Futch
Somewhere between femme and butch, or moving between the two.
Futch is a blend of [[femme|femme]] and [[butch|butch]]. It describes a lesbian, bisexual or otherwise [[sapphic|sapphic]] person whose expression mixes the two, sits somewhere in the middle, or moves between them.
It covers more than one look. Some futch people present in a fairly neutral, androgynous way most of the time. Others are clearly femme one day and clearly butch the next. The word holds both.
It is older than its internet fame. The LGBTQIA+ Wiki points to a 2002 issue of The Advocate in which a lesbian describes herself as futch, meaning a feminine butch. The word spread much further in the 2010s on Tumblr, helped along by a meme called the futch scale, which laid out the steps between butch and femme.
Futch people can be cis, trans or nonbinary, and the definition in common use includes nonbinary people who feel close to womanhood.
Nearby words cover similar ground. Soft butch and chapstick lesbian overlap heavily with it. Among Black and Latinx lesbians, [[stem|stem]] names a similar middle space, and has its own history and its own rules about who uses it.
Futch is not being undecided
Sitting in the middle, or moving between two ends, gets read as not having chosen yet. Futch is the choice. It names an expression that is both, on purpose, rather than a stop on the way to one or the other.
It also gets dismissed as a joke word because of the meme. The meme made it famous; the word was already in use years before.
Saying it well
Say this
- I am futch.
- Futch: femme jacket, butch boots.
- Futch, and more butch some weeks than others.
- Somewhere between butch and femme, and happy there.
Not this
- So you cannot decide
- Futch is just a meme
- Pick a side
- Not butch enough to be butch, then
Questions people actually ask
What does futch mean?
A blend of femme and butch: a sapphic person whose expression mixes the two, sits between them, or moves back and forth.
Is futch a real term?
Yes. It was in use by the early 2000s, and spread widely on Tumblr in the 2010s.
What is the futch scale?
An online meme that laid out a range from butch to femme, with futch in the middle. It popularised the word but did not invent it.
What is the difference between futch and stem?
They describe similar in-between expression. Stem comes from Black and Latinx lesbian communities and is not a general word; futch is.
Can nonbinary people be futch?
Yes. The word describes expression, and nonbinary people close to womanhood use it.