Spectrasexual

Sexual and/or romantic attraction to multiple or varied genders - framed as attraction across a spectrum of genders and sexes, including non-binary and intersex people.

Definition

Sexual and/or romantic attraction to multiple or varied genders - but specifically framed as attraction across a spectrum of genders and sexes, including non-binary people and intersex people. Sometimes used to describe attraction that is broad but not fully pansexual (not necessarily gender-blind).

Flag

Five horizontal stripes.

Etymology

Latin spectrum (range, appearance) + sexual. Coined in online LGBTQ+ communities in the 2010s.

History

Emerged from Tumblr and online plurisexual community spaces in the early 2010s as part of the proliferation of M-spec (multi-gender-attracted) identity vocabulary. Placed within the M-spec/plurisexual family alongside bisexual, pansexual, omnisexual, and polysexual.

Common myths

  • "Spectrasexual is just bisexual." Spectrasexual specifically frames attraction as crossing a spectrum of genders and sexes - including intersex people and all non-binary genders.
  • "All these M-spec terms are unnecessary." Different M-spec labels capture meaningfully different relationships to gender in attraction.