically). We strive to keep this list of terms as updated as possible, but please let us know if we've overlooked something.

Have feedback on this page? Contact us at info@parityproductions.org, and check out the linked resources at the bottom of the page.

A gender identity that matches the gender an individual was assigned at birth.

For example, a cisgender woman / cis woman is a person who was assigned female at birth and, through self-concept and socialization, identifies her gender as female.

Cis- is a Latin prefix meaning "on the same side as," and is therefore an antonym of trans-.

A term for people whose gender identity, expression, or behavior is different from those typically associated with their assigned sex at birth.

Transgender is correctly used as an adjective, not a noun, thus "transgender people" is appropriate but terms like "a transgender," "transgenders," or "transgendered" are seen as disrespectful.

Transgender identity can be on a binary level, transitioning from one binary gender to the other, or used as an umbrella term for gender non-conforming and non-binary identities.

A general term for people who are born with reproductive or sexual anatomy and/or a chromosome pattern that does not seem to fit typical definitions of male or female.

The intersex experience is different for every intersex individual.

Intersex folks are not inherently LGBTQIA+; some identify with the LGBTQIA+ community and others do not.

Intersex is not a trans gender identity, though a given intersex person may also identify as trans.

Nonbinary (also stylized non-binary) Definition

An umbrella term for gender identities outside the male/female woman/man binary, used as an adjective (e.g., "a non-binary person").

Non-binary individuals do not necessarily identify as trans or cis, and the term non-binary is inclusive of many various, unique gender experiences.

A term for individuals whose gender expression does not match societal expectations related to that person's assumed/perceived gender.

An unconventional gender expression is not synonymous with a transgender identity.

The trans umbrella is inclusive of binary transgender identities, non-binary identities, and gender non-conformity.

Transgender is a broad term and is good for non-transgender people to use when referring to the trans community.

The non-binary umbrella is inclusive of all gender identities that fall outside of a binary.

This includes non-binary as an identity, as well as agender, bigender, genderfluid, genderqueer, demiboy/girl, and Two Spirit identities, among others.

LGBTQ+ TERMS TO KNOW:

The time when a person begins living as the gender with which they identify rather than the gender they were assigned at birth, which can (but does not necessarily) include changing one’s first name and dressing and grooming differently.

Transitioning may or may not also include medical and legal aspects, including taking hormones, having surgery, or changing identity documents (e.g. driver’s license, Social Security record) to reflect one’s gender identity.

Medical and legal steps are often prohibitively expensive, and many trans advocacy organizations provide financial support for people seeking those steps.

A person who was assigned female at birth and identifies as a man (experiences and expresses a male gender identity)

Transgender Woman/Trans Woman Definition

A person who was assigned male at birth and identifies as a woman (experiences and expresses a female gender identity)

A person who feels both masculine and feminine, or who has a gender expression with both masculine and feminine characteristics.

Androgyny is often expressed through gender neutral terminology and presentation.

Transmasculine/Transmasc (also stylized trans masc) Definition

A self-descriptor for AFAB people who now feel a connection with masculinity and/or have a masculine gender identity.

A term referencing the historical and current First Nations people whose individual spirits were a blend of male and female spirits.

This term has been reclaimed by some in Native American LGBTQIA+ communities in order to honor their heritage and provide an alternative to Western gender identity labels.

Transfeminine/Transfem (also stylized transfemme or trans femme) Definition

A self-descriptor for AMAB people who now feel a connection with femininity and/or have a feminine gender identity.

This is most often an adjective, but may be used as a noun (again, as a self-descriptor) when spelled with -mme, as in “I’m a trans femme .”

Gender Identity and Expression Definition

An individual’s internal sense of being male, female, or something else.

Since gender identity is internal, one’s gender identity is not necessarily visible to others and may not match one's gender expression.

Gender expression is how a person represents or expresses one’s gender identity to the outside world, often through behavior, clothing, hairstyles, voice or body characteristics.

This outward-facing characteristic also means that gender expression is subject to societal and cultural forces like racism/white supremacy, fatphobia, and misogyny/misogynoir, among others.

This op-ed by Tre’vell Anderson (from 2019) gives some examples of this.

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Pronouns (and how to use them):

Pronouns are gendered parts of speech that individuals use to describe themselves. Pronouns do not always equal gender or gender expression. Widely-accepted pronouns in English are she/her/hers, he/him/his, and they/them/theirs.

Neopronouns, which aren't officially recognized by their parent language, are also common in trans and gender nonconforming communities. Some examples are xe/xem/xyr and ze/hir/hirs, and ey/em/eir.

The most important things to remember about pronouns are (a) ask for them, even if you think you know what pronouns someone uses—do not assume someone’s gender; (b) use them, even if the individual is not present; (c) if you make a mistake, correct yourself and move on/do better next time without overapologizing; and (d) help normalize the inclusion of pronouns in everyday interactions by giving your own (in your email signature is an easy place to do this).

WORKS REFERENCED & MORE RESOURCES

The Atlantic | 10 Words Transgender People Want You to Know (But Not Say)
Best Broadway Musicals | The Evolution of LGBTQIA+ Narratives on Broadway
Call Me They by AC Dumlao
Gender Wiki
GLAAD | Media reference guide - Transgender glossary of terms
HISKIND | No Girls Allowed: Examining the Validity of the Bio Queen and Their Role in Queer Environments
Honest Accomplice Theatre | Trans Literacy Project (also on YouTube)
HRC Welcoming Schools | LBGTQ definitions for adults
Intersex Society of North America | What is intersex?
Medium | A Response To "Why Faux-Queens Deserve A Place In Drag Culture"
National Center for Transgender Equality (FAQ page)
Pidgeon Pagonis
Planned Parenthood | Transgender identity terms and labels
Pride Counseling
them. | What Does Queer Mean?
TLDEF (Transgender Legal Defense & Education Fund)
Trans Lifeline
Trans Student Educational Resource (TSER) | LBGTQ+ definitions
The Trevor Project
TSER | The Gender Unicorn

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Gender Resources

TRU TOWN HALL

LGBTQ+ TERMS TO KNOW:

Pronouns (and how to use them):

WORKS REFERENCED & MORE RESOURCES