An individual who experiences little or no romantic attraction but may experience sexual attraction (e.g., an aromantic bisexual). Being aromantic is not the same as being asexual.

This the lack of sexual attraction to others. But asexuality exists on a spectrum, and asexual people may experience no, little or conditional sexual attraction, or low or absent interest in or desire for sexual activity. It is often considered a sexual orientation or the lack thereof.

Refers to the label a medical professional gives to a baby when it is born. A medical professional may say a baby is male, female or intersex, depending on what the medical professional observes about the baby's body. Generally, a baby with a vulva will be labeled a girl. In a small percentage of cases, infants with both vulva and penis may be labeled intersex, or surgery may be performed to favor what the medical professional believes to be the more dominant. Historically, parents weren’t generally involved in these surgical decisions, but that is starting to change.

Refers to the label a medical professional gives to a baby when it is born. A medical professional may say a baby is male, female or intersex, depending on what the medical professional observes about the baby's body. Generally, a baby with a penis will be labeled a boy. In a small percentage of cases, infants with both vulva and penis may be labeled intersex, or surgery may be performed to favor what the medical professional believes to be the more dominant. Historically, parents weren’t generally involved in these surgical decisions, but that is starting to change.

A person who is attracted physically and emotionally to either males or females.

As the gender spectrum continues to evolve, more and more labels are being used to identify oneself. One such label is demiboy, a gender identity that is increasingly gaining recognition and representation in the Two-Spirit LGBTQIA+ community. Demiboys are often young people who don’t feel completely male or female, but somewhere in between. A demiboy is someone whose gender identity is partially male and partially another gender. The word demiboy is made up of the prefix “demi-” meaning “half” or “partial”, and “boy” which refers to the masculine gender. The word demiboy and demigirl fall under the demigender umbrella which also falls under the nonbinary umbrella.

A demisexual person is where a person feels sexually attracted to someone only after they've developed a close/strong emotional bond with them. This means a demisexual person can experience sexual attraction that is formed from a bond they share with another person, but usually only after that.

A male who is only attracted physically and emotionally to other males.

is how a person presents gender outwardly, through behavior, clothing, voice or other perceived characteristics.

A person who does not identify with a single fixed gender or has a fluid identity.

is one's own internal sense of self and their gender, whether that is man, woman, neither or both, or anywhere along the spectrum. Unlike gender expression, gender identity is not outwardly visible to others.

This is a broad term referring to people who do not behave in a way that conforms to the traditional expectations of the male and female genders, or whose gender expression does not fit neatly into a single category.

A person who rejects notions of static categories of gender and embraces a fluidity of gender identity and often, though not always, a fluidity of sexual orientation. People who identify as "genderqueer" may see themselves as being both male and female, neither male nor female, or as falling completely outside those categories.

A general term used for a variety of physiological conditions where persons are born with reproductive or sexual anatomy that doesn’t seem to fit the traditional definitions of male or female.

A female who is only attracted physically and emotionally to other females. Some older women who are attracted to other women identify as “gay” rather than “lesbian” due to the terminology that was available during their coming out process, so be aware of that possibility. That’s often due to a generational or geographical distinction.

A person who does not identify exclusively as a man or a woman. Non-binary people may identify as being both a man and a woman, somewhere in between, or as falling completely outside these categories. While many also identify as transgender, not all non-binary people do. Non-binary can also be used as an umbrella term encompassing identities such as agender, bigender, genderqueer or gender-fluid.

This refers to someone who is romantically, emotionally, or sexually attracted to people of all genders and orientations.

This describes someone who has the potential for emotional, romantic or sexual attraction to people of any gender, though not necessarily simultaneously or in the same way or to the same degree. This is sometimes confused with bisexual, but bisexual refers to a binary construct and Pansexual is not limited to attraction to just male or female gender identities.

These are similar as both are attracted to all genders. The main difference is that pansexual people are often referred to as "gender-blind," meaning they may be attracted to people regardless of gender. Whereas omnisexual people typically do recognize the gender of those they are interested in, therefore letting it play a part in their attraction.

This refers to additional sexual orientations or gender identities that aren’t specifically included when a listing is given (e.g., Two-Spirit LGBTQIA+). Years ago it used to be just LGBT, then LGBTQ+ and now a commonly used list is Two-Spirit LGBTQIA+. It’s likely that to demonstrate inclusivity, additional letters will be added. But it’s important to point out that the plus sign doesn’t stand for “other.” There’s growing resistance by members of the LGBTQ+ community to being “othered” as it implies that they’re outside of the norm and therefore excluded in some way.

This has become an umbrella term that’s being reclaimed by younger lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender generations, referring to the entire Two-Spirit LGBTQIA+ spectrum. However, historically that term had a derogatory context, and the newer usage is not embraced by everyone, particularly Two-Spirit LGBTQIA+ older adults. Some may be comfortable with and prefer the label “queer”, some older adults will find it offensive and off-putting. Keep that mind when interacting with or in the vicinity of older LGBTQ+ adults.

Some prefer to use this instead of lesbian, gay or bisexual to express attraction to and love of people of the same gender. This is mostly thought of as a cultural term used frequently in communities of color that affirms the same-sex attraction of men and women.

A person that is more attracted by the contents of a person's mind than by their appearance or their body. In order to feel sexually attracted to another person, a sapiosexual person must first feel intellectually stimulated. It means that intelligence is often the first quality a person notices in a potential partner.

A person whose gender identity and sex assigned at birth do not correspond, based on traditional expectations. For example, a person assigned female at birth who identifies as a man, or a person assigned male at birth who identifies as a woman.

This reflects traditions among many Native American nations that accept and celebrate the diversity of human gender, spirituality and sexuality. Why do we list them first? Because they were here first.