Feminine-presenting

Feminine-presenting describes someone whose outward appearance, clothing, and style read as feminine, separate from how they identify inside. It speaks to gender expression, which is visible to others, rather than gender identity, which is not. A non-binary person might be feminine-presenting without identifying as a woman. A trans woman might move between feminine and more androgynous presentation on different days. The term is helpful precisely because it makes no assumption about identity, attraction, or sex assigned at birth. It describes only what an observer sees in a given moment. As with related terms, the safest approach is to use the language and pronouns a person names for themselves rather than inferring from presentation.