Identity Vocabulary: Nonbinary Edition

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The nonbinary community is a branch of the trans community that is often less known among members of the queer community. Here’s a few of the most common nonbinary identities:

1. Nonbinary/Genderqueer
(noun)

1. An umbrella term for identities that include any gender outside of strictly or completely Male or Female.
2. A less specific gender identity other than Male or Female.

Nonbinary and Genderqueer are both umbrella terms for people who identify as not strictly Male or Female. A Nonbinary or Genderqueer person might feel both Male and Female, neither Male or Female, partially Male, partially Female, etc. Other slang words for Nonbinary are nb and enby.

2. Agender
(noun)

1. An identity that describes someone without gender or who does not relate to either binary gender.

Agender people do not identify with being Male or Female in any amount whatsoever. Agender people often use the They/Them pronoun set.

3. Androgyne/Bigender
(noun)

1. An identity that describes someone who identifies with both Male and Female genders. They do not necessarily identify with both equally, but always identify with both and only Male and Female.

Androgyne and Bigender people identify with both of the binary genders. They might relate to both equally, or might favor one over the other. Androgyne and Bigender people often use the They/Them set of pronouns, both He/Him and She/Her sets, or They/Them, He/Him, and She/Her sets.

4. DemiMale/DemiBoy/DemiMan/DemiGuy, etc.
(noun)

1. An identity that describes someone who identifies with both Male and Agender genders. They do not necessarily identify with both equally, but always identify with both and only Male and Agender.

DemiMales partially identify with being Male, and partially identify with being Agender. They might relate to both equally, or might favor one over the other. DemiMales often use the The/Them and He/Him pronoun sets.

5. DemiFemale/DemiGirl/DemiWoman/DemiGal, etc.
(noun)

1. An identity that describes someone who identifies with both Female and Agender genders. They do not necessarily identify with both equally, but always identify with both and only Female and Agender.

DemiFemales partially identify with being Female, and partially identify with being Agender. They might relate to both equally, or might favor one over the other. DemiFemales often use the The/Them and She/Her pronoun sets.

6. Genderfluid
(noun)

1. An identity that describes someone whose gender changes over time. They don’t necessarily experience all genders the same amount or spend the same amount of time as every gender, but experience all genders at different times.

A common misconception is that Genderfluid is a gender in and of itself. However, Genderfluid is not actually a gender but rather a descriptor to use instead of a gender, as someone who is Genderfluid has a gender that changes over time.

In other words, Genderfluid isn’t a standalone gender. Genderfluid is a label that describes a gender that changes over time. As an example, a Genderfluid person might feel Female one day, then Male another day, then Agender the day after that. Genderfluid people often use the They/Them pronoun set, or all of the They/Them, He/Him, and She/Her sets.

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Please keep in mind that this is not an exhaustive list. There are many other less common and more specific Nonbinary identities. These are just some of the most common ones.

The pronouns listed here for each gender identity are a generalization. Many nonbinary people use nonstandard pronouns or neopronouns, such as the Xe/Xem or Ze/Hir sets. (As always with pronouns, the best way to find out the pronoun set a person uses is just to ask.)

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about the Author

Calistos “Cal” Nicolas Dupraw is a 19-year-old Atheistic Satanist, Transmasc Genderflux, Omnisexual, Panromantic individual born and raised in Bakersfield, California. They have been involved in the queer community from a very early age through family, friends, school, and online communities, and started attending The Center for Sexuality and Gender Diversity in January 2019. Their hobbies include table top role playing games (TTRPGs), cosplay, drawing, leather working, participation in The Society for Creative Anachronism (The SCA), fashions, learning, character design, and world building.