sexual orientation

American  

[sek-shoo-uhl awr-ee-uhn-tey-shuhn, ‐en‐] / ˈsɛk ʃu əl ˌɔr i ənˈteɪ ʃən, ‐ɛn‐ /

noun

sexual orientations plural

1. one's inherent attraction to a sexual partner of a certain gender, or the absence of gender preference in a sexual relationship; one’s identity as asexual, bisexual, heterosexual, gay, pansexual, etc.

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sexual orientation Cultural  

1. Preference for sexual activity with people of the opposite sex, the same sex, or both. (See bisexuality, heterosexuality, and homosexuality.)

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• sexual orientations
  plural

Etymology

Origin of sexual orientation

First recorded in 1990–95

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

sexual orientation

Clayton County, a 2020 Supreme Court decision that established workplace discrimination protections based on sexual orientation and gender identity.

From Salon ● Jul. 15, 2026

The bill would make it a criminal offence to provide conversion therapy, or to engage in coercive conversion behaviour, external with the goal of changing a person's sexual orientation or gender identity.

From BBC ● Jul. 4, 2026

They worked to exclude religious schools anyway by forbidding participants from discriminating based on religion, sexual orientation or gender identity.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 30, 2026

She said she does not seek to “cure” clients of same-sex attractions or to “change” their sexual orientation.

From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 31, 2026

None of that had changed, or could be changed by anything as inconsequential as her gender, or skin color, or sexual orientation.

From "Ready Player One: A Novel" by Ernest Cline