Definition of Sexual Identity
(noun) A broad term, referring to an individual’s perception of themselves in sexual matters.
Sexual Identity Pronunciation
Syllabification: sex·u·al i·den·ti·ty
Audio Pronunciation
Phonetic Spelling
- American English – /sEk-shuh-wuhl ie-dEn-tuh-tee/
- British English – /sEk-syuuhl ie-dEn-ti-tee/
International Phonetic Alphabet
- American English – /ˈsɛkʃuəl aɪˈdɛntəti/
- British English – /ˈsɛksjʊəl aɪˈdɛntɪti/
Usage Notes
- Plural: sexual identities
- Often written in the plural form sexual identities to indicate that often people exhibit varied identities at once or their identities change throughout their life.
- Sexual identities is a pluralistic and postmodern view of sexuality as opposed to sexual orientation which is essentialistic or sexual preference which is constructionistic.
- Also called sex identity.
Additional Information
- Sex and Gender Resources – Books, Journals, and Helpful Links
- Word origin of “sexual” and “identity” – Online Etymology Dictionary: etymonline.com
Related Terms
Works Consulted
Andersen, Margaret L., and Howard Francis Taylor. 2011. Sociology: The Essentials. 6th ed. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth.
Encyclopædia Britannica. (N.d.) Britannica Digital Learning. (https://britannicalearn.com/).
Kimmel, Michael S., and Amy Aronson. 2012. Sociology Now. Boston: Allyn & Bacon.
Oxford University Press. (N.d.) Oxford Dictionaries. (https://www.oxforddictionaries.com/).
Ravelli, Bruce, and Michelle Webber. 2016. Exploring Sociology: A Canadian Perspective. 3rd ed. Toronto: Pearson.
Taylor & Francis. (N.d.) Routledge Handbooks Online. (https://www.routledgehandbooks.com/).
Wikipedia contributors. (N.d.) Wiktionary, The Free Dictionary. Wikimedia Foundation. (http://en.wiktionary.org).
Wiley. (N.d.) Wiley Online Library. (http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/).
Cite the Definition of Sexual Identity
ASA – American Sociological Association (5th edition)
Bell, Kenton, ed. 2016. “sexual identity.” In Open Education Sociology Dictionary. Retrieved October 3, 2023 (https://sociologydictionary.org/sexual-identity/).
APA – American Psychological Association (6th edition)
sexual identity. (2016). In K. Bell (Ed.), Open education sociology dictionary. Retrieved from https://sociologydictionary.org/sexual-identity/
Chicago/Turabian: Author-Date – Chicago Manual of Style (16th edition)
Bell, Kenton, ed. 2016. “sexual identity.” In Open Education Sociology Dictionary. Accessed October 3, 2023. https://sociologydictionary.org/sexual-identity/.
MLA – Modern Language Association (7th edition)
“sexual identity.” Open Education Sociology Dictionary. Ed. Kenton Bell. 2016. Web. 3 Oct. 2023. <https://sociologydictionary.org/sexual-identity/>.