Definitions by fish trap
passing
adjective for a trans person who looks like they're cis, whether intentionally or not
usage mostly limited to where trans people are functioning within cis society, where everyone is assumed cis until informed otherwise — a person "passes" for cis until clocked. within trans circles, passing is irrelevant and a rarely used term, because everyone is assumed to be trans.
adopted from an older use of passing, meaning african-americans who move within white society in order to survive. sometimes disambiguated as white-passing and cis-passing. a less appropriative & more accurate term for trans "passing" is masking.
usage mostly limited to where trans people are functioning within cis society, where everyone is assumed cis until informed otherwise — a person "passes" for cis until clocked. within trans circles, passing is irrelevant and a rarely used term, because everyone is assumed to be trans.
adopted from an older use of passing, meaning african-americans who move within white society in order to survive. sometimes disambiguated as white-passing and cis-passing. a less appropriative & more accurate term for trans "passing" is masking.
Fish
a tran, used as a term of endearment from one trans girl to another trans girl.
"hey fish, let's swim over to the G.L.O.S.S. show already"
"ya sure, i can't wait to make that pit into a fish bowl"
evolved from a hooker code term for cis women sex workers (1970s) aka girls who sell vagina (fish-scented junk) as opposed to ass. later referring to trans women (1980s), especially asians swimming in white scenes, who look so much like cis women that for all intents and purposes are cis. later (briefly), referring to girls who've had bottom surgery and are card-carrying members of the vaginosis crew. reclaimed circa 2016 to mean all trans women, including bricks, as a fuck-you to the gay male chaser scene; now considered beyond the pale when used to signal a person's genitalia.
used awkwardly by gay men to refer to cis-passing drag queens because they look so much like a trans woman. like when rich white boys call each other hood on the golf course.
used pejoratively by gay men to refer to trans men at the club in a desperate attempt to self-affirm their trans-exclusionary homosexuality, in the same way that str8 men think touching a dick will instantly turn them gay (as if they weren't gay already).
"hey fish, let's swim over to the G.L.O.S.S. show already"
"ya sure, i can't wait to make that pit into a fish bowl"
evolved from a hooker code term for cis women sex workers (1970s) aka girls who sell vagina (fish-scented junk) as opposed to ass. later referring to trans women (1980s), especially asians swimming in white scenes, who look so much like cis women that for all intents and purposes are cis. later (briefly), referring to girls who've had bottom surgery and are card-carrying members of the vaginosis crew. reclaimed circa 2016 to mean all trans women, including bricks, as a fuck-you to the gay male chaser scene; now considered beyond the pale when used to signal a person's genitalia.
used awkwardly by gay men to refer to cis-passing drag queens because they look so much like a trans woman. like when rich white boys call each other hood on the golf course.
used pejoratively by gay men to refer to trans men at the club in a desperate attempt to self-affirm their trans-exclusionary homosexuality, in the same way that str8 men think touching a dick will instantly turn them gay (as if they weren't gay already).
some egg groped my girl last night so i'm pulling together a school of fish to give him a free vaginoplasty
brick
a trans girl with pronounced physical features that subject her to transmisogyny, like broad shoulders, strong jawline, deep voice, etc.; opposed to a fish.
originally used within trans circles (1970s) where passing and surgery were assumed to be everyone's objective. not usually used as a pejorative, but more as a sympathetic or pity term.
"it's a goddamn shame bc she's such a sweet bb angel, but she's a real brick and no amount of tits or FFS will make her able to pass in women's spaces." "ya, she'll probably commit suicide in a few years and there's nothing anyone can do about it — :'(((("
reclaimed as a result of the Monster Pride or Trans Visibility movements as a term of pride for non-op trans women.
originally used within trans circles (1970s) where passing and surgery were assumed to be everyone's objective. not usually used as a pejorative, but more as a sympathetic or pity term.
"it's a goddamn shame bc she's such a sweet bb angel, but she's a real brick and no amount of tits or FFS will make her able to pass in women's spaces." "ya, she'll probably commit suicide in a few years and there's nothing anyone can do about it — :'(((("
reclaimed as a result of the Monster Pride or Trans Visibility movements as a term of pride for non-op trans women.
transmisogyny
that thing where people get weird about men being in dresses. so named because of how it affects trans women.
not quite transphobia. not quite misogyny. not really “the intersection of transphobia and transmisogyny” despite what Julia Serano says. but definitely the reason behind why none of your dyke friends from highschool want to let their kids talk to you now that you’re on hormones.
all the specific ways that it manifests in the world gets... really complicated. but one of those ways is why its so damn hard for a definition of this word to get through the urban dictionary review process 😂
not quite transphobia. not quite misogyny. not really “the intersection of transphobia and transmisogyny” despite what Julia Serano says. but definitely the reason behind why none of your dyke friends from highschool want to let their kids talk to you now that you’re on hormones.
all the specific ways that it manifests in the world gets... really complicated. but one of those ways is why its so damn hard for a definition of this word to get through the urban dictionary review process 😂
they fired me for being “hard to work with” but we all know that it was just because they won’t own up to their basic-ass transmisogyny
transmisogyny by fish trap July 15, 2018