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transvestite

[ trans-ves-tahyt, tranz- ]
/ trænsˈvɛs taɪt, trænz- /
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noun
Psychiatry. a person, especially someone assigned male at birth, who assumes the dress and manner usually associated with a different sex for psychological or sexual gratification.
Offensive. crossdresser.

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Origin of transvestite

First recorded in 1925–30; from German Transvestit; see transvestism, -ite1

Words nearby transvestite

transverse section, transverse vibrations, transverse wave, transverter, transvestism, transvestite, trans woman, Transylvania, Transylvanian Alps, tranter, trap
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Words related to transvestite

cross-dresser, closet queen, female impersonator

British Dictionary definitions for transvestite

transvestite
/ (trænzˈvɛstaɪt) /
noun
a person who seeks sexual pleasure from wearing clothes that are normally associated with the opposite sex
any cross-dresserSee cross-dressing

Derived forms of transvestite

transvestism or transvestitism, noun

Word Origin for transvestite

C19: from German Transvestit, from trans- + Latin vestītus clothed, from vestīre to clothe
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

Cultural definitions for transvestite

transvestite

Someone who dresses in the clothes usually worn by the opposite sex. Transvestites may be bisexual, heterosexual, or homosexual (see bisexuality, heterosexuality, and homosexuality).

The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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