ABSTRACT
For the researcher and writer, dictionaries, word books and encyclopaedias can be useful for checking and using definitions for the period being researched. This chapter looks at a variety of standard reference terms and phrases from the seventeenth to the twentieth century to illustrate beliefs associated with LGBTQIA+ terminology which do not necessarily conform to modern definitions. It emphasises that when writing of individuals from specific periods, the definitions of that time should be used, not those of today. The chapter is divided into three sections. The first considers terminology associated with same-sex female and same-sex male sexualities in the English language. Due to the proliferation of male terms, the section on same-sex male sexualities is divided into centuries. The second section considers similar terms that appear in languages other than English, including Welsh, Irish and other international languages. The final section follows the layout of sections one and two to discuss gender diversity.
