Gay and bi
Glossary of Terms
Many Americans refrain from talking about sexual orientation and gender identity or expression because it feels taboo, or because they’re afraid of saying the wrong thing.
This glossary was written to help grant people the words and meanings to help make conversations easier and more comfortable. 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 Queer people. It encompasses straight and cisgender allies, as well as those within the LGBTQ+ collective who support each other (e.g., a lesbian 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 activity with others. Asexuality exists on a spectrum, and asexual people may experience no, little or conditional sexual attraction.
Biphobia | The anxiety and hatred of, or discomfort with
Not to be muddled with Bi-Veldian.
A bi gay or bi-oriented gay is someone who is both bisexual/biromantic/etc. and male lover.
This term can be used by men and others who use the split attraction model and are multi-attracted and homoromantic, queer biromantic or those who experience lgbtq+ or bi tertiary attraction. They acquire sexual attraction to two or more genders but are only romantically attracted to their own/similar gender(s). They may find themselves sexually attracted to dissimilar genders, but could never picture themselves in a sexual relationship with them, putting more emphasis on their attraction to their own/similar genders, though this varies from person to person. Or they could be romantically attracted to any gender but only sexually attracted to the same/similar gender or are only willing to be with the same/similar gender(s) sexually.
It can also be used by people who determine as both multi-attracted and gay, either due to switching attraction (such as abrosexuality), or due being part of a plural system, such as having a different sexuality when fronting, or being
Bisexual FAQ
What does bisexual mean?
In simplest terms, a bisexual person is someone who can be attracted to more than one gender; but adults and youth who distinguish as bisexual sometimes characterize themselves differently. Many pansexual adults have embraced the definition proposed by longtime bisexual leader, national speaker and award-winning activist Robyn Ochs:
"I call myself double attraction because I acknowledge that I have in myself the potential to be attracted - romantically and/or sexually - to people of more than one sex and/or gender, not necessarily at the alike time, not necessarily in the same way, and not necessarily to the same degree."
This broad definition of bisexuality includes people who identify as pansexual, queer, fluid and other labels that suggest potential attraction to more than one gender.
How many people are bisexual?
According to the Williams Institute and the HRC Foundation's own analyze, studies suggest that about 50 percent of people who identify as either gay, lesbian or double attraction, identify as bisexual. This makes the bisexual population t
What Gay and Bi Men Really Want
Are physical and sexual attraction the most appealing qualities in a partner? Or are unseen qualities like good manners and reliability the most attractive?
Following on from his research into what linear women want and what straight men want, D&M Research’s managing director Derek Jones has taken the next logical step with his latest study into what gay and bi(sexual) men want.
In order to dig deeper and sketch out a true list of turn-ons and turn-offs for gay and bi men, Derek once again used of the Im-Ex Polygraph method. He originally devised this method of analysis to distinguish what people say they want from brands, products or services from what they really want by comparing stated versus derived measures of importance.
Qualities the lgbtq+ and bi men said they desired in a partner (‘stated’) were compared to the qualities introduce in example celebrities they nominated as attractive (‘implied’). The same comparison was made between stated and implied negative qualities, to determine what attributes are really the biggest turn-offs.