TGirl is a generic term that covers a lot of other stuff. But if you want to know the technical and implied distinctions between these other terms, you’ve come to the right place! What follows is an alphabetical “dictionary” of TGirl terms.

First, let’s make a distinction between the porn world and the “transgender (TG) community”. TG individuals usually take offense to being referred to by porn categories, and the porn world has borrowed and modified a lot of TG designations . . . so I will call out porn-specific words, as well as porn-specific definitions in this list.

Also, none of these definitions imply a sexual orientation. Any of the below terms can refer to a straight, a homosexual, or a bi individual.

• Crossdresser (CD) – A person who dresses in the clothing of the opposite gender. In the US, crossdressing usually refers to a “closet” or private activity, and as such encompasses many individuals who dress because it just feels right, or because they wish they had been born the opposite gender. On the other end of the spectrum, it also includes people who just get a kick out of feeling “naughty” wearing their wifes’ panties when she’s not around. In some respects a CD is more “serious” than a Transvestite in that they usually have a deep-seated reason for dressing instead of doing it just for fun, but it can also be regarded as a less serious designation in that many CDs do not shave or wear makeup, etc so they can maintain a masculine persona most of the time. Crossdresser has recently become a popular porn category, and usually involves a male “experimenting” with a female’s clothing, or being forced to dress by a genetic female . . . thus reinforcing the “less serious” definition of CD.
• Ladyboy (LB) – Strictly for porn, a Ladyboy is an Asian Transsexual. This is not a well understood term by the general population, but is typically used correctly in the porn industry.
• Shemale – Another strictly porn term. Usually short for TS, but as is always the case in the porn world, it is often mis-used and confusion abounds about the correct definition. Don’t use this one in everyday conversation!
• Sissy – A male that enjoys(?) being forced to act or dress like a female. In some cases, a Sissy is completely unrelated to any of these other terms on this page, however, there are a lot of CDs for example that also like to be treated like a Sissy. This is primarily a porn term, and is intentionally degrading . . . but that’s kind of the point if you’re a Sissy.
• T-Girl – A generic term that refers to any of the “trans” categories in which a male is dressed, surgically modified, or acts like a female. Also sometimes abbreviated TG, this causes considerable confusion with the term Transgendered. T-Girl is primarily a porn term, but is not usually considered degrading. It is also generic enough that it can be used without making assumptions about which category an individual identifies with. And damn, it also sounds cute!
• Tranny – A strictly porn term. Usually short for TS, but as is always the case in the porn world, it is often mis-used and confusion abounds about the correct definition. Don’t use this one in everyday conversation!
• Transgender (TG) – A person who identifies with the opposite gender. This ranges from simply feeling the opposite gender understands you better or vice versa, to feeling that you were actually born the wrong gender. Being a TG does not imply that you participate in any particular activities (such as crossdressing).
• Transsexual (TS) - A person with physical features of both genders, for example a genetic male with breast implants. A TS typically lives full time as their non-genetic gender. A TS can be pre-op (they have not yet had full sex-reassignment surgery), post-op (a genetic male with breasts and a vagina, no penis or testicles, for example), or non-op (someone who has no intentions of going through complete sex-reassignment surgery). This is a fairly popular porn term, but is generally not considered degrading to use.
• Transvestite (TV) – A person who dresses in the clothing of the opposite gender. In the US, this frequently refers to someone who dresses up for a drag show or other form of attention or drama. Frequently this involves heavy makeup, excessive jewelry, and a strong personality. In the UK (and possibly elsewhere) TV is simply the more common designation for crossdresser.