Surprise meSurprise me Subscribe

Encyclopedia

Monosexuality

Romantic or sexual attraction to members of one sex or gender only

Wikipedia contributorsAdapted for Fathomly · View authors

1 min read
Source updated September 3, 2026

Image credit is listed at the end of this article.

Monosexuality is romantic or sexual attraction to members of one sex or gender only. A monosexual person may identify as heterosexual (straight) or homosexual (gay/lesbian). In discussions of sexual orientation, the term is chiefly used in contrast to asexuality and plurisexuality (bisexuality or pansexuality). It is sometimes considered derogatory or offensive by the people to whom it is applied, particularly gay men and lesbians. Some have used the term "monosexual privilege", arguing that biphobia is different from homophobia.

Monosexual flag

Watch videos about MonosexualityExplainers and documentaries on YouTube (opens in a new tab)

Sources and credits

This article is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Monosexuality”, written by its contributors and licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Fathomly has changed the layout, removed citation markers, navigation and maintenance notices, and adjusted punctuation. This adapted version is shared under the same license. For references, see the original article.

Images, from Wikimedia Commons:

Gender symbols (4 colors).svg by Kwamikagami, CC BY-SA 4.0
Monosexual flag.svg by Kautr, CC0

Fathomly is not affiliated with or endorsed by the Wikimedia Foundation. Spotted a problem? Tell us.

Continue exploring

Related topics

Bisexual erasure

Bisexual erasure, also called bisexual invisibility, is the tendency to ignore, remove, falsify, or re-explain evidence of bisexuality (or similar identities, such as pansexuality) in history, academia, the news media, and other primary sources. Bisexual erasure happens in both heterosexual and LGBTQ+ communities and bisexual identities are often described as just "phases" or "confusion".

Androphilia and gynephilia

In behavioral science, androphilia and gynephilia are sexual orientations: Androphilia is sexual attraction to men or masculinity; gynephilia is sexual attraction to women or femininity. Ambiphilia describes the combination of both androphilia and gynephilia in a given individual, or bisexuality.

Discrimination against lesbians

Discrimination against lesbians, sometimes referred as lesbophobia or lesphobia, is a form of homophobia, often paired with misogyny, that comprises various forms of prejudice and negativity towards lesbians as individuals, as couples, as a group, or lesbianism in general. Examples of discrimination against lesbians include, but are not limited to, discrimination in housing and employment, physical or sexual abuse, including corrective rape, lack of legal protections for lesbian couples to care for one another, removal of children from lesbian mothers, negative stereotypes and negative media representation, verbal harassment, legal persecution and imprisonment, government censorship, and familial and/or community rejection.