heterosexual

[het-er-uh-sek-shoo-uh l or, esp. British, -seks-yoo-]

adjective

of, relating to, or exhibiting heterosexuality.
Biology. pertaining to the opposite sex or to both sexes.

noun

a heterosexual person.

Origin of heterosexual

First recorded in 1890–95; hetero- + sexual

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for heterosexual

Contemporary Examples of heterosexual

However much we gossip about heterosexual couples with large age gaps, we at least refrain from calling them sex offenders.
Freaking Out About Age Gaps in Gay Relationships Is Homophobic
Samantha Allen
January 9, 2015
Men, particularly white, heterosexual men, are undeniably in charge.
Men Need A Better Men’s Rights Movement
Nancy Kaffer
December 16, 2014
The children were assessed over time and those results were matched to children from heterosexual couples.
Fact-Checking the Sunday Shows: October 12
PunditFact.com
October 12, 2014
Homosexual acts come naturally to them, heterosexual acts do not.
The Vatican's Same-Sex Synod: The Bishops Hear About Reality. Do They Listen?
Barbie Latza Nadeau
October 12, 2014
It takes nothing away from heterosexual couples, or for that matter anyone.
Who Are the Judicial Activists Now?
Michael Tomasky
October 7, 2014

Historical Examples of heterosexual

Eliminating all these, there remain 44 heterosexual captures of adults.
Natural History of the Racer Coluber constrictor
Henry S. Fitch
These are economic, social, and political-the right to enjoy the same benefits as members of heterosexual families.
The Civilization of Illiteracy
Mihai Nadin
It is only a small proportion of heterosexual persons who experience these impulses under such conditions.
Studies in the Psychology of Sex, Volume 2 (of 6)
Havelock Ellis
Not till I was over 30 years did I meet a man I loved as well as my mother, and he is heterosexual.
Studies in the Psychology of Sex, Volume 2 (of 6)
Havelock Ellis
Both admitted the alternately stimulating and obtunding influence of heterosexual magnetism.
Ulysses
James Joyce

British Dictionary definitions for heterosexual

heterosexual

noun

a person who is sexually attracted to the opposite sex

adjective

of or relating to heterosexuality

Compare homosexual

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for heterosexual

adj.

1892, in C.G. Craddock's translation of Krafft-Ebbing's "Psychopathia Sexualis," a hybrid; see hetero- + sexual. The noun is recorded from 1920, but not in common use until 1960s. Colloquial shortening hetero is attested from 1933.

heterosexual in Medicine

heterosexual

[hĕt′ə-rō-sĕk′shōō-əl]

adj.

Sexually oriented to persons of the opposite sex.

A heterosexual person.