Reply #21: "Homosexuals & lesbians" or "gays & lesbians" seems grossly redundant. [View All]

[American Tragedy]

It confuses me when people differentiate lesbians like that, since my understanding has always been that "homosexual" or "gay" simply refers to any person male or female who is attracted to the same sex, not strictly a man who is attracted to other men. That is at least the meaning held by Merriam-Webster.

ho·mo·sex·u·al
Pronunciation: "hO-m&-'sek-sh(&-)w&l, -'sek-sh&l
Function: adjective
1 : of, relating to, or characterized by a tendency to direct sexual desire toward another of the same sex
2 : of, relating to, or involving sexual intercourse between persons of the same sex

gay
Pronunciation: 'gA
Function: adjective
Etymology: Middle English, from Middle French gai
1 a : happily excited : MERRY b : keenly alive and exuberant : having or inducing high spirits
2 a : BRIGHT, LIVELY <gay sunny meadows> b : brilliant in color
3 : given to social pleasures; also : LICENTIOUS
4 a : HOMOSEXUAL b : of, relating to, or used by homosexuals <the gay rights movement>