The following terminology is helpful to understand when working with the TGNC community.

Affirmed female

Identifying as someone who was assigned male at birth but identifies as female.

Affirmed male

Identifying as someone who was assigned female at birth but identifies as male.

Bottom Surgery

A colloquial term used within the TGNC community to describe surgeries focused on primary sexual characteristics (i.e., external and internal genitalia).

Feminizing treatments

Strategies (whether aesthetic, medical or surgical) that produce physical changes typically defined as feminine.

Gender-confirming surgery

Surgical procedures intended to alter primary and/or secondary sex characteristics to affirm a person’s experienced gender identity; sometimes referred to as sex reassignment surgery.

Gender-affirming

Any treatment with the goal of reducing symptoms of gender dysphoria; may include psychotherapeutic, medical, or surgical treatments; aims to affirm the gender as stated by the patient.

Gender Dysphoria

(1) Distress caused by the discrepancy between one’s experienced/expressed gender and one’s assigned gender and/or primary or secondary sex characteristics; (2) a diagnostic category in DSM–5, with specific diagnoses defined by age-group-specific sets of criteria.

Gender Identity

One’s identity as belonging or not belonging to a particular gender, whether male, female or a non-binary alternative.

Genderqueer

An identity label used by some individuals whose experienced and/or expressed gender does not conform to the male/female binary or who reject the gender binary.

Hormone Treatment

Prescribing of hormones (typically estrogen or testosterone) to TGNC patients for the purpose of gender transition.

Intersex

A subset of the somatic conditions known as disorders of sex development in which chromosomal sex is inconsistent with genital sex, or in which the genital or gonadal sex is not classifiable as either male or female.

LGB

Lesbian, gay, and bisexual

Man of Transgender Experience

A progressive way of identifying someone who was assigned female at birth but identifies as male.

Masculinizing treatments

Describes strategies (whether aesthetic, medical or surgical) that produce physical changes typically defined as feminine.

Metoidioplasty

A bottom surgery which creates a phallus from clitoral tissue for men of transgender experience.

Phalloplasty

A bottom surgery that creates a neo-phallus for men of transgender experience.

Sex

A person’s categorization as biologically male or female, usually on a genital or gonadal basis.

Sexual Orientation

An individual definition in that it is truly distinct from gender identity. It can be gay, bisexual, lesbian, straight or other. Sexual orientation is defined by the patient and not by the clinician.

Top Surgery

A colloquial term used in the TGNC community to describe either mastectomy or breast augmentation.

Transphobia

An umbrella term referring to feelings, ideas, or actions motivated by ignorance, dislike, prejudice, or even hatred towards the TGNC people.

Transsexualism

(1) A subset of transgender individuals who desire to modify, or have modified, their bodies through hormones or surgery to be more congruent with their experienced gender; (2) consider by some to by pejorative and/or out-of-date.

Woman of Transgender Experience

A progressive way of identifying someone who was assigned male at birth but identifies as female.

WPATH

The World Professional Associations of Transgender Health; a large multi-disciplinary organization that makes recommendations for the standards of care for TGNC patients.

Vaginoplasty

A bottom surgery that creates a neo-vagina for women of transgender experience.