Agender vs nonbinary? Which am I?
05/13/25 5:04pm
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For me, I feel I'm consistently fluctuating between agender and non-binary. Agender is not identifying with any gender; it's a neutral thing. You may feel little connection to your body at all and like you don’t have to perform anything. Sometimes I feel like I lean into that a lot. Non-binary, on the other hand, gives a bit more flexibility and allows for more play. Non-binary would be the umbrella term, and agender would be under that umbrella.
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Being non-binary means that someone's gender identity doesn't align with the traditional binary of male and female, so they don't identify as either. They may feel like they don't fully feel like a male or female, so it can be something in between or entirely different.
Being agender means that a person doesn't associate or align with any gender. While someone who's agender could also be considered non-binary, the non-binary label covers a broader range of identities. Agender pronouns can vary from they/them to newer neopronouns like xe/xem, but always ask what someone's pronouns are to be sure.
Your gender identity and how you identify is really personal, so whether you use agender or non-binary all depends on what makes you feel the most comfortable. Also, remember that you don't have to choose a label if you don't want to.
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Being agender means that a person doesn't associate or align with any gender. While someone who's agender could also be considered non-binary, the non-binary label covers a broader range of identities. Agender pronouns can vary from they/them to newer neopronouns like xe/xem, but always ask what someone's pronouns are to be sure.
Your gender identity and how you identify is really personal, so whether you use agender or non-binary all depends on what makes you feel the most comfortable. Also, remember that you don't have to choose a label if you don't want to.
I would say that someone who is non-binary is someone who doesn't necessarily feel either "male" or "female". Maybe they don't resonate with either gender at all, or they feel both at once. Maybe it feels more comfortable and more expressive to step out of the stereotypical ideas of what it means to be male or female, and identify as non-binary. I think that a non-binary person has the feminist consciousness of what gender means in the world, they're taking gender performance theory into account, and they're deciding to go against the norm and identify as non-binary.
In contrast, "agender" would mean someone who just doesn't identify with a gender, and that's that, if that makes sense.
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In contrast, "agender" would mean someone who just doesn't identify with a gender, and that's that, if that makes sense.
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