homosexual

Etymology

Borrowed from German homosexual, from homo- (“same”) + sexual (“relating to sex or sexuality”), coined by Karl Maria Kertbeny in 1868, and popularized in Richard von Krafft-Ebing's Psychopathia Sexualis (2nd ed. 1887, in German) and Charles Gilbert Chaddock's 1892 English translation thereof (compare bisexual), displacing the slightly older term Uranian. Equivalent to homo- + -sexual.

adj

1. (of a person or animal, formal, distancing or dated) Sexually and/or romantically attracted to members of the same sex, such as a man who is attracted to men or a woman who is attracted to women; gay. (Typically used in the sense of sole/exclusive attraction.)
   No, it wouldn't make a difference if the applicant was homosexual.
   [H]e said he had never noticed anything homosexual in himself. 1892 [1889], Charles Gilbert Chaddock, transl., Psychopathia Sexualis, Philadelphia: F. A. Davis, translation of Psychopathia Sexualis by R. von Krafft-Ebing, page 97
   Significant results indicate that Swedes would choose a more masculine partner the more homosexual they are, and that Finns would choose a more attractive partner the more homosexual they are. 1983, Michael W. Ross, Homosexuality and Social Sex Roles
2. (of a romantic or sexual act or relationship, formal, distancing or dated) Between two people of the same sex; gay.
   Most western countries have repealed laws against homosexual activity between consenting adults.
   Shatner: Have you ever had a homosexual experience? Maher: No. Why, are you...? But it's early! Mar 20, 2022, Bill Maher, William Shatner, 56:37 from the start, in William Shatner, Club Random With Bill Maher, episode 1, Club Random Podcast, archived from the original on 2022-04-05
3. (dated) Intended for or used by homosexuals, as a nightclub, a bar, etc.
   No one says "a homosexual bar" anymore; it's a "gay bar" or maybe a "lesbian bar".

noun

1. (typically formal, distancing or dated) A person who is sexually attracted solely or primarily to others of the same sex.
   Soon, we got up, walked around the west side — toward the "meat rack" — the gay part of the park. There, it was as if someone had hung a line of marionettes on the railing: the lonesome young homosexuals, legs dangling, looking, waiting for that one-night's sexual connection... 1963, John Rechy, City of Night, page 48
   It was unheard-of for those of us who are 30-something or older to have had an openly gay role model when we were young. Homosexuals weren't depicted in the media in a positive light, if at all. 1997, The Advocate, number 742, page 9