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TERF (acronym)
Acronym for trans-exclusionary radical feminist / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
TERF (/tɜːrf/) is an acronym for trans-exclusionary radical feminist. First recorded in 2008, the term TERF was originally used to distinguish transgender-inclusive feminists from a group of radical feminists who reject the position that trans women are women, reject the inclusion of trans women in women's spaces, and oppose transgender rights legislation. Trans-inclusive feminists assert that these ideas and positions are transphobic and discriminatory towards transgender people. The use of the term TERF has since broadened to include reference to people with trans-exclusionary views who are not necessarily involved with radical feminism.[1][2][3] In the 2020s, the term "trans-exclusionary radical feminism" is used synonymously with or overlaps with "gender-critical feminism".
![Person in a crowd holding a placard showing "TERFY PRECZ" (TERFS OUT in Polish)](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/dc/Equality_March_2022_in_Gda%C5%84sk_-_TERF.jpg/640px-Equality_March_2022_in_Gda%C5%84sk_-_TERF.jpg)
Though TERF was created to be a "deliberately technically neutral description", the term is now considered a pejorative,[4] derogatory or disparaging.[5][6] People labeled TERFs often reject the label, instead describing their beliefs as gender critical.[7][8]