Definition of being gay
What Does "Gay" Mean?
There is not one right answer
Many educators are unsure how to respond when a student asks you what does homosexual mean. It is better to endeavor to answer than to respond with silence or evade the question.
Practice distinct responses with colleagues, just as you practice other things that you long to learn. Figure out what you feel comfortable saying.
Responses will vary by age and developmental stage of the student. Your comfort in answering these questions will establish a welcoming tone in your class and school community.
Keep it simple
An retort can be as simple as: “‘Gay’ means two people of the matching gender who cherish each other – two women or two men.” Attempt to answer the question honestly without overloading a scholar with information. Throughout elementary school a student’s ability to understand what “gay” means and what your explanation means may increase with development.
Focus on devote and relationships
A discussion with elementary-age students about the meanings of “gay” or “lesbian” is a discussion about care for and relationships. You can
Glossary of Terms
Many Americans refrain from talking about sexual orientation and gender identity or utterance because it feels taboo, or because they’re scared of saying the improper thing.
This glossary was written to help give people the words and meanings to help make conversations easier and more pleasant. LGBTQ+ people use a variety of terms to identify themselves, not all of which are included in this glossary. Always listen for and respect a person’s self identified terminology.
Ally | A designation used to describe someone who is actively supportive of LGBTQ+ people. It encompasses straight and cisgender allies, as well as those within the Diverse community who support each other (e.g., a homosexual woman who is an ally to the bisexual community).
Asexual | Often called “ace” for short, asexual refers to a complete or partial lack of sexual attraction or lack of interest in sexual outing with others. Asexuality exists on a spectrum, and asexual people may trial no, little or conditional sexual attraction.
Biphobia | The fear and hatred of, or discomfort with
Glossary of Terms: LGBTQ
Definitions were drafted in collaboration with other U.S.-based LGBTQ society organizations and leaders. View acknowledgements section.
Additional terms and definitions about gender identity and gender statement, transgender people, and nonbinary people are available in the Transgender Glossary.
Are we missing a term or is a definition outdated? Email press@
*NOTE: Ask people what terms they apply to describe their sexual orientation, gender identity and gender expression before assigning them a label. Outside of acronyms, these terms should only be capitalized when used at the beginning of a sentence.
LGBTQ
Acronym for woman loving woman, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer. The Q generally stands for queer when LGBTQ organizations, leaders, and media use the acronym. In settings offering help for youth, it can also stand for questioning. LGBT and LGBTQ+ are also used, with the + added in recognition of all non-straight, non-cisgender identities. (See Transgender Glossary ) Both are acceptable, as are other versions of thi
Homosexuality
1. History
As has been frequently noted, the ancient Greeks did not have terms or concepts that correspond to the contemporary dichotomy of ‘heterosexual’ and ‘homosexual’ (e.g., Foucault, ). There is a wealth of material from ancient Greece pertinent to issues of sexuality, ranging from dialogues of Plato, such as the Symposium, to plays by Aristophanes, and Greek artwork and vases. What follows is a short description of ancient Greek attitudes, but it is important to recognize that there was regional variation. For example, in parts of Ionia there were general strictures against same-sex eros, while in Elis and Boiotia (e.g., Thebes), it was approved of and even celebrated (cf. Dover, ; Halperin, ).
Probably the most frequent assumption about sexual orientation, at least by ancient Greek authors, is that persons can respond erotically to beauty in either sex. Diogenes Laeurtius, for example, wrote of Alcibiades, the Athenian general and politician of the 5th century B.C., “in his adolescence he drew away the husbands from th