Knowing what bisexuality means can be one of the most important things in the modern world. This is what it is, and how to understand it!
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Kevin
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February 16, 2022
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Common Questions
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Sexuality is one of the most defining features of a person in the modern world. While the concept of romance and gender identity that doesn’t line up with “standard” heterosexuality is in no way new, it has recently become a much more prominent part of western culture as a whole. Over the past several decades, understanding people with sexual orientation and romantic attraction that isn’t heterosexual has become one of the most important discussion topics.Â
It is essential to understand for virtually everyone living in the contemporary world. Of the countless sexualities today, one of the most common is bisexuality. It is statistically one of the most prevalent sexual identities people have in the modern world. This is what bisexual means, how it is different from other sexualities, and the statistics of contemporary sexuality.
What Does Bisexual Mean?Â
Bisexual people experience sexual attraction to people of their own sexual identity, as well as those of the opposite sex. Fundamentally, bisexual people often experience equal attraction to both sexes or at least experience some noted attraction to both sexes. Bisexual men and bisexual women as often referred to in the shortened term “bi,” which is shorter and easier to say.Â
Bisexuality is a common sexuality amongst both males and females, and in most cases, it details the romantic and sexual behavior they feel and experience. One common misnomer is that bisexuals only experience same-sex attraction. Still, the reality is that these people genuinely do experience attraction to all kinds of different people, including both sexes.Â
As the world has become more and more progressive, especially in the United States, bisexual people are becoming more and more accepted. In the LGBTQ acronym, the B stands for bisexuality. It was one of the first and most prominent sexualities to be openly discussed in the 1990s and throughout the rest of the modern sexual revolution.Â
Biphobia and bisexual erasure are still significant problems in the world today. However, thanks to activists and people dealing with real world problems, bisexual people are more represented today than they have been for thousands of years.
How Is Bisexuality Different From Other Sexualities?
To people unfamiliar with sexuality in general, it can occasionally be challenging to tell the differences between bisexuality and other sexualities. However, the reality is that the unique identity of people who aren’t purely heterosexual is easy to understand once you’ve taken the time to learn about the world of sexuality and gender. Here is how bisexuality differs from some other common sexualities and gender identities.
Gay and Lesbian
While some people believe that gay and lesbian people fall under the bisexual umbrella or vice versa, the reality is that these are two entirely different sexualities. Bisexual folks tend to experience attraction and romantic connection with people of both their sexuality and the opposite sexuality. In most cases, a person who is gay or lesbian experiences sole attraction to someone of their own sexual and own gender identity.
Pansexual
Pansexual people don’t conform to the gender binary in the way that they are attracted to people. This term can occasionally replace the word bisexual because it promotes that non-binary stance in gender and sexuality. A nonbinary person who doesn’t conform to being male or female typically falls into this category. In most cases, bisexuality primarily focuses on attraction to just males or females, but pansexuality involves an interest in all people, genders, and sexualities.Â
Queer
Queer is a sexuality and gender identity that doesn’t completely conform to any standard sexualities or gender identities. In most cases, it is an umbrella term to allow the people who don’t have the same specific feelings as others to label themselves and communicate who they are. Sometimes, people feel different things from people in various communities but still need a term they can identify with.Â
While bisexuality is generally well defined, the term queer incorporates people who don’t strictly identify with the guidelines of another sexuality. This term is a reclaimed word, which means that it may be offensive in some cases. However, it has been accepted into many LGBTQ communities as a helpful label and term in the modern world. Always be careful and intentional with all of the words you use to relate and describe people, especially when it’s something as essential as their sexual and gender identity!Â
The Statistics of Bisexuality
In the modern world of sexuality and gender, many bisexual people have made it apparent that bisexuality is one of the most common sexualities in the world. While straight communities are still by far the most common, in the LGBTQ community, bisexuals are the most common. For example, bisexuals make up 52% of the LGB community, compared to 31% being gay men and 17% being lesbians.Â
According to the New York Times, 1.5% of human females in America identify as bisexual, compared to 1.7% of human males. These may seem like relatively small numbers, but in the context of the world, this is still a group of people that makes up tens to hundreds of millions of people. Knowing who these people are and what they know about themselves is critical to living in a cohesive and benevolent way in the world.
Conclusion
Understanding essential words and terms are one of the most important ways to increase your communication abilities in the modern world. The better you are at communicating, the better off you will be, no matter what your professional field or interests might be! That’s why here at The Word Counter, we’ve made it our priority to make communication as easy and effective as possible for everyone.Â
If you’re ever unsure of what a word or term means, take a look at our blog — we’re constantly adding new articles and pages to help provide clarity and effectiveness to your communication. Your words are what will elevate you to greatness in your field, and knowing how to use language to your benefit can make fundamental changes in your own quality of life. If you want to expand your communication ability, take a look around our blog and website — we’re sure that you’ll find something valuable!Â
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