“Assigned-at-birth” serves to imply that sex assignment is without the agency of the individual. One’s sex is typically assigned at birth and classified as either male or female. Understanding the distinctions and connections between these concepts is critical to understanding the definitions that follow.īirth-Assigned Sex - the designation that refers to a person’s biological, morphological, hormonal, and genetic composition. This is particularly true for “gender” and “sex.” Additionally, people’s conception of these terms is often quite limited and rooted in cisheteronormative and binary understandings of gender, sex, and sexuality. Their definitions are sometimes collapsed and the terms are used interchangeably. Gender, sex, and sexuality are often misunderstood terms that are distinct, but also connected. To understand LGBTQIA2S+ identities and communities we must first distinguish three important concepts (gender, sex, and sexuality) and discuss the version of the acronym we are using on this website and in our educational programs and resources. You can email and/or call the Gender and Sexuality Campus Center at or (517) 353-9520. If there is a term that you feel should be included here, please let us know. We understand that language around sexuality and gender is always changing and we will review these terms regularly. The definitions provided in this document reflect the current general understanding of these terms. Identity terms mean very particular things to different individuals.
It is by no means a comprehensive list, but it is a good place for us to start. This is a list of carefully researched and thoughtfully discussed definitions for key gender and sexuality terms.