bisexual

adjective

bi·​sex·​u·​al (ˌ)bī-ˈsek-sh(ə-)wəl 

-shəl

1

a

see usage paragraph below : of, relating to, or characterized by sexual or romantic attraction to people of one's same sex and of the opposite sex

also : of, relating to, or characterized by sexual or romantic attraction to people of one's own gender identity and of other gender identities

b

biology : possessing characters of both sexes and especially both male and female reproductive structures : hermaphroditic

Usually, the sexes are separate but some plants bear bisexual flowers at different times of the year and these may suddenly become exclusively female.

—Stephen K-M. Tim

2

: of, relating to, involving, or characteristic of both sexes

A number of insects combine the advantages of parthenogenesis with those of bisexual reproduction using an alternation of generations.

—R. F. Chapman

The Bionic Woman of the television serial of the seventies … has the bisexual name of Jamie Summers.

—Marina Warner

bisexual noun

bisexuality

ˌbī-ˌsek-shə-ˈwa-lə-tē 

noun

bisexually

(ˌ)bī-ˈsek-sh(ə-)wə-lē 

-sh(ə-)lē

adverb

Usage of Bisexual

While educational and advocacy groups tend to define bisexual broadly as applying to sexual or romantic attraction to members of one's own gender identity as well as to members of other gender identities, the older, narrower application describing attraction to male and female people persists among English speakers, aided, no doubt, by the word's morphology: the prefix bi- means "two." Note that while the broader meaning of bisexual can be understood as occupying the same semantic territory as pansexual, there are people who identify as one but not the other, as well as people who identify as both.

Examples of bisexual in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

President Bill Clinton signed the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 1994, which included a ban on homosexual or bisexual people in the armed services. —The Arizona Republic, 29 Nov. 2024

The surgeon general’s 837-page report on tobacco use found that 37.8% of gay, lesbian and bisexual U.S. adults have tried electronic cigarettes, compared with just 16.5% of their straight counterparts. —Matt Lavietes, NBC News, 19 Nov. 2024

The nonbinary, bisexual member of the Assembly of the Sacred Wheel had worked a mundane day job for years. —Emma Cieslik, Them, 1 Nov. 2024

Connor—whose character, Nick Nelson, is bisexual in Heartstopper—came out as bisexual in a tweet in October 2022 in response to fans who pressured him to confirm his sexuality. —Jason Pham, StyleCaster, 3 Oct. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1793, in the meaning defined at sense 1b

Kids Definition

bisexual

adjective

bi·​sex·​u·​al (ˈ)bī-ˈseksh-(ə-)wəl 

-ˈsek-shəl

1

: possessing characters of or having sexual desire for both sexes

2

: of, relating to, or involving two sexes

bisexual noun

bisexuality

ˌbī-ˌsek-shə-ˈwal-ət-ē 

noun

Medical Definition

bisexual

1 of 2 adjective

bi·​sex·​u·​al (ˈ)bī-ˈseksh-(ə-)wəl, -ˈsek-shəl 

1

a

: possessing characters of both sexes and especially both male and female reproductive structures : hermaphroditic

b

: of, relating to, or characterized by sexual or romantic attraction to individuals of one's same sex and of the opposite sex

also : of, relating to, or characterized by sexual or romantic attraction to people of one's own gender identity and of other gender identities

2

: of, relating to, or involving two sexes

bisexual reproduction

bisexuality

ˌbī-ˌsek-shə-ˈwal-ət-ē 

noun

plural bisexualities

bisexually

(ˈ)bī-ˈseksh-(ə-)wə-lē, -(ə-)lē 

adverb

bisexual

2 of 2 noun

: a bisexual individual