cis-
EnglishEdit
EtymologyEdit
From the Latin preposition cis (“on this side of”).
PrefixEdit
cis-
- On this side of.
- cis-Neptunian, cisalpine
- (chemistry) Forming names of chemical compounds in which two atoms or groups are situated on the same side of some plane of symmetry passing through the compound.
- (gender) Cis; cisgender or cissexual.
- (gender) Of, related or specific to cis persons.
Usage notesEdit
- In the first sense, "on this side of", this prefix is usually attached directly to the word it modifies, or sometimes separated from it by a hyphen: cisrhenane, cis-Neptunian.
- In the gender-related senses, this prefix is attached directly to certain words, most notably cisgender and cissexual (which are almost always spelled thus, not as e.g. *cis sexual). In other cases, the related standalone adjective cis is used: hence one speaks of a cis perspective (not *cisperspective), etc. In particular, it is now sometimes considered offensive to write cisman or cis-man, the preferred spelling being cis man (cis man). Compare trans- and trans.