Gay words have meaning!

One of the most prominent English dictionaries in the world added 18 new LGBTIQ+ related words in 2022.

Despite popular opinion, dictionaries around the world don’t make up words. They simply reflect language as a ‘living’ entity. One of the biggest myths relates to how words are entered into a dictionary; a word doesn’t become a “real word” until it’s added to the dictionary. It’s actually the other way around; Words are added to the dictionary because they’re real—because real people in the real world use them.

One of the words added in 2022 is the very acronym LGBTQ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer)

Below are some more of the new LGBTIQ+ words added in 2022.

Anti-gay and Anti-homosexual

Several new Anti- prefixed words were added to the Oxford dictionary.

2022 saw a rise in violence and restrictions against the LGBTQ community, so it’s no surprise that these anti-gay and anti-homosexual were among some of the ‘anti’ words added to the dictionary.

Brotherboy and Sistergirl

Two new terms bring in Australian Aboriginal identities. Defining brotherboy as “a person registered as female at birth who identifies with or presents a masculine gender expression, typically through behaviours, occupations, modes of dress, etc., that are culturally associated with masculinity,” while sistergirl means assigned male at birth but presents in ways seen as feminine.

Enby

A colloquial term used for a non-binary person, although first seen in 2013, has now been added to the dictionary.

Gender-affirming

One of four new sub-entries for the noun gender; Gender-affirming is defined as an adjective “that validates or confirms a person’s gender.” It also states something gender-affirming “enables a person, especially a transgender person, to live according to their gender identity.”

Multisexual

This new entry is defined as “characterised by sexual or romantic attraction to, or sexual activity with, people of different sexes or gender identities; (now) spec. having any of various sexual orientations of this type, such as bisexual, pansexual, or polysexual.”

Top and Bottom have new meanings!

Top and bottom have over a dozen meanings each in their respective entries, but the LGBTIQ+ community can claim their own now.

The first intransitive verb sense of bottom added to the dictionary is now “to take the role of the more submissive partner in bondage, domination, or sadomasochism”, and the second is “originally and chiefly among gay men: to be the partner who is penetrated in (esp. anal) sex.”

For top, multiple new definitions were also added, including “to take a dominant role over (one’s partner) in bondage, domination, or sadomasochism” and “to be the partner who penetrates the other in sex between men (often with the implication of being the more dominant or active partner).”  

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