It can be hard to keep up with all the lingo. If you think “protect the dolls” means you should put your Barbies in little suits of armour, or if you thought T was just a cuppa, step right in and let us give you an introduction to some trans terms. Use them wisely and nicely, or don’t use them at all.

Egg
An egg is generally someone who hasn’t realised that they are trans, denies they are trans, or hasn’t come out yet. A trans person might say “back when I was an egg” or “she finally hatched”.

Doll
If you don’t know this one by now, where have you been? The dolls were literally women of the year last year! The dolls are trans women. While originally meaning a particular type of hyperfeminine trans woman, the term is more inclusive now, often being used to refer to transfeminine people in general.

Chaser
A trans chaser, often shortened to just chaser, is someone who is attracted to or seeks out trans people, generally in a sort of fetishistic way. There is a focus on the sexual aspect, reducing the trans person to an object, and where their transness is the main attraction. The term can be used for other types of chasers; for example, someone can be a bear chaser and specifically be seeking men in the bear community, but it is commonly used to refer to trans chasers.

T4T
T4T = Trans for trans. The term describes trans-on-trans sexual or romantic relationships, where trans people are dating, hooking up with, or loving other trans people. How is this different to chasing? Well, it depends on the intention. Trans people can be chasers, too, but a trans person looking for someone with shared experiences is entirely different to fetishising them.

Enby
Enby is a playful term stemming from the non-binary acronym. NB becomes enby. Sound it out.

Passing
To pass is to be seen as a particular gender. When a trans man is being perceived in public as a man, he is ‘passing’. This term can become problematic when passing is viewed as a goal placed upon a person by others. This way, not passing can be seen as failing.

When a trans person has a personal goal of passing, this is valid, but to think that passing is essential or superior is where it becomes an issue. Unfortunately, passing is also heavily linked to safety in society, and trans people who pass are generally in less danger of transphobic discrimination and violence.

Stealth
Being ‘stealth’ is when a trans person either chooses to or has to keep their trans identity private. This is generally due to the discrimination that affects trans people. Previously, this was the only way that people were able to transition.

Julia Serano, who coined many queer and trans terms, discussed the birth of trans healthcare in the US in her book Whipping Girl. She explored how trans people who sought gender-affirming care were allowed by their doctors to transition based on their perceived likelihood of passing. They had to agree to leave their whole lives behind and go stealth in their new life.

HRT
HRT is an acronym which stands for hormone replacement therapy, meaning when someone takes hormones that their body does not produce, or does not produce enough of.

Some trans people take HRT as part of their transition to achieve desired effects and relieve dysphoria. Cis people get HRT too, for example, when cis women go through menopause, or a cis man has naturally low testosterone levels.

T
Not just a lovely cuppa. Not just juicy details. This term also refers to testosterone. Trans masculine people will often take testosterone, or boy juice, to masculinise their body and voice.

Boy Juice
As mentioned above, boy juice can also mean testosterone.

E
E stands for estrogen. Trans women will often take E to feminise their bodies.

Girl Juice
Similar to boy juice, girl juice can also me estrogen.

FFS
In this instance, it is not ‘for f*ck’s sake’, it is facial feminisation surgery. Some trans feminine people get FFS to feminise their facial structure and alleviate dysphoria.

Tranniversary
A tranniversary is a time to celebrate! This marks how many months or years it has been since a trans person’s milestone in their journey. Some people will consider this from the day that they came out, or the day they began their medical transition, or whatever day is important to them.

Transbian
A simple, functional, beautiful portmanteau here: a transbian is a trans person who is a lesbian, a trans lesbian.

Being ma’amed
Getting called ma’am, for example, “I was ma’amed at the restaurant today”.

Getting sirred
Similar to being ma’amed, to get ‘sirred’ is to be called sir by a stranger, for example, “I got sirred buying pickles for my girlfriend today.”

Transmasculine/trans masc
These terms describe someone who is transgender, generally masculine, and usually AFAB (assigned female at birth). It is an umbrella term that includes trans men, non-binary people who are masculine in their gender expression, and fluid or complex identities.

Transfeminine/trans femme
These terms describe someone who is transgender, generally feminine, and usually AMAB (assigned male at birth). It is an umbrella term that includes trans women, non-binary people who are feminine in their gender expression, and fluid or complex identities.

Binder
Trans mascs who have not had top surgery will sometimes bind their chest with a garment called a binder. It flattens their chest for a more masculine silhouette.

Packer/packing
Another gender-affirming item that trans masculine people can wear is a packer. You’ve heard of guys shoving socks down their jocks to have a bigger bulge, and this is pretty much the same thing, though packers can range from a humble and functional sock to an expensive and realistic prosthetic phallus.

Tucking
This is a thing that some transfeminine people do, and you might have learned about it from RuPaul’s Drag Race.

Gaff
Not just where you live, a gaff can also refer to a device for tucking.

Transmisogyny
A term coined in the aforementioned 2007 classic Whipping Girl by Julia Serano, it’s the intersection of transphobia and misogyny experienced by trans women, drag queens, and even cis women.

Transmisogynoir
Misogynoir was coined in 2008 by black feminist writer Moya Bailey, inclusive of black trans women. Transmisogynoir adds to this and describes the intersection of transphobia, sexism, and racism.

Cissexism
Just like sexism surrounds the fallacy that men are superior to women, cissexism is the concept that being cis is somehow superior to being trans and describes the privilege experienced by cis people. 

Gender-affirming care
This refers to all sorts of care, including when trans people take HRT, but also when cis people get gender-affirming care. This includes when cis men go on testosterone to raise their levels, which they sometimes call TRT, and even hair transplants.

This was just a little taste of some contemporary trans terms. That’s the tea, henny, but just a sip. For a look at some reclaimed terms, click here.