"Sex is the trait that determines whether a sexually reproducing organism produces male or female gametes."
The biological characteristics that determine male and female.
Biological sex: Refers to the anatomical, physiological, and genetic characteristics that define males and females.
Gender identity: A person's personal and internal sense of being male or female, both, or neither.
Gender expression: Refers to the way in which an individual expresses their gender to the world through clothing, behavior, and appearance.
Sexual orientation: An individual's enduring pattern of emotional, romantic, and sexual attraction to men, women, both genders, or neither.
Intersex: A term used to describe individuals born with physical sex characteristics that do not fit typical male or female categories.
Gender roles: The set of behaviors, attitudes, and values considered appropriate for a particular gender in a given society.
Queer theory: An academic field that challenges conventional notions of gender and sexuality, and explores alternative expressions of gender and sexuality.
LGBTQIA+: An acronym that stands for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer/questioning, intersex, and asexual.
Transgender: A term used to describe individuals whose gender identity differs from the sex assigned at birth.
Homophobia: Refers to negative attitudes and prejudices towards individuals who are attracted to the same sex.
Heteronormativity: A term used to describe the societal expectation that heterosexuality is the default and only norm.
Sexism: The systematic oppression of individuals based on their gender.
Bisexuality: Sexual attraction to both men and women.
Pansexuality: The attraction to individuals regardless of their gender identity or biological sex.
Asexuality: A lack of sexual attraction to any gender.
Masculinity: A set of traits or characteristics that are traditionally associated with men.
Femininity: A set of traits or characteristics that are traditionally associated with women.
Gender dysphoria: The discomfort or distress experienced by individuals whose gender identity differs from their biological sex.
Gender reassignment surgery: A surgical procedure that alters the physical traits of an individual's biological sex to align with their gender identity.
Intersectionality: The recognition of the multiple and interconnected ways in which individuals experience oppression based on their social identities, including gender, race, sexuality, and class.
Male: Referring to individuals assigned male at birth and identifying as such.
Female: Referring to individuals assigned female at birth and identifying as such.
Intersex: Referring to individuals born with variations in sex characteristics that do not fit typical male or female classifications.
Transgender: Referring to individuals whose gender identity does not match the sex they were assigned at birth.
Cisgender: Referring to individuals whose gender identity matches the sex they were assigned at birth.
Non-binary: Referring to individuals who identify as neither exclusively male nor female.
Genderqueer: Referring to individuals who express gender in non-traditional ways.
Two-spirit: Referring to Indigenous individuals who identify as having both male and female spirits.
Pansexual: Referring to individuals who are attracted to all genders or who don't limit their attraction to a specific gender.
Asexual: Referring to individuals who feel little or no sexual attraction to others.
Demisexual: Referring to individuals who only experience sexual attraction after forming a strong emotional connection with someone.
Queer: Referring to individuals who identify outside of traditional binary gender and sexual orientation norms.
"Male organisms produce small mobile gametes (spermatozoa, sperm, pollen), while female organisms produce larger, non-mobile gametes (ova, often called egg cells)."
"Organisms that produce both types of gametes are called hermaphrodites."
"During sexual reproduction, male and female gametes fuse to form zygotes, which develop into offspring that inherit traits from each parent."
"Males and females of a species may have physical similarities (sexual monomorphism) or differences (sexual dimorphism) that reflect various reproductive pressures on the respective sexes."
"Mate choice and sexual selection can accelerate the evolution of physical differences between the sexes."
"The terms male and female typically do not apply in sexually undifferentiated species in which the individuals are isomorphic (look the same) and the gametes are isogamous (indistinguishable in size and shape)."
"Some kinds of functional differences between gametes, such as in fungi, may be referred to as mating types."
"The sex of a living organism is determined by its genes."
"Most mammals have the XY sex-determination system, where male mammals usually carry an X and a Y chromosome (XY)."
"Female mammals usually carry two X chromosomes (XX)."
"Other chromosomal sex-determination systems in animals include the ZW system in birds, and the X0 system in insects."
"Various environmental systems include temperature-dependent sex determination in reptiles and crustaceans."
"Male organisms produce small mobile gametes (spermatozoa, sperm, pollen), while female organisms produce larger, non-mobile gametes (ova, often called egg cells)."
"The sex of a living organism is determined by its genes."
"Other chromosomal sex-determination systems in animals include the ZW system in birds, and the X0 system in insects."
"Some kinds of functional differences between gametes, such as in fungi, may be referred to as mating types."
"Mate choice and sexual selection can accelerate the evolution of physical differences between the sexes."
"Organisms that produce both types of gametes are called hermaphrodites."
"During sexual reproduction, male and female gametes fuse to form zygotes, which develop into offspring that inherit traits from each parent."