nonbinary

adjective

non·​bi·​na·​ry ˌnän-ˈbī-nə-rē 

-ˌner-ē,

-ˌne-rē

: not binary: such as

a

: not restricted to two things or parts

nonbinary voting

b

: of, relating to, or being a system of numbers that does not use 2 as its base

nonbinary math

c

or non-binary : relating to or being a person who identifies with or expresses a gender identity that is neither entirely male nor entirely female

non-binary people

… an effort to create more equality for nonbinary and transgender students across campus.

—Phoebe Roe

… many people with nonbinary genders use "they" and "their" pronouns …

—Lucy Brisbane

… the normalization of sharing pronouns emphasizes the fact that everyone has preferred pronouns, not just trans and non-binary folks.

—Christina M. Xiao

Examples of nonbinary in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The series, which premiered in 2020, follows a group of mostly Black women who work at a strip club called The Pynk, which is owned by nonbinary proprietor Uncle Clifford. —Mathew Rodriguez, Them., 8 Oct. 2025

Katsman, 29, who is nonbinary, has now applied for citizenship in Germany - a country their grandmother fled in the 1930s. —Lianne Kolirin, CNN Money, 7 Oct. 2025

The transition from season 49 to season 50 was rocky enough, with the departures of Johnson and Troast, as well as Molly Kearney, the series' first openly nonbinary cast member. —Ryan Coleman, Entertainment Weekly, 5 Oct. 2025

All are women, trans, or nonbinary creators developing feature films that place LGBTQ+ narratives at the center rather than the margins. —Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 3 Oct. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1863, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for nonbinary

• refinery
• binary
• finery
• winery

Medical Definition

nonbinary

adjective

non·​bi·​na·​ry -ˈbī-nə-rē 

-ˌner-ē

variants or non-binary

: relating to or being a person who identifies with or expresses a gender identity that is neither entirely male nor entirely female

Nonbinary people—individuals who identify as both male or female, neither male nor female, … and/or reject all gender identities—may experience unique mental health stressors due to cultural invisibility and ignorance surrounding nonbinary identities.

—Abbie E. Goldberg et al., The Counseling Psychologist

… some non-binary people who were assigned female at birth had chest surgery and/or took hormones. Others did not engage in these methods, but modified some visible markers of gender in other ways …

—Christina Richards et al., International Review of Psychiatry