The Use Of The Word "gay".

[elkangorito]

The use of the word 'gay' is quite often incorrect.

Example 1:

"I respect the way that (the) gays are so active against discrimination."

Example 2:

"He is a gay."

Example 3:

"She is a gay."

If you ask this question, "Are you a gay?" & if the person being asked is gay, you will most likely get a similar response as follows;

"A gay what?"

The correct question is, "Are you gay?" or in the plural, "Are they gay?"

However, some ('gay') females resent being called gay & may liked to be called 'lesbian'. In this instance, one can ask (if appropriate), "Are you a lesbian?" Please note the "a" before lesbian. This is not the same as for gay. The following is a correct example:

"Is he gay & is she a lesbian?" For the plural, "Are they gay & are they lesbians?" It can also be correctly said, "Are they lesbian?" It cannot be said, "Are they gays?"

Quite simply, there are not 'gays' but there are lesbians. There are gay people & there are lesbians.

Sorry for the nit picking but it always irks me that some people call us "gays".

Edited October 15, 2008 by elkangorito

[PeaceBlondie]

When it comes to discrimination against minorities, in the Western PC formula, the offense is in the eye of the offended person.

I do not require non-native speakers to understand articles such as the, a, an.

One of the leading gay Mennonites is over 70, and has been exclusively with his partner for many decades. He is always offended by the invented term homosexual, partly for semantic reasons (it is a made-up concoction of Greek and maybe Latin or English).

I kind of resent being called bisexual, since I have not been with a woman for twenty years, but I do not protest loudly.

[Jingthing]

I believe the OP is incorrect. Gay can used as a NOUN. So you can be a gay. It is not common usage with Americans to use it that way, but it is standard usage for Filipinos who will usually say "Is he a gay?" rather than "Is he gay?".

gay

Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This

gay /geɪ/ Pronunciation Key - Show Spelled Pronunciation[gey] Pronunciation Key - Show IPA Pronunciation adjective, -er, -est, noun, adverb

–adjective

1. having or showing a merry, lively mood: gay spirits; gay music.

2. bright or showy: gay colors; gay ornaments.

3. given to or abounding in social or other pleasures: a gay social season.

4. licentious; dissipated; wanton: The baron is a gay old rogue with an eye for the ladies.

5. homosexual.

6. of, indicating, or supporting homosexual interests or issues: a gay organization.

–noun

7. a homosexual person, esp. a male.

–adverb

8. in a gay manner.

Edited October 15, 2008 by Jingthing

[imaneggspurt]

can we still say what a gay day ? ( my friends wife is called gay and had a "gay " private number plate on her car,. ) im not sure she knew of its dual meaning,.

[Jingthing]

Sure we have gay day every year. In many cities, we have a big parade and party. Gay it up all you want. Nobody cares.

[onni4me]

Anarchistic member...& loving it!

What does the above mean..? sticking merely to meanings of language or their understanding?

I couldn't care for being called for a bucket - as long there would be respect for me.

Lesbos was the island that attracts female 'homosexuals' to gather over some old poetry. I could imagine most lesbians don't know the name of their muse disguised as a flytrap.

I can use the word gay irritating whoever I like or dislike as A person living on this planet. Whether that insults anarchists ... er ... couldn't care less.

[unomi]

This thread is pretty gay

[Jingthing]

This thread is pretty gay

Threads don't get any gayer, short of a porn.

[endure]

For someone who regularly claims that rules are rubbish elkango sure likes laying them down

[endure]

I believe the OP is incorrect. Gay can used as a NOUN. So you can be a gay. It is not common usage with Americans to use it that way, but it is standard usage for Filipinos who will usually say "Is he a gay?" rather than "Is he gay?".

Indeed! He's the only gay in the village.

[unomi]

I am reminded of Kilgore Trouts Creed.

And indeed there IS work to do. Good Night.

[PeaceBlondie]

I recall my best friend, a Chinese-American, using the word as a noun for many years. "I think he is a gay."

el kangorito is my favorite pedantic anarchist.

[elkangorito]

Sorry for the nit picking but it always irks me that some people call us "gays".

At the end of my rant, I did attempt (quite poorly) to suggest that this is my opinion & that I "feel" that it (the usage of "a gay") is incorrect. I must apologise for not conveying this idea correctly.

For someone who regularly claims that rules are rubbish elkango sure likes laying them down

So as not to dissappoint, I still maintain this ideal (no rules except for machines) and I always uphold it to the highest order. Nonetheless, I find "change" refreshing.

I believe the OP is incorrect. Gay can used as a NOUN. So you can be a gay. It is not common usage with Americans to use it that way, but it is standard usage for Filipinos who will usually say "Is he a gay?" rather than "Is he gay?".

Nor was it common usage in Australia. As a matter of fact, the only Australians that seemed to use the term, "Are you a gay?", were not homosexual.

Ok. So I'm now relatively sobered about this terminology. All I have to do is to start using it & deal with any "blowback" that I receive.

Thanks for the comments. It's always good to get a different perspective on things.

Edited October 17, 2008 by elkangorito

[jdinasia]

This isn't Oz .... and it isn't a school in satthahiip either

[peekint]

Check out these videos (there are three of them): “That’s So Gay”

http://www.thinkb4youspeak.com/

[elkangorito]

This isn't Oz .... and it isn't a school in satthahiip either

Correct. Thailand isn't OZ etc etc blah blah blah.

Nonetheless, I did notice that most "non gay" people in Australia tended to refer to gay people as "gays", which was not something that any of my gay friends liked. The reason why they didn't like it was because it didn't seem to be complete or make sense.

Person 1: "Are you a gay?"

Person 2: "A gay what?" was the common reply.

I'm not being pedantic here...I'm just reflecting what many of "us" feel. It's a bit like asking "Are you a straight?" This question may get a reply of, "A straight what?"

Whatever the case, gays & straights (gay people & straight people) need to understand each other.

Before, I was gay. Now I am a gay.

[kunjet]

I believe the OP is incorrect. Gay can used as a NOUN. So you can be a gay. It is not common usage with Americans to use it that way, but it is standard usage for Filipinos who will usually say "Is he a gay?" rather than "Is he gay?".

gay

Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This

gay /geɪ/ Pronunciation Key - Show Spelled Pronunciation[gey] Pronunciation Key - Show IPA Pronunciation adjective, -er, -est, noun, adverb

–adjective

1. having or showing a merry, lively mood: gay spirits; gay music.

2. bright or showy: gay colors; gay ornaments.

3. given to or abounding in social or other pleasures: a gay social season.

4. licentious; dissipated; wanton: The baron is a gay old rogue with an eye for the ladies.

5. homosexual.

6. of, indicating, or supporting homosexual interests or issues: a gay organization.

–noun

7. a homosexual person, esp. a male.

–adverb

8. in a gay manner.

I would agree that in standard American English "gay" is most properly used as an adjective when describing queer males. But various argot and contextual situations do call for gay as a noun: "He is a really big gay, but he is not an A gay."

Correct me if I am wrong, but in Thai, "gay" is a noun so that you are either a man or a gay but not a gay man. When it is used like gay-queen and gay-king, I think it remains a compound noun rather than an adjective modifying a noun. It never refers to lesbians, who are either tom (kinda like butch), dee (kinda like femme), or ying-rak-ying (woman loving woman). There has been a lot written about the use of "gay" in Thailand, Indonesia, and the Philippines and it is not used the same way. For example, the bantut in the Southern Philippines refer to themselves as "gay" and other people call them "bantut." Like in Thailand, when people will call gays "kathoey" just because they are not straight.

[geriatrickid]

I want the word gay to revert back to what it meant;

- cheery: bright and pleasant; promoting a feeling of cheer;

- full of or showing high-spirited merriment; "when hearts were young and gay"; "a poet could not but be gay, in such a jocund company"- Wordsworth

I'm sorry, but when I walk past a table of sour dour frowning grumpy homosexuals, they are anything but gay. Even my aging friend, that still tries to be a twink, despite approaching 30 at breakneck speed, is hardly gay, especially when he is screaming at me for some offense against humanity (apparently, I shouldn't walk around in my crib in boxers).

However, the offense to me over the use of the word gay comes from the corruption of innocence;

Flintstones. Meet the Flintstones.

They're the modern stone age family.

From the town of Bedrock,

They're a page right out of history.

Let's ride with the family down the street.

Through the courtesy of Fred's two feet.

When you're with the Flintstones

you'll have a yabba dabba doo time.

A dabba doo time.

You'll have a gay old time

Prior to the hijacking of the word, Fred Flintstone was a regular fellow down at the quarry, with his buddy Barney Rubble and their wives Wilma and Betty. Now, with the new version of gay, Fred and Barney have been transformed into bum buddies. It's a cultural tragedy, that's what it is.

[Jingthing]

It's a cultural tragedy, that's what it is.

Right up there with global warming ...

Oy vey, I guess you wouldn't like the term drama queen either.

In any case, there is no way to easily put the genie back in the bottle now as this use of the word gay has become international. In English, we did need a non-clinical word for homosexual (or more rude words like inverted or actual slurs), our equivalent to straight for heterosexuals. The gay word does have a history of being used as slang code within our subgroup. Alot of us aren't thrilled about the word, but it could have been much worse (as we did need this class of word for political reasons). When we use it we are not saying we are happy or not happy any more than a straight person is saying they are not a drug user or are not slouched; rather we are saying we are homosexual in a less clinical way.

Edited October 25, 2008 by Jingthing

[jdinasia]

some offense against humanity (apparently, I shouldn't walk around in my crib in boxers).

Nah .. the offense is using the word 'crib'

[Jingthing]

some offense against humanity (apparently, I shouldn't walk around in my crib in boxers).

Nah .. the offense is using the word 'crib'

Good point, this ain't diaperfetish.com after all ...

[kek]

I want the word gay to revert back to what it meant;

- cheery: bright and pleasant; promoting a feeling of cheer;

- full of or showing high-spirited merriment; "when hearts were young and gay"; "a poet could not but be gay, in such a jocund company"- Wordsworth

I'm sorry, but when I walk past a table of sour dour frowning grumpy homosexuals, they are anything but gay. Even my aging friend, that still tries to be a twink, despite approaching 30 at breakneck speed, is hardly gay, especially when he is screaming at me for some offense against humanity (apparently, I shouldn't walk around in my crib in boxers).

However, the offense to me over the use of the word gay comes from the corruption of innocence;

Flintstones. Meet the Flintstones.

They're the modern stone age family.

From the town of Bedrock,

They're a page right out of history.

Let's ride with the family down the street.

Through the courtesy of Fred's two feet.

When you're with the Flintstones

you'll have a yabba dabba doo time.

A dabba doo time.

You'll have a gay old time

Prior to the hijacking of the word, Fred Flintstone was a regular fellow down at the quarry, with his buddy Barney Rubble and their wives Wilma and Betty. Now, with the new version of gay, Fred and Barney have been transformed into bum buddies. It's a cultural tragedy, that's what it is.

Live with it.

Language is a constantly developing medium of communication and the English language is full of examples of words with two or more meanings. Even if the entire membership of this message board doesn't like it, the word GAY has now been adopted into international languages as meaning Homosexual as well as (in English) meaning Happy, Colorful, Carefree, Joyous and lots of other synonyms.

Do you object to other words multiple meanings? Five (of many) examples:

Angle = Where two straight lines meet or to catch fish? Or is it the line of self-pitying chat given to you by a moneyboy?

Balls = Round objects or dances? Or is it a 1960's expression for your testicles?

Bear = A furry animal or to carry? Or is it an obese, hirsute, gay man with body odour?

Gross = Twelve dozen or repellent? (A bit like gay bears?)

Tick = A nasty parasitic insect, the noise of a clock or the constant complaining about insignificant matters?

[PeaceBlondie]

I know straight men who have curvature of the spine, and gay men who stand proud and straight.