Glossary of German gender and sex terminology

See also: Gender neutral language in German

See also: Pronouns#German neutral pronouns

Glossaries in other languages

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This page lists German terms related to gender and sex. They are alphabetically ordered according to the words in German.

Many trans terms, especially the ones ending in "-gender", are simply copied from English. So if you're wondering if you can use your identity term in German without translating it, you probably can.

A source with more info and examples for the pronouns listed here can be found in the external links section.

A

• agender - agender
• androgyn - androgynous, androgyne
• androgynfühlend, androgynfühlig - literally "androgynous-feeling", has been proposed as a translation for androgyne, to clarify that it is not about androgynous looks
• Androgynität, Androgynie - androgyny

B

• bei Geburt zugewiesenes Geschlecht - sex/gender assigned at birth
• bigender - bigender
• Binder - binder, both German and English pronunciation used. "binden" (often with English pronuncioation), "(m)einen Binder tragen" and "abbinden" mean "to bind".
• biologisches Geschlecht - sex (as opposed to gender) and just as problematic as in English

C

• cis - cis
• Cisfrau, cis Frau, Cismann, cis Mann - cis woman/man
• cisgender, cisgeschlechtlich - cisgender
• Cissexismus - cissexism

D

• Drag King - drag king
• Drag Queen - drag queen
• Divers, Div. - the basic "3rd gender option" (not Male or Female) given on some forms, meaning diverse. Often used in "(m/w/d)" meaning (male/female/divers).

E

• em/ems/em/em - gender-neutral pronoun
• Enby - nonbinary person
• er_sie, er*sie, ersie - gender-neutral pronoun
• es - it, used as a pronoun by many nonbinary and intersex people, but insulting if used without consent (same as it in English)

F

• FLIT, FLTI - "Frauen, Lesben, Inter*, Trans*": "women, lesbians, intersex- & trans people" is often used to describe the groups invited to a certain event or location. Often with * placed after the T and/or I, sometimes without mentioning intersex as "FLT". Ideally means "everyone except non-intersex cis men", but since these evolved from women-only spaces, results vary and the reality can be exlusive of some trans and intersex people.
• Frann - Mx., but largely unknown
• FtM (FzM - Frau zu Mann) - female-to-male, trans man

G

• Geburtsgeschlecht - often short for sex/gender assigned at birth (bei Geburt zugewiesenes Geschlecht), but literally means something like "sex(/gender) at birth" so many aren't happy with that term
• genderfluid - genderfluid
• genderqueer - genderqueer
• Geschlecht, Gender - gender/sex ("Geschlecht" can be used for both "gender" and "sex", using "gender" as an anglicism is rather rare. Some use it to make sure everyone knows they are not talking about a biological reality. Others oppose it for that very reason, because using "Gender" implies there is also such a thing as biological "sex", while "Geschlecht" is ambiguous and can be filled with the preferred meaning.)
• Geschlechtsidentität - gender identity
• geschlechtslos - genderless, agender, ungendered
• geschlechtsneutral - gender neutral, neutrois

H

• hän/sir…/sim/sin - gender-neutral pronoun
• Herm*, Hermaphrodit - a term some intersex people reclaim for themselves
• Hormontherapie - hormone replacement therapy

I

• inter, inter*, intersex - intersex
• Intergeschlechtlichkeit, Intersexualität - intersexuality

K

• Komplementärgender, Komplementärgeschlecht - the opposite of Spiegelgeschlecht: a gender that complements that of people you interact with or people you value

M

• männlich - male
• Mastek, Mastektomie - top surgery, mastectomy
• Mau - Mx., largely unknown, also sounds like meow, which some dislike.
• MtF (MzF - Mann zu Frau) - male-to-female, trans woman

N

• nichtbinär, nicht-binär, nonbinär, non-binär - nonbinary
• nibi, Nibi - nonbinary, nonbinary person
• nin/nims/nim/nin - gender-neutral pronoun

O

• Östro, Östrogen - estrogen
• sich outen, geoutet sein - to come out, to be out

P

• Packer - packer
• per/pers/per/per - gender-neutral pronoun

Q

• queer - queer, but only the reclaimed meaning made it to German, so it is often used as an umbrella term for LGBTIQA+ without doing harm.

S

• sier, si*er, si:er - gender-neutral pronoun
• Spiegelgender, Spiegelgeschlecht - mirror gender, a gender that mirrors that of people around you or people you value
• Stuffer - packer

T

• Tankel - gender neutral version of aunt/uncle (Tante/Onkel), quite unknown
• Testo, Testosteron - T, testosterone
• trans - trans
• trans* - originally used to show that one is not a transmedicalist, that one doesn't view ones transness in a medical/pathologizing/authoritarian way. More popular as self identification now, often seen in combinations such as Trans*Mann, trans* Frau, nichtbinär trans*, Trans*feindlichkeit. Sometimes understood to mean nonbinary and non-normative trans people only.
• Transfeindlichkeit - trans antagonism, trans hate (transphobia without the ableist "-phobia" part)
• Transfrau - trans woman, some write it as trans Frau, Trans-Frau, trans* Frau, Trans*Frau
• transgender, transgeschlechtlich - transgender, usually not perceived as pathologizing, but still close to medical language, so some prefer trans/trans*
• Transidentität, Transsexualität - transgenderism, transsexuality
• transident - transgender, often seen as pathologizing because it roots from gender identity disorder
• Transition, transitionieren - transition, to transition
• Transjunge - trans boy, also used by adult transmasculine people who do not identify with patriarchal masculinity
• Transmann - trans man, some write it as trans Mann, Trans-Mann, trans* Mann, Trans*Mann
• Transphobie - transphobia
• transsexuell - transsexual (with the same connotations as in English)

W

• weder-noch - neither-nor, nonbinary
• weiblich - female

X

• xier/xies…/xiem/xien - gender-neutral pronoun

Z

• zugewiesenes Geschlecht - can mean both the gender assigned at birth and the gender one is read as, but usually means the former
• zwischendrin, Zwischendrinchen - inbetween, inbetween person (diminuitive). Mostly used by intersex people.
• zwischengeschlechtlich - intersex

External Links

• Nichtbinär-Wiki
  • Liste Nichtbinärer Identitäten (list of nonbinary identities)
  • Nichtbinäre Pronomen (nonbinary pronouns)
  • Nichtbinäre Wörter (nonbinary words)
  • Übersicht A_sexualität und A_romantik
• Nicht-binäre Geschlechtsidentitäten (nonbinary gender identities) at Geschlechtsneutral
• Liste von Geschlechtern (list of genders) at gaenseblumenblog
• nonbinarytransgermany.tumblr.com, with more language and terminology info
• NBForum
• queerplacesforgermanspeakers.tumblr.com, see also their language and terminology pages
• germanaroaces.tumblr.com

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