Resources for Working with Vulnerable Populations
Key Terms
- Transgender – People whose gender identity differs from social and cultural assumptions connected to their sex assigned at birth. The term is not indicative of external appearance (e.g. a person’s clothing, haircut, body language, voice, etc.), sexual orientation, or how one is perceived in daily life. In this document, the term “transgender” is inclusive of nonbinary, gender diverse, and gender nonconforming individuals.
Note that the term does not have an ‘ed’ at the end. The term transgendered should be avoided.
- Deadname – How some transgender people refer to their given name at birth. To “deadname” someone is to refer to them by their birth name instead of their correct name.
- Misgender – Referring to or addressing someone using pronouns that do not correctly reflect the gender with which the person identifies.
- Pronouns – The third person personal pronouns (such as he/him, she/her and they/them) that a person goes by.
- Trans Man – A man who was assigned a female sex at birth.
- Trans Woman – A woman who was assigned a male sex at birth.