AC-DC Bisexual
ADAM'S PAJAMAS A state of full nudity
ANDROTROPE A gay male, as suggested by Kurt Hiller in 1946. Hiller disliked the
negative connotations of 'homosexual'; but the term did not catch on.
ANGEL FOOD A gay man in the Air Force
AUNTIE An older gay man; generally pejorative. Implies a sense of
being dainty and engaging in gossip.
BABY-BUTCH A young, masculine acting lesbian
BAMBI-SEXUALITY Physical interaction centered more on touching,
kissing and caressing rather than genital sexuality.
BEAN QUEEN A non-Latino man attracted to Latino men
BENT (British slang) Homosexual
BERDACHE A member of a Native American tribe who lived with,
dressed as, or identified with the opposite sex. A Berdache often
occupied a revered and unusual position within the tribe. It comes
from the French for slave boy.
BILITIS From Chansons de Bilitis, a collection of lesbian love poems
published in 1894 by Pierre Louys and supposed on the work of Sappho.
The word is best known as part of the name of the Daughters of Bilitis
(DOB), a lesbian organization formed in 1955 by Del martin and Phyllis
Lyon.
BISEXUAL Attracted to people of both sexes
BOSTON MARRIAGE A live-in relationship between two women; used mainly
in 19th cent. New England and could refer to both a lesbian
relationship or to situations where two women chose to live
independent of men while pursuing their own careers.
BROWN FAMILY, THE Circa 1940, refers to the homosexual
subculture
BULL DYKE A lesbian who dresses and behaves in a masculine
fashion
BUTCH Strong or tough. Displaying traits considered masculine.
Describes both physical build and personality, and applied to both
genders.
CAMP An ironic, often gay-identified approach to life, dress and
speech gaining popularity following Susan Sontag's essay, "Notes
Toward a Definition of Camp" in the Parisian Review in 1964.
CATAMITE From Catamitus, the cupbearer for the Roman god,
Jupiter. A boy kept for sexual purposes. The term was first used in
the 17th cent. See Ganymede
CHICKEN A young gale male, usually in his teens or early twenties.
CHICKEN HAWK An older gay man who pursues boys or very young men.
CHUBBY CHASER A man attracted to obese men
CIAO [pronounced chow] Good-bye. In Italian the term can mean
"hello" or "good-bye." As American slang it has come to mean "Good-bye
for now; see you again soon."
CLONE First appearing in the 1970s, it refers to a gay man of a
certain, somewhat standardized appearance. The classic look includes
short-cropped hair, trim mustache, flannel shirt and Levi's brand 501
jeans -- on a relatively well sculptured body. Interchangeable with
Castro clone after the main street of San Francisco's gay district.
CLOSET The place where gay women and men figuratively hide their
homosexuality. "In the closet" means not being open about being gay.
This person may be referred to by others as A closet case or closet
queen.
COME OUT To acknowledge your homosexuality; either to oneself
or others
CRUISE To actively look for a sex partner in areas others are likely
to be found engaged in the same pursuit.
CUT SLEEVES In Chinese the phrase, tuan hsiu applies to male homosexuality. From the story of Emperor Ai-ti (6 B.C. to A.D. 2) whose favored young boy fell asleep on the sleeve of his robe. The emperor, cut off the sleeves of his robe rather than disturb the sleeping boy.
DASH Open to experimenting with homosexuality, but not self defined as gay
DIESEL DYKE A lesbian who dresses and behaves in a masculine style
DINGE QUEEN A non-black gay man attracted to black men. Long since considered racist.
DIONING The heterosexual apple of a gay man's eye. Coined in the 1860s by Karl Heinrich Ulrichs to describe the object of a homosexual man's attraction. See Urning
DOUBLE RIBS A euphemism for male homosexuality used in ancient China
DRAG Dressed in a way usually identified with the opposite sex. Differs from transvestitism in that drag usually refers to a specific act of cross-dressing, while transvestitism is applied to the general enjoyment of the act.
DRAG QUEEN A man who dresses like a woman. Also applied to a man who dresses as a woman and performs in cabaret acts.
DROP A HAIRPIN Give a clue one is homosexual
DUTCH GIRL A lesbian
DYKE A lesbian. Derived from 19th cent. slang, dike, referring to male clothing. When first used it carried a derogatory connotation of masculine appearance or behavior. The connotation is still present, but many lesbians adopted the word as their term of preference.
EONISM Transvestitism. Coined by Havelock Ellis, after the cross-dressing Frenchman, the Chevalier d'Eon, but never gained acceptance.
FAG HAG A heterosexual woman who socializes extensively with gay men. Sometimes, but not always pejorative
FAGGOT, also FAG A male homosexual. Like dyke, the term was originally an epithet, but has been adopted by many gay men. In the early years of the Gay Liberation movement, some activists suggested it's derivative was from fagot, kindling used during the Inquisition when heretics, homosexuals and others, were burned at the stake. Others look to fag, the younger boys in British boy' schools used to do menial tasks for the upperclassmen.
FAIRY A common derogatory term of the 20th cent. for a male homosexual, especially one who acts and dresses in an effeminate manner. Recently reclaimed by gay men. Radical faeries, are asserting pride in their refusal of the traditional male roles.
FEMME A lesbian or gay man who acts or dresses effeminately
FINOCCHIO (Italian slang) Homosexual. Sometimes denoting effeminacy. Refers to the fennel plant, but the origins are not known
FRENCH EMBASSY Any location where gay sex is readily available. Typical a gym or the Y.
FROG QUEEN A French-Canadian gay man; also a gay man attracted to Frenchman.
GAY Homosexual. In the 17th cent. the term was expanded from it's earlier meaning of cheerful to refer to men with a reputation for being playboys (gay Lothario first appeared in 1703). By the early 1800s, it was further expanded to refer to women with a reputation for sexual promiscuity. The term was first self-applied in the early 20th cent. By the 1970s, it was a standard, non-slang synonym for homosexual.
GILLETTE BLADE A bisexual woman
GOVERNMENT-INSPECTED MEAT A gay man in the Armed Forces
GYNAEOTROPE Kurt Hiller's preferred term for a lesbian. See androtrope
HETEROSEXUAL Attracted to the opposite sex. Considered the opposite of homosexual, it was used in the late 19th cent. to identify people attracted to both sexes; what we call today, bisexual.
HOMOGENIC Homosexual. Suggested by Edward Carpenter.
HOMPHILE Homosexual. Philos is the Greek word for love. Gained popularity in the U.S. in the 1950s. Falling from favor at the height of the Gay Liberation movement in the early 1970s.
HOMOPHOBIA Irrational fear of gay people and homosexuality. Coined by George Weinberg in Society and the Healthy Homosexual.
HOMOSEXUAL Attracted physically to the same sex. Coined in 1869 by Karl Maria Kertbeny. First in U.S. medical journals in the 1890s, and in general usage by the 1920s.
HUNDRED-AND-SEVENTY-FIVER Homosexual. Paragraph 175 of the German Penal Code of 1871 outlawed homosexual practices; thus a hundert-fund-und-siebziger, or 175er, violated this paragraph.
IN THE LIFE Gay. Most common with the black community. Dates back to the 1920s.
INTERMEDIATE SEX Homosexual. Used by Edward Carpenter and others around the turn of the 20th cent., but fell into disfavor
INVERSION Homosexuality. First appeared in the Italian as inversione in 1878, encompassed a philosophy of homosexuality and providing a new term for its practitioners (inverts). Havelock Ellis used the term in 1897 when referring to Caesar. Often used by gay people into the early 1900s in spite of its negative connotations.
KINSEY SIX A person who is completely homosexual, as opposed to one with some bisexual inclinations. Sex researcher Alfred Kinsey developed a scale from 0 to 6 to indicate a subject's sexual orientation. A person with no homosexual feelings was ranked a zero. Someone exclusively homosexual was a 6.
KISSING FISH Lesbians
LESBIAN A gay woman. The ancient Greek poet, Sappho lived on the island of Lesbos. As Sappho became known for her poems celebrating love between women, the term lesbian changed from "one who lives on Lesbos" to "a woman like Sappho and her followers."
MARICÓN The Spanish equivalent for faggot
MARIPOSA Spanish for butterfly, has also come to refer to a male homosexual
NANCE (British slang) Effeminate
PANSY An effeminate gay man. Usually derogatory, it has been used since the 1920s.
PANSY WITHOUT A STEM 1960s camp term for a lesbian
QUEEN Effeminate gay man, from the 16th cent., quean, a disparaging word for an unpleasant or promiscuous woman.
QUEER Homosexual. First used in the early 20th cent.
RUBIES Lips
SAPPHISTRY Lesbian love, derived from Sappho
SEAFOOD A gay sailor
SIGNIFICANT OTHER From the 1970s; a partner in a serious relationship.
SIX See Kinsey Six
SLACKS An obsolete term for lesbians
SNOW QUEEN A non-white gay man attracted to white men
SODOMY Sexual acts deemed unnatural by religious and legal precedents.
SOTHER See Significant Other
SUGAR DADDY An older man who provides for a younger sex partner
TEMPERAMENTAL A euphemism for homosexual. Earliest usage 1920s
TRANSSEXUALITY Identification with and a desire to be the opposite sex
TRANSVESTITISM Dressing in clothing of the opposite gender.
TROLL To cruise
TS A transsexual, now called Transgender
TV A transvestite
TWILIGHT (Obsolete) Homosexual. Prominent in the 1920s
TWINKLE TOES An young effeminate gay
TUNA A young gay sailor
URNING A homosexual male. Introduced in 1864 by Karl Heinrich Ulrichs. Giving rise to the term Third Sex.
VICE ALLEMANDE (French) 19th cent. term for homosexual. It translates as "the German vice."
WATER CHESTNUT A gay Japanese man