Why Does 'Straight' Mean Heterosexual?

↓ More info and sources below ↓

When did we start defining sexual orientation and how did that result in "straight" becoming a synonym for "heterosexual"? Today Danielle follows the winding history of the word through medical terms, lavender linguistics, and community slang.

Created and Hosted by Danielle Bainbridge
Produced by Complexly for PBS Digital Studios

#linguistics #straight #OriginOfEverything

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Origin of Everything is a show about the undertold histories and cultural dialogues that make up our collective story. From the food we eat, to the trivia and fun facts we can’t seem to get out of our heads, to the social issues we can’t stop debating, everything around us has a history. Origin of Everything is here to explore it all. We like to think that no topic is too small or too challenging to get started.

Works Cited:

Doyle, C. (1982). Homosexual Slang Again. American Speech, 57(1), p.74.

[apmcd]

I like the fact that she's talking about the use of the word "straight" in front of some clearly unstraight bookshelves.

[Hallows]

“All words are made-up” - Thor, Avengers: Infinity War.

[emoXjessiX]

Shakespeare made up a lot of words so idk why people are getting mad about new words

[greensteve]

So the word "straight" originated in the gay community. That's hilarious! xD

[jameshardison]

To ignore the term “bent” in this discussion is a big mistake. Bent was used to indicate behaviors from criminal activity to sexual kinks. And in the case of homosexuality it was both for a large part of western history. “Straight” is the clear antonym of “Bent” and people who used one of these slang terms usually used both.

[mandelabutterfly]

Answer to the question I didn't know i asked.

[rgbii]

As a teen in the 70's, "straight" tended to mean following the rules and not doing drugs. I remember a common "joke" while a bunch of us where driving around and someone was giving the driver directions and would say something like "Ok, just go straight", the driver would yell "Never!" Normally we where passing something around as we went.

[kidatanakafan]

"Describe this ruler"

Me: *Heterosexual*

[seratheeducatedfeline]

7:14-
“Are you a boy or a girl?”
‘I’m Spanish’

[joshou]

Hello asexual here thanks for showing the ace flag in the background. :)

[bobcunningham]

Wearing a watch pendant takes all the fun out of guessing the continuity... But back to the topic.

There is also the word "bent" that is the not-quite-antithesis of "straight". In the '70's, the phrase "let's get bent" meant getting high, but not crazy high (after "buzz" became hackneyed). But also saying "he's bent" about a person who is clearly not high, was a milder/non-judgmental way of indicating someone is gay/heterosexual without using those labels. I was a bit androgynous back in the day (Bowie fan), and party introductions using those phrases were meant to make me feel welcome independent of my orientation.

[wormguylovesworms]

How are you so underrated? Like... these are so cool.

[timmcdaniel]

I seem to remember "going straight", meaning to eschew a life of crime, being an older phrase than the usages mentioned, and therefore may have influenced the slang.

[cjthibeau]

So glad yall covered this topic, as someone part of the LGBTQ+ community, I wasn't even sure why "straight' equaled hetero. ANd so happy yall mentioned straight edge even! Great video I will be showing my students! So cool yall talked about Lavender linguistics too!

[IsomerMashups]

So "heterosexual" originally meant "pervert?"

[lyreparadox]

I'd love a deeper dive into lavender linguistics.

[XiaosChannel]

why bother abolishing the word "straight" because of its moral implication, if you believe the moral implication is so obscure, that you need to educate them about it? why not just admit meanings of words can change, and move on?

[ynntari]

I love how the shelfs behind her are not straight

[andrewlonghofer]

Arguably the weirdest use of “straight” to mean generally morally pure: the Boy Scout Oath.

[yensid]

There used to be a term "straight laced" or "straight arrow"& when I was a kid in the 70s if someone was referred to as "straight" it usually meant they didn't drink, smoke or do drugs recreationally. In other words, they were a goody two shoes who didn't get in trouble. I think kids now use "straight edge" in a similar way. Nothing whatsoever to do with anyone's sexual preference. Language & the way it's used/changes is fascinating, confusing, contextual & nuanced.