What "TS" Means on Cam Sites, and Other Terms Worth Knowing
Cam sites use a mix of old and new words for trans performers. Knowing what each means helps you search well and talk to performers in a way they'll welcome.
TS
TS is short for transsexual. It's an older term, and some performers still use it for themselves, especially in tags and room titles, because it's what many viewers search. On cam sites today, TS almost always means a trans woman. If a performer describes herself as TS, it's fine to use it about her. If she doesn't, "trans" is the safer word.
A Quick Glossary
| Trans | The umbrella term, and the name of the category on the major platforms. |
|---|---|
| Trans woman / transgirl | A woman who was assigned male at birth. Stripchat uses "transgirl" as a label. |
| T-girl | Casual shorthand for a trans woman. Common in tags and widely used by performers themselves. |
| Trans man / transboy / FtM | A man who was assigned female at birth. FtM stands for female to male. |
| MtF | Male to female; an older way of saying trans woman. |
| Non-binary | Someone who doesn't identify as only a man or a woman. |
| Pronouns | Often listed in a performer's bio. Use the ones given. |
Words to Retire
A few older terms for trans women are now widely considered slurs, even though some viewers use them without knowing. We don't print them here. If you've been searching with one, you're not alone, and switching to "trans" or "TS" will get you better results anyway, because that's how the platforms name their sections. Performers and moderators may mute viewers who use those words in chat.
Questions to Leave Out of Chat
- Questions about surgery or medical transition. That's private, and a performer's bio will say whatever she wants known.
- Guesses about someone's "real" name or past.
- Comparisons between performers' bodies.
Our etiquette guide covers the rest.
What to Search
- Chaturbate: choose the trans room type, then use the live hashtags, such as #ts or #tgirl, that performers are using right now.
- Stripchat: open the Trans section and use its transgirl, transboy and non-binary labels. Our Stripchat filters guide walks through them.
Visit Chaturbate's trans rooms
Questions
Is TS offensive?
Not usually on cam sites, where many performers use it themselves. Outside that context some people find it dated, so "trans" is the safe default.
What's the difference between TS and trans?
Trans is the broad, current term. TS is an older word that, on cam sites, nearly always means a trans woman.
What does T-girl mean?
It's casual shorthand for a trans woman, common in hashtags.
See also: finding trans performers and our rankings.