Almost all glossaries of sexual terms have a single definition for each term -- the one preferred by the compiler.
This list is different. It describes the various meanings assigned to sexual
terms by various religious, therapeutic and other groups.
In most cases, religious
liberals, gays, lesbians, human sexuality researchers, the medical profession,
biologists, therapists, etc. have reached a joint consensus on the meaning of most sexual terms.
However, many religious conservatives assign unique and different meanings to some sexual
terms. This difference in definitions can greatly complicate attempts at
dialogue. Perhaps that is why the differences exist. The person who defines the terms has already almost won the debate.
Consider two examples:
When discussing homosexual, bisexual, or heterosexual feelings of attraction, religious conservatives often use the term "preference." This fits well into the conservative Christian concept that homosexuals merely prefer to have sex with a person of the same gender. This creates implies that a homosexual can easily develop feelings of attraction to members of the opposite sex instead, and thus can behave as a heterosexual. All or essentially all other groups use "orientation" as in "homosexual orientation" or "sexual orientation." This implies that one's feeling of attraction -- whether one is a homosexual, bisexual or heterosexual -- is always or almost always fixed.
Religious conservatives often use the term "homosexual lifestyle" or "gay lifestyle." Other lifestyles, like whether to live in the country or city or suburb, whether to be self employed or work for a company; whether to rent an apartment or buy a house, are all choices that people make for themselves. This again fits well into the conservative Christian concept that homosexuals choose to adopt the homosexual lifestyle and can change at any time. All or essentially all other groups use "orientation" in place of "lifestyle." Again, this implies that homosexuals are attracted only to members of the same sex, and are stuck with these feelings; a heterosexual is stuck with attraction to the other sex; bisexuals have no option but to be attracted to both men and women. As Woody Allen said: "Bisexuality immediately doubles your chances for a date on Saturday night."
Some of the definitions below are somewhat simplified and are intended for a
general audience. Full medical definitions are often more complex, specific, and
less useful to the general public.
Terms related to adults or older youths sexually attracted to young persons:
Scattered throughout the following three lists are terms that refer to adults or older adolescents havinga sexual attraction towards young persons. The terms cover different age ranges of the young person:
Infantophilia: infants and toddlers ages birth to 3 years-of-age.
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