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Glite Dictionary
⚧️ Both male and female 🚻 Between sexes
intersexual

intersexual

8.6
Having body parts or traits of both male and female
  • adjective
  • /ˌɪntərˈsɛkʃuəl/
translation icon : intersexual
  • Many intersexual children may struggle with feelings of confusion regarding their gender identity during puberty.
  • an intersexual child

Examples

  • The experiences of intersexual people can vary greatly, as their characteristics may not fit typical male or female categories.

  • In this paper, we will focus on establishing how often intersexual conditions occur and what conditions should be considered intersexual.

    Academic text (2002)

  • In this paper, we will focus on establishing how often intersexual conditions occur and what conditions should be considered intersexual.

    Academic text (2002)

  • Both the phenotype and the genotype are intersexual.

    Academic text (2002)

  • We've got either some sort of viral infectious intersexual thing happening here or we've got strong components having nothing to do with the biology.

  • Many intersexual individuals often face unique challenges in understanding their identity and relationships.

Synonyms

androgynous
vsintersexual
  • Specialized
1 8.4

Having both male and female sex parts on one body

describes traits that are intermediate rather than having both organs
epicene
vsintersexual
9.9

Having a style that is not clearly male or female

describes biological traits that are intermediate rather than just appearance

Surface Forms

intersexual positive

Morphology

intersexual = sexual (transparent) = inter + sex + ual

The adjective is formed by prefixing 'inter-' (between) to 'sexual', so the meaning is directly 'between/among sexes' and is straightforward for learners.

Etymology

Intersexual starts with inter- meaning 'between', as in international, and ends with sexual from 'sex'. It describes bodies that have features of both male and female, so it is 'between the sexes'.