Standard Lemma guide

heterosexuality

noun · 3 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • Southern-England: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • CMU ARPABET: HH EH2 T ER0 OW0 S EH0 K SH AH0 W AE1 L IH0 T IY0 Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

noun

Meaning 1

The state of being sexually and romantically attracted primarily or exclusively to persons of the opposite sex.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: uncountable, usually

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

Sexual activity with a person of the opposite sex.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: uncountable, usually

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

noun

Meaning 3

a sexual attraction to (or sexual relations with) persons of the opposite sex

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: heterosexualism, straightness

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: sexual activity, sexual practice, sex, sex activity

History

Etymology

From heterosexual + -ity or hetero- + sexuality.

Across languages

Translations

47 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Afrikaans: heteroseksualiteit — heterosexual orientation
  • Arabic: مُغَايَرَة (muḡāyara) — heterosexual orientation
  • Arabic: هيتيروسكسوالية (hītīrūsiksuwāliyya) — heterosexual orientation
  • Armenian: հետերոսեքսուալություն (heterosekʻsualutʻyun) — heterosexual orientation
  • Azerbaijani: heteroseksuallıq — heterosexual orientation
  • Bulgarian: хетеросексуа́лност (heteroseksuálnost) — heterosexual orientation
  • Bulgarian: пра́ва резба́ (práva rezbá) — heterosexual orientation
  • Catalan: heterosexualitat — heterosexual orientation
  • Chinese Mandarin: 異性戀 /异性恋 (yìxìngliàn) — heterosexual orientation
  • Czech: heterosexualita — heterosexual orientation
  • Dutch: heteroseksualiteit — heterosexual orientation
  • Esperanto: aliseksemo — heterosexual orientation
  • Finnish: heterous — heterosexual orientation
  • Finnish: heteroseksuaalisuus — heterosexual orientation
  • French: hétérosexualité — heterosexual orientation
  • Galician: heterosexualidade — heterosexual orientation
  • Georgian: ჰეტეროსექსუალობა (heṭeroseksualoba) — heterosexual orientation
  • German: Heterosexualität — heterosexual orientation
  • Hebrew: הטרוסקסואליות (heteroseksualiot) — heterosexual orientation
  • Hindi: विषमलैंगिकता (viṣamlaiṅgiktā) — heterosexual orientation
  • Hungarian: heteroszexualitás — heterosexual orientation
  • Ido: heterosexualeso — heterosexual orientation
  • Indonesian: heteroseksualitas — heterosexual orientation
  • Italian: eterosessualità — heterosexual orientation
  • Kazakh: өзгежынысқа құштарлық (özgejynysqa qūştarlyq) — heterosexual orientation
  • Kazakh: гетеросексуалдылық (geteroseksualdylyq) — heterosexual orientation
  • Kazakh: гетеросексуалдық (geteroseksualdyq) — heterosexual orientation
  • Macedonian: хетеросексуа́лност (heteroseksuálnost) — heterosexual orientation
  • Occitan: eterosexualitat — heterosexual orientation
  • Occitan: heterosexualitat — heterosexual orientation
  • Persian: دگرجنسگرایی (degar-jens-garâyi) — heterosexual orientation
  • Polish: heteroseksualizm — heterosexual orientation
  • Portuguese: heterossexualidade — heterosexual orientation
  • Romanian: heterosexualitate — heterosexual orientation
  • Russian: гетеросексуа́льность (geteroseksuálʹnostʹ) — heterosexual orientation
  • Northern Sami: heteroseksualitehta — heterosexual orientation
  • Serbo-Croatian: хетеросексуалност — heterosexual orientation
  • Serbo-Croatian: heteroseksualnost — heterosexual orientation
  • Slovak: heterosexualita — heterosexual orientation
  • Spanish: heterosexualidad — heterosexual orientation
  • Swedish: heterosexualitet — heterosexual orientation
  • Tajik: дигарҷинсгароӣ (digarjinsgaroyi) — heterosexual orientation
  • Tamil: எதிர்பாலீர்ப்பு (etirpālīrppu) — heterosexual orientation
  • Tamil: எதிர்பால்சேர்க்கை (etirpālcērkkai) — heterosexual orientation
  • Thai: รักต่างเพศ (rák dàang pêt) — heterosexual orientation
  • Turkish: heteroseksüellik — heterosexual orientation
  • Yiddish: העטראָסעקסואַליטעט (hetroseksualitet) — heterosexual orientation