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Terminology and Spelling Question


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I'm writing an essay on asexuality, and so have to make decisions about terminology and spelling. I've noticed that a number of asexual spectrum terms are commonly written in a few different ways, and occasionally people attach differences in meaning to these spellings.

 

People write:

1. Gray-asexual or Gray-sexual, with some people omitting the hyphen (especially for the second variation).
2. Gray-aromantic or Gray-romantic, with some people omitting the hyphen (especially for the second variation).
3. Self-sexual, with a split between those who hyphenate and those who do not.

I would argue that people should be consistent. For example, if you write gray-asexual, then you should write gray-aromantic rather than gray-romantic or grayromantic.

Besides that, on a few occasions I've encountered people who make a distinction between terms like gray-asexual and gray-sexual. They use gray-asexual to refer to people who experience some sexual attraction but who feel that they have more in common with asexuality, would prefer to date asexuals, etc. And they use gray-sexual to refer to people whose experience of sexual attraction is on the low end of the scale for sexual people, but who still think that they have more in common with the sexual spectrum, would like to form sexual relationships with sexual people, etc. They make a similar distinction between gray-aromantic and gray-romantic.

This distinction is not in wide use. Most people use these terms interchangeably. But it strikes me as a useful one for capturing differences for people who are on the borderline between asexual/sexual and aromantic/romantic, particularly with respect to communicating their preferences to others. For example, if I say that I'm gray-asexual it puts emphasis on the "asexual" part and people outside the asexual community (most of whom don't know much about asexuality) are more likely to recognize the term and at least have some slight idea of what I'm talking about.

I'd appreciate other people's opinions, particularly with regard to whether anyone else follows the distinction that I've described above?
 

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Personally I'd say it might be more interesting (and accurate to the community) to discuss this disparity in your essay rather than just picking a spelling convention.

Discuss how we don't all spell it the same, or even necessarily mean the same things with the same phrase. Discuss how this might cause confusion in some cases. Discuss how some people strive to get more detailed/specific terminology and others are okay with a sort of blanket "I am in this general group" terminology.
I think that's kinda fascinating.

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15 minutes ago, Rallion said:

Personally I'd say it might be more interesting (and accurate to the community) to discuss this disparity in your essay rather than just picking a spelling convention.

Discuss how we don't all spell it the same, or even necessarily mean the same things with the same phrase. Discuss how this might cause confusion in some cases. Discuss how some people strive to get more detailed/specific terminology and others are okay with a sort of blanket "I am in this general group" terminology.
I think that's kinda fascinating.

I find that more detailed terminology is a double-edged sword. It can assist understanding by allowing people to be more specific. But it also requires a greater knowledge base on the part of the reader/hearer in order for you to be understood. Plus, it can create confusion if people can't tell whether you're using a term in a more general or a more specific sense.

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I think the term 'allosexual' is the same as 'sexual' and since most people fit into this category, I would keep it 'sexual'!

then you can always add the colours later: aromantic, bdsm-tendency with a sligth incline towards being fascinated by ropes and leather, libido-level, disliking foreplay, wanting mutual orgasm, multiple orgasmic, best between 23:00-01:00, monogamic, voyouristic, self-confident, demanding, long-lasting, trust seeking...

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  • 3 weeks later...

Never seen Gray anything without the dash. I could see a newbie doing it though, as I've seen them hyphonate non-Gray romantic orientations.

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