gender
Definition
Gender is the range of characteristics pertaining to, and differentiating between, masculinity and femininity. It includes personal identity and social roles based on those characteristics, often influenced by societal norms and individual experiences.
Analogy
Thinking of gender as a spectrum is like considering the variety of colors produced by blending primary colors; just as red and blue blend into an array of purples, individual experiences and societal influences blend to form a spectrum of gender identities beyond just male or female.
Related terms
Gender Identity: The personal sense of one's own gender, which can correspond with or differ from the sex assigned at birth.
Gender Roles: The behaviors, tasks, and responsibilities that a society considers appropriate for men, women, and other gender identities.
Gender Expression: The external display of one's gender identity through clothing, behavior, hairstyle, voice, body characteristics, etc., which may or may not conform to socially defined behaviors and characteristics typically associated with being either masculine or feminine.
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