Femme is a term used in lesbian and gay subculture to describe an LGBT+ person, typically a lesbian or otherwise sapphic woman who has a feminine gender presentation. Femme people will often dress in feminine clothing, and typically present themselves in a more stereotypical feminine way, such as having long hair, and wearing makeup. Femmes are also commonly thought of as having more "feminine" interests. However, femme people often subvert cultural expectations of femininity or show femininity in a uniquely queer way, as opposed to cishet women. Femme women can be cisgender, transgender, or any other gender modality. Femme can also be used by non-binary people. Traditionally, femme has been used by individuals who are attracted to butches. For some femmes, this attraction to butches represents a strong part of their own identity. However, some femmes are attracted to other femmes.
Femme is most commonly associated with lesbians, but it is also used by other groups in the LGBTQ+ community. This includes m-spec sapphics and queer men.
Other Terms
Some other terms that are typically synonymous with femme include: "lipstick lesbian" and "designer dyke".
High Femme
Someone who is highly feminine, typically putting in a lot of effort into their appearance. They may also choose to only date butch partners.
Blue Jeans Femme
Someone who is femme but prefers more casual clothes.
Stone Femme
Stone femme may refer to a femme who is stone, meaning they do not like their genitals sexually touched by their partners. (They may also identify as asexual and/or placiosexual.) It may also refer to the femme partner of a stone butch.