intersex

[in-ter-seks]Biology

noun

an individual having reproductive organs or external sexual characteristics of both male and female.

adjective

noting or relating to such an individual; intersexual.

Origin of intersex

First recorded in 1915–20; back formation from intersexual

Usage note

See gender¹.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for intersex

Contemporary Examples of intersex

Now that the public is aware of your intersex status, do you fear that will change your relationship with him?
Exclusive: Michael Phelps’s Intersex Self-Proclaimed Girlfriend, Taylor Lianne Chandler, Tells All
Aurora Snow
November 26, 2014
I feel like I have this opportunity to turn this into something good and teach people about intersex.
Exclusive: Michael Phelps’s Intersex Self-Proclaimed Girlfriend, Taylor Lianne Chandler, Tells All
Aurora Snow
November 26, 2014
Ignorance about the existence of persons with intersex conditions is hardly limited to the religious.
Intersexuality and God Through the Ages
Candida Moss
November 9, 2014
The truth is that intersex just might be the silver bullet in the culture wars about sex and gender.
Intersexuality and God Through the Ages
Candida Moss
November 9, 2014
The power of intersex bodies is their ability to disrupt social norms.
Intersexuality and God Through the Ages
Candida Moss
November 9, 2014

British Dictionary definitions for intersex

intersex

noun

the condition of having characteristics intermediate between those of a male and a female

an individual, esp a person, exhibiting such physiological characteristicsCompare gynandromorph, hermaphrodite (def. 1), hermaphrodite (def. 2)

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 intersex

"one having characteristics of both sexes," 1917, from German intersexe (1915); see inter- + sex. Coined by German-born U.S. geneticist Richard Benedict Goldschmidt (1878-1958). Related: Intersexual; intersexuality.