Queer

Part of speech: adjective

Pronunciation: /kwɪə/

Definitions

1. Describing something that deviates from the norm, particularly in terms of gender or sexuality; denoting attitudes or behaviors that challenge traditional concepts of identity or orientation; relating to an umbrella term for sexual and gender minorities outside of heterosexual and cisgender definitions
2. Referring to individuals or communities that embrace non-normative sexual orientations or gender identities; characterized by an embrace of fluidity in identity that resists binary classifications; used as an inclusive term for various identities that are socially marginalized
3. Pertaining to a spectrum of identities that question societal norms about sexuality and gender; encompassing expressions and experiences that defy conventional definitions; often associated with social movements advocating for rights and recognition of diverse identities

Etymology: Few words have swung as far as this one. For centuries "queer" meant something odd, off-kilter or slightly wrong, and it was a Scots word before it was anything else: it first turns up in Scotland around 1510. Its roots are usually traced to a Middle Low German dialect word meaning "oblique" or "off-centre", linked to the German "quer" ("diagonal"), which in turn goes back to an ancient root for turning or twisting. The Oxford English Dictionary, however, argues against this link, because the meanings and the early Scots dates do not fit neatly. The sense of "not following norms" grew out of that general notion of being out of line or wrong. The word was used as a pejorative for much of its life, and from the late 1800s it began to be applied to gay people. Its meaning as a general term for anything unconventional developed alongside this, so the adjective now covers both the older sense of strangeness and the more specific social sense.

Synonyms: strange, odd, unusual, peculiar

Antonyms: normal, usual, common