Crossdresser
(noun | crossdress, verb, -es, -ed, -ing)
Someone who dresses as and/or presents themselves as a gender other than the one with which they generally identify. Crossdressing may be aesthetic, sexual, an expression of someone’s gender, or have other meanings. Crossdresser (as opposed to transvestite) is the preferred term in the USA among the mainstream (white) community. There are many different populations, both in the USA and elsewhere, and preference of terms will naturally vary across those populations. The wider community of people who crossdress is often abbreviated as CD / TV.
Categorically, crossdressers are considered under the gender non-conforming and trans+ umbrellas, but they may or may not identify with those terms individually. Those decisions are based on their understanding of their relationship with gender and their access to transitioning within their culture.
e.g. CJ first came out as a crossdresser before becoming more comfortable in her identity as a trans woman. Eugenio crossdresses on the weekend, but isn’t trans, just loves a nice dress.
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