Cishet
Cisgender and heterosexual. The combination, in one word.
Cishet is the compound for cisgender and heterosexual: someone whose gender matches the one assigned at birth and who is attracted to a different gender. It exists because the two together describe a specific position, not because either half is remarkable on its own.
It is mostly used to describe an audience, a default or a perspective rather than an individual. A cishet reading of a film, a cishet assumption in a form, a room that is entirely cishet.
It is not a slur, and it is frequently heard as one for the same reason cisgender is: being named at all is unfamiliar to people who have always been the unmarked case.
It is also not an accusation of anything. Plenty of the people most useful to trans communities are cishet, and the word says nothing about anyone's conduct.
Cishet describes a position, not a character
Because it usually appears in criticism of a default, it gets read as an insult attached to the individual rather than a description of the default.
The word does the same work as cisgender: it gives the unmarked case a name so that it can be discussed instead of assumed.
Saying it well
Say this
- A cishet audience.
- The form assumed everyone filling it in was cishet.
- He is cishet and entirely fine.
- Cishet is a description, not a verdict.
Not this
- Cishet is a slur
- So you hate straight people
- Why do we need a word for normal
- Stop labelling people
Questions people actually ask
What does cishet mean?
Cisgender and heterosexual: gender matching the one assigned at birth, and attraction to a different gender.
Is cishet a slur?
No. It is a compound of two descriptive words, and it says nothing about anyone's conduct.
Why is the word used?
Because the combination describes a specific default position that is otherwise assumed rather than named.
Can cishet people be allies?
Yes, and many are. The word describes a position, not a stance.