What transgender means: identity, transition and respectful support

A transgender person, or trans person, is someone whose gender identity is different from the sex they were assigned at birth. When a baby is born, a doctor or family member usually records them as male or female based on their body. For most people, that record matches the gender they know themselves to be. For trans people, it does not.

The word for people whose gender identity does match what was recorded at birth is cisgender, or cis. Neither word describes how someone looks, who they love or what medical treatment they have had. They describe the relationship between a person’s inner sense of their gender and the label they were given as a baby.

This guide explains the main words, what transition can involve, which questions are helpful and which are intrusive, and how to support trans people in daily life without needing to be an expert.

The basic vocabulary

Word	What it means
Gender identity	A person’s own deep sense of being a man, a woman, both, neither or something else
Sex assigned at birth	The category (usually male or female) recorded at birth, based on visible body features
Transgender / trans	Gender identity differs from the sex assigned at birth
Cisgender / cis	Gender identity matches the sex assigned at birth
Trans woman	A woman who was assigned male at birth
Trans man	A man who was assigned female at birth
Nonbinary	A gender identity that is not only man or only woman; some nonbinary people also call themselves trans, others do not
Transition	The steps a person may take to live as their gender

Trans is used as an adjective, like tall or Brazilian. You would say “a trans woman” or “a transgender man”, not “a transgender” or “transgendered”. A trans woman is a woman; the word trans adds information, it does not create a separate category of person.

Trans also works as an umbrella. Some people under it use more specific words from their own language or culture. Our guide to what nonbinary means explains one large group within that umbrella.

Gender identity is not the same as sexual orientation

Gender identity answers the question “who am I?”. Sexual orientation answers “who am I attracted to?”. They are separate. A trans man might be gay, straight, bisexual, asexual or anything else, just like a cis man. Transitioning does not tell you anything about a person’s attraction.

People mix these up because trans people are part of the LGBTQIA+ community alongside lesbian, gay and bisexual people. They share a history of facing discrimination for not following expected rules about gender and love, but the questions are different. Our guide to sexual orientation, gender identity and expression explains the three ideas side by side.

What transition can involve

Transition is not a single event or a single operation. It is a set of possible steps that each person chooses based on their needs, safety, health and circumstances. Broadly, there are three areas.

Social transition is about how a person lives day to day. It can include using a new name, asking people to use different pronouns, changing clothes or hairstyle and telling friends, family or colleagues. For many people this is the most important part, and it costs nothing except other people’s respect.

Legal transition is about official documents: changing the name and gender marker on an identity card, passport, birth certificate or bank account. The rules depend entirely on the country. Argentina’s 2012 gender identity law became a well-known example of allowing adults to change their records based on their own declaration. Brazil’s Supreme Court decided in 2018 that people can change their name and gender at a registry office without surgery or a court case. Germany’s self-determination law took effect in 2024. Other countries still demand medical reports, long waits or court decisions, and some offer no route at all. Anyone planning a change should check the current rules where they live, because they do change.

Medical transition can include hormone therapy, surgeries and other treatments such as hair removal or voice training. Some trans people want many of these, some want a few, some want none. Wanting or not wanting medical treatment does not make someone more or less trans. Access depends on health systems, waiting lists, cost, age rules and personal health, and decisions should be made with qualified professionals. International clinical guidance, such as the Standards of Care published by the World Professional Association for Transgender Health, is written for health workers; it is not a checklist that every trans person must follow.

Being trans is not a mental illness

The World Health Organization’s current classification of diseases, ICD-11, which took effect in 2022, no longer lists trans identities in its chapter on mental disorders. It uses the term gender incongruence in a chapter about sexual health, so that people who need gender-related care can still access it.

Some trans people experience gender dysphoria, meaning distress caused by the mismatch between their gender and their body or how they are treated. Dysphoria can be intense, mild or absent, and it often eases when a person is able to live as themselves. It is one possible experience, not a test someone has to pass to be considered “really” trans.

Trans people may also face stress caused by rejection, harassment and discrimination. That stress comes from how they are treated, not from being trans.

Common myths

“It’s a new trend.” People who lived outside the gender assigned to them appear in records and traditions across many centuries and cultures. What is new in many places is the vocabulary, more visibility and better access to information.

“Trans people are confused.” Many trans people spend years understanding themselves before telling anyone. Being certain about your gender does not require being certain about every next step.

“You can tell who is trans by looking.” You cannot. Some trans people are recognised as their gender everywhere they go; others are not. Appearance says nothing reliable about someone’s identity or history.

“Everyone has the same surgery.” There is no single trans body or single medical route. Treating surgery as the moment someone becomes “real” ignores most trans people’s lives.

Questions that help and questions that hurt

Curiosity is natural. The difference is between questions that help you treat someone well and questions that treat them as an object of study.

Helpful questions:

• “What name and pronouns should I use?”
• “Is it okay to use your name in front of other people, or only with friends for now?”
• “Is there anything practical I can help with?”

Intrusive questions:

• “What was your real name?” Many trans people do not want their old name, sometimes called a deadname, repeated.
• “Have you had the surgery?” You would not ask a cis acquaintance about their body. The same rule applies.
• “How do you have sex?” This is private unless the person chooses to share it.
• “Are you sure?” This question rarely helps and often signals doubt.

If you want to learn general facts, read reliable guides rather than asking one trans person to educate you. Save personal questions for close relationships where the person has invited them.

How to be respectful in everyday life

Use the name and pronouns the person uses now. That includes when talking about the past. “When she was a child, she loved football” is respectful even if she was not known as a girl then.

Correct yourself quickly when you get it wrong. A short “sorry, she” and moving on is better than a long apology that makes the person comfort you. Our guide to names and pronouns covers this in detail.

Protect their privacy. Being trans is personal information. Telling others that someone is trans, showing old photos or revealing a former name can expose them to discrimination or violence. Let each person decide who knows.

Don’t compliment by comparison. “You look just like a real woman” sounds like praise but suggests trans women are not real women. “You look great” is enough.

Make everyday systems flexible. Forms with a free space for name and gender, bathrooms people can use without being questioned and dress codes that do not depend on gender make life easier for everyone, including trans people.

Speak up when it is safe. If someone mocks a trans colleague or repeats a myth, a simple “that’s not okay” or “that isn’t true” can change the tone of a room, especially when it comes from someone who is not trans.

If you think you might be trans

There is no test you have to pass and no deadline. Some people know from childhood. Others realise later in life, sometimes after many years of feeling something was off without words to name it. Both are normal.

You can explore in small, private ways: trying a different name with one trusted friend, noticing how you feel when people use certain pronouns, reading stories by trans people or joining a support group, online or in person. Nothing you try commits you to a permanent decision. If you are thinking about medical steps, look for health professionals with experience in gender-affirming care and ask about local rules and waiting times early, because they can be long.

Being trans is one way of being human. With accurate information, a few respectful habits and room to make their own choices, trans people can live their lives as fully as anyone else.

Sources and references

• World Health Organization: gender incongruence and transgender health in ICD-11
• American Psychological Association: transgender people, gender identity and gender expression
• WPATH: Standards of Care for the Health of Transgender and Gender Diverse People, version 8
• GLAAD Media Reference Guide: transgender terms
• Brazil, Supreme Federal Court: ADI 4275 on name and gender change