Gay, Defined

The meaning gay has changed tremendously over time. In the past, the term gay was not used as frequently and as freely as it is used today. The term originated from the Old French and dates back to the 1600s, “Deriving ultimately from Germanic source” (Wikipedia). The word means “Joyful, carefree, bright and showy” (Wikipedia). Gay also means to be “Addicted to social pleasure and dissipations,” as a noun “of a person:

The word “gay” has gone through drastic changes. Traditionally, it was a positive term that meant to be “happily excited” or “jolly” (Merriam Webster, “Gay”). It was used regularly to express one’s feelings about life. Today, it has a far different meaning. Now people use the word gay to label homosexuals, those with feminine qualities, or those who do something thought to be outside of the norm for their gender. “Being gay” went from expressing someone’s happiness to describing his sexual preference. The definition of gay has changed so much that its original meaning has become archaic and lost to the times.

Because language is relative/arbitrary, queer has various meanings, depending on evolution and history and also personal attributions. Queer has been used as an adjective to mean strange, questionable, or to not feel right, a pejorative against queer individuals, an identity relating to a person who does not conform to a normative sexual orientation or gender identity, a sexual orientation, and as a gender identity (such as genderqueer). However, there is an overlooked use of the word: queer is also a verb. What does it mean to queer something? There was a time when that phrase meant “to mess it up,” as in queering a

Homosexuality: Homosexuality is sexual exchanges between members of the same sex which maybe voluntary or involuntary. Many men and women are lured into traps that are set by more experienced inmates.

2. What is homophobia? - The term homophobia translates to fear of homosexuality. This fear can manifest in many forms; it can include violence, harassment, exclusion, or discomfort.

Gays/lesbians are people who prefer same sex relationships. During the time period or even before then, gays weren’t widely accepted. A lot of people didn’t accept gays therefore men had to hide their insecurities every time in fear that they’d be ostracized. Because of the baby boomers, support of gays right increased throughout the years as their biggest reason was because they now know someone who is gay or lesbian, closely followed by a belief that they have become more open to the idea or because they have gotten older.

Homosexuality is defined or characterized as attraction towards the same gender either male or female. It came from the Greek language, where “homo” means the same or similar, hence referring to the attraction between two beings of the same sex. Homosexuality is also referred as a clinical term. Most male homosexuals generally prefer to be called "gay men" and most homosexual women generally prefer to be called "lesbians." Homosexuality is one of the three main categories of sexual orientation, alongside bisexual and heterosexual. The longstanding consensus of the behavioral and social sciences and the health and mental health professions is that homosexuality is an example of normal and positive variation in human sexual

Originating all the way back to the 12th century of England, “gay” meant happy, carefree or joyful. Fast forward to the 21th century and the definition was altered to mean homosexuals and dumb

Tony E. Adams defines queer as, “actions that rebel against—heterosexual—heteronormative—expectations of intimate relationships including biases against being single, aspirations for marriage, norms about

What is homosexuality? Homosexuality is the sexual or romantic attraction between persons of the same gender. Nobody knows when the homosexuality started, but it is been there since a long years ago. Homosexual people are been having hard days through the years, because religions. Every year are more states around the world that are giving the same right to the homosexuals, and giving them opportunities to normal life. Discrimination against homosexual are one of the principal problems around the world, there are more problems about gay bullying, homophobia and discrimination. June 12, 2016 is named the worst massacre in the United States, because around 50 persons were killed in the club of Orlando, Florida. Homosexuality is the attraction

The Oxford Dictionary defines the word “gay” as 1. Homosexual and 2. Foolish, stupid, or unimpressive (“Gay”). The LGBT+ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and more) community faces harassment and oppression on a daily basis. One of the biggest struggles is discrimination-- such as the word “gay” being defined as “stupid”.

“gay” is the ache in your chest as you remember your parents explaining “boys cannot like other boys.”

Homosexual, gay, queer, faggot, fairy, queen, dyke, all words to describe an individual with same sex proclivities. To be a gay in the 1950s and 1960s was to be asking for a death wish. Gay individuals in America were subjected to an anti-homosexual legal system that denied these individuals with their basic rights and freedoms. In 1952, Homosexuality was considered a mental disorder by the American Psychistric Association in the Diagnostic and Statistic Manual. Communities were often the subject to the eradication of homosexuals from neighborhoods, parks, bars, and beaches. Local and State governments quickly organized and banned the wearing of opposite gender clothing with universities expelling professors

Gay became a word in the twelfth century in England. Again the original meaning behind gay was, something “joyful” or “full of mirth.” Flash forward to five centuries later, in the 17th century, gay refered to being good or bad. In the Oxford dictionary during the 17th century gay meant “addicted to pleasures and dissipations. Often euphemistically: Of loose and immoral life”.

The oldest English meaning of the word is from the 1500’s from Scotland. Originally the word meant “strange, odd, peculiar, or eccentric in regard to one's appearance” (Press 1014). Queer could also be used to describe someone of questionable character. Also during the 1500’s, queer could mean “bad or worthless” (Press 1014). From the start queer was meant to be a word used to