Omnisexual

Attraction to people of all genders, similar to pansexual, but with the distinction that gender does play a role in the experience of attraction.

Definition

Attraction to people of all genders, similar to pansexual, but with the distinction that gender does play a role in the experience of attraction - the person is aware of and attracted to different genders, rather than being gender-blind.

Etymology

Latin omni- (all) + sexual.

History

Emerged in online LGBTQ+ communities in the 2000s-2010s to describe attraction to all genders where gender is a recognized, meaningful part of the attraction experience (as opposed to pansexuality's gender-blind framing).

Common myths

  • "Omnisexual and pansexual are the same thing." Both describe attraction to all genders, but omnisexual explicitly acknowledges that gender matters to the experience of attraction. Pansexual describes gender-blind attraction.
  • "Omnisexual is just a trendy new word for bisexual." Omnisexual, bisexual, and pansexual are distinct, overlapping orientations - each describes a different relationship to gender in attraction.