The
gender binary, also referred to as
gender binarism (sometimes shortened to just
binarism), is the classification of
sex and
gender into
two distinct, opposite and disconnected forms of
masculine and
feminine. It is one general type of a
gender system. As one of the core principles of
genderism, it can describe a
social boundary that discourages people from crossing or mixing
gender roles, or from identifying with three or more forms of
gender expression altogether. In this binary model, "sex", "gender" and "sexuality" are assumed by default to align; for example, a biological male would be assumed masculine in appearance, character traits and behavior, including a
heterosexual attraction to the opposite sex. Classification within this gender binary does not encompass individuals who are born with non-binary reproductive organs and may exclude those who identify as
lesbian,
gay,
bisexual,
transgender,
transsexual,
genderqueer or
third gender.