1.
homosexuality; same-sex love
Romantic or sexual attraction between people of the same sex. A neutral, standard term used in journalism, academic writing, and legal and policy discussion; the default Japanese word when English 'homosexuality' is translated.
同性愛について話す。
To talk about same-sex love.
この国では同性愛が法的に認められている。
In this country, same-sex relationships are legally recognized.
同性愛への理解は世代によって大きく異なる。
Understanding of same-sex love differs greatly across generations.
Compound of 同性 ('same sex') and 愛 ('love'). The standard, neutral term used in news articles, academic writing, law, and medicine. Does not carry the clinical overtones that the English 'homosexuality' can have; its closest English equivalent in register is 'same-sex love' or 'being gay'.
USAGE:
- Refers to the orientation or relationship type; not typically used to describe individual people. For a person, use 同性愛者 ('a gay person') or the loanwords ゲイ (gay man) and レズビアン (lesbian).
- Often appears in policy contexts: 同性愛婚 ('same-sex marriage'), 同性愛差別 ('discrimination based on sexual orientation').
- The older, now-obsolete medical/clinical overtone of the English term is not felt in Japanese — 同性愛 is currently the neutral reference term.
COMMON COLLOCATIONS:
- 同性愛者: a gay person; someone in a same-sex relationship
- 同性愛婚: same-sex marriage
- 同性愛差別: discrimination based on sexual orientation
- 同性愛を公表する: to come out as gay
- 同性愛に理解がある: to be accepting of same-sex love
SIMILAR WORDS:
- 異性愛: heterosexuality — the direct antonym.
- 両性愛: bisexuality — attraction to both sexes.
- ゲイ: gay — loanword; used for gay men specifically, and commonly by LGBTQ communities themselves.
- レズビアン: lesbian — loanword; used for gay women specifically.
- LGBTQ / 性的マイノリティ: LGBTQ / sexual minorities — umbrella terms covering a wider range of identities.