Meanings
plural trans panic defenses
- informallawA claim of self-defense against an unwanted transgender sexual advance.
The “trans panic defense” is an outgrowth of the “gay panic defense” that was first articulated by Edward J. Kempf, a clinical psychiatrist who wished to identify a particular mental disorder related to homosexuality.
2022, Loren Cannon, The Politicization of Trans Identity, page 99
Origin
Modelled on the earlier gay panic defense.
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
trans panic defense. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/trans%20panic%20defense
“trans panic defense.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/trans%20panic%20defense. Accessed November 4, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “trans panic defense,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/trans%20panic%20defense.
Source: trans panic defense on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.