What do you call someone attracted to trans people?

The question “what do you call someone attracted to trans people?” starts from a wrong assumption: the idea that trans people constitute a separate category, and that attraction to them requires a specific term. That is not the case.

Trans women are women. Trans men are men. And attraction to them falls within normal sexual orientations [1][3][6].

Why no specific name is needed

Sexual orientation describes a person’s pattern of attraction toward others based on gender [1]. A heterosexual man is attracted to women. If he is attracted to a trans woman, he is still heterosexual, because that person is a woman. A lesbian woman attracted to a trans woman is still a lesbian. A gay man attracted to a trans man is still gay.

Creating a specific term for attraction to trans people would imply that trans people are not “real” men or “real” women — an idea that contradicts scientific knowledge and the consensus of the major medical and psychological organizations [1][8].

This does not mean the issue is simple or without nuances. But the basic principle is clear: a person’s gender identity determines how their attraction to others is classified, and who is attracted to them [3].

The terms that circulate (and why they are problematic)

Despite it not being necessary, several terms have been proposed over time to describe attraction to trans people. Let’s examine them.

“Chaser”

The term chaser (literally “pursuer”) is used within the trans community to describe people — generally cisgender men — who specifically seek out trans people as sexual partners, fetishizing their body or identity [4].

A chaser is not simply a person attracted to a trans woman or man. They are someone who reduces the trans person to their trans status, treating them as an object of curiosity or sexual fantasy. Typical signs include: exclusive interest in the trans person’s pre-operative body, use of dehumanizing language, secrecy about the relationship, and refusal to see the person as a full woman or man.

Chasing is not a sexual orientation: it is a behavior that objectifies trans people [4].

“Skoliosexual” or “ceterosexual”

The term skoliosexual (from the Greek “skolio,” crooked) or the more recent ceterosexual (from the Latin “cetera,” other) refers to specific attraction toward non-binary or gender non-conforming people [7].

This term has its logic: attraction to people who identify as neither men nor women does not easily fit within the traditional categories of heterosexuality, homosexuality, or bisexuality. Some people find the term useful for describing their experience.

However, the term does not refer to attraction toward all trans people — only toward non-binary ones. And it is used by a minority of people. It is not a mainstream or universally accepted term [7].

“Gynephilia” and “androphilia”

In academic settings, some researchers use the terms gynephilia (attraction to femininity) and androphilia (attraction to masculinity) as alternatives to classification based on the subject’s gender [1]. These terms describe the gender of the object of attraction without presupposing the gender of the person experiencing the attraction.

They are useful in research contexts but are not common in everyday language.

Attraction and perceived gender

Research on sexuality shows that attraction works predominantly through perceived gender — meaning the gender in which we read a person in a social context — rather than through chromosomal or genital sex [5].

A 2019 study published in Archives of Sexual Behavior examined willingness to date trans people and found that 87.5% of participants excluded trans people from their potential partner pool [5]. However, this data reflects social prejudice more than the actual functioning of attraction. Many of the same participants, in implicit tests, showed attraction patterns consistent with the perceived gender of trans people, regardless of knowledge of their trans status.

In other words: if a heterosexual man finds a woman attractive, and then discovers that woman is trans, his initial attraction was already heterosexual. The discovery does not retroactively change the functioning of his sexuality [1].

Shame and taboo

A significant part of the problem is that many men (and to a lesser extent, women) who feel attraction toward trans people experience this attraction with shame [4][5]. The social stigma associated with trans people extends to their partners: men who date trans women are often subject to ridicule or questioning of their masculinity or heterosexuality.

This dynamic has real consequences: it pushes many relationships with trans people into secrecy, contributes to violence against trans women (the so-called “trans panic defense”), and deprives trans people of open and respectful relationships [4].

The truth is that feeling attracted to a trans person says nothing strange or problematic about the person experiencing the attraction. It simply says they are attracted to a person.

How to talk about it respectfully

If you are interested in a trans person or are dating a trans person, some guidelines:

Do not reduce the person to their trans identity. If the first thing you communicate is “I like trans people,” you are fetishizing. If you communicate “I like you,” you are treating the person as an individual [3][4].

Do not treat the relationship as a shameful secret. If you are dating a trans person but do not want anyone to know, ask yourself why. Secrecy communicates to the trans person that there is something wrong with them.

Educate yourself independently. Do not expect the trans person you are dating to become your encyclopedia on gender identity. The resources exist: use them.

Respect boundaries. Not all trans people are comfortable talking about their body, medical history, or transition. Do not take for granted the right to know.

Conclusion

There is no specific name for someone attracted to trans people, because one is not needed. Trans women are women, trans men are men, and attraction to them is simply attraction. Heterosexual, homosexual, bisexual — it depends on the genders involved, exactly as with any other couple.

What matters is not finding the right label to describe your attraction, but treating trans people with the same respect you would give anyone else: as whole people, not as categories.