The terminology surrounding same-sex relationships is complex and ever-changing. There are some terms that are useful to define.
Straight, Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual
Straight is a word used to describe someone who is romantically attracted to someone of the opposite sex.
Lesbian refers to a woman who can be romantically attracted to other women.
Gay usually refers to a man who can be romantically attracted to other men, but it can also be used to refer to someone who can be romantically attracted to someone of the same sex, covering both gay men and lesbians. It is in this second sense that I use in these pages.
Bisexual refers to someone who can be romantically attracted to either sex.
Sometimes lesbian, gay, and bisexual are referred to using the acronym LGB.
You have probably also heard the words transgender or trans, which are to do with gender identity. Although trans issues are closely related to LGB issues, they are not covered by these pages. You might have seen the acronym LGBT, which is used to include trans issues alongside LGB issues.
Love and Relationships
Love and relationship are two of the most difficult words in the English language, because they both have many meanings. The primary use of the word love in this booklet is referring to the kind of love that exists between a husband and wife — spousal love —rather than the love that exists between friends, or one of the many other types of love, but love is used to refer to the other sorts of love too. I hope that the context makes this clear. Similarly, relationship refers to the sort of relationship that exists between a husband and wife.
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