Gay Men: Are You a Jock, Otter, Bear or Wolf? Which Type Are You?

Gay men often use descriptive terms to identify and label other men within the wider gay community. No doubt you’ve heard of some of these labels, like jock, otter, bear, cub, wolf, and so forth. But many gay men often wonder what these terms actually mean.

How many times have you approached your friends and asked them, “What am I? Which group do I fall into? And what the heck is a wolf?”

Maybe you’ve even sent them a bathroom mirror selfie wanting some answers.

After conducting extensive research on gay body types, collecting survey opinions from gay blogs, and plugging the data into high-grade statistical analysis software, the typologies of gay male body types can now be revealed. Much of the analysis draws upon search phrases via Google’s algorithms. Nothing was left to chance.

Please note that we have not included all of the groups here and the ones that are here may have a subgroup. It is entirely possible that your group is not listed. Finally, some may disagree with these labels as there continues to be ongoing friction regarding what they mean. This is simply an attempt to offer clarity.

If you have any suggestion please send us an email at info@maylwear.com

T H E  O T T E R

In the gay world, an otter is considered a thin gay male that is hairy and may or may not use a trimmer to shorten body hair. Some otters have beards, and some do not.

Otters usually have smaller frames when compared to the heavier cub or bear and look a lot like what you would see in a picture of an otter, hairy. This might surprise some people who typically think of otters as smooth.

Athletic but not super built, a person can be an otter regardless of age, and they are considered to be part of the larger bear community. Think of otters being somewhere between cubs and bears. They’re not as massive as bears and are certainly smaller than cubs.

T H E  W O L F

Semi-hairy, muscular, lean, attractive, and sexually aggressive, wolves are sometimes considered as part of the larger bear community or on the bear spectrum. They can be any age and normally have facial hair.

Some might also describe wolves as slimmer bears, but there is a lot of disagreement on this. Subgroups of wolves can be found in aging wolves, which are gay men with wolf-like features that are starting to turn a bit gray.

And then there are full-on silver or gray wolves, terms that describe an older wolf with gray or white facial and body hair.

T H E  B E A R

Characteristically, a bear is a large, possibly heavy gay man that could also be muscular. A fairly large protruding belly is a defining characteristic of a bear.

Masculinity is also a key feature of bears, and some bears are so caught up in projecting a masculine image that they shun other would-be bears who appear to be too effeminate. That said, many bears consider themselves to be harmless and even playful.

There are several subtypes of bear, which include: Muscle Bears: Bears whose size comes from muscle and not from fat. Polar Bears: Older bears with gray or white facial and body hair. Sugar Bears: Effeminate bears that are shunned by more masculine bears

T H E  C U B

For gay men, the term cub is used to describe a younger (or younger-looking) male that is usually husky or heavier in body type and is almost always hairy. While many cubs have a beard, it is not a requirement to fit this category since body hair and huskiness are the dominant features for this gay descriptor.

Cubs are sometimes partnered with bears in passive relationships or with other cubs, and they can sometimes be considered an apprentice to a bear.

Here are a few subtypes of cubs: Muscle Cubs: Body size is attributable to muscular composition as opposed to body fat. Sugar Cubs: Effeminate cubs

T H E  C H U B

In the gay world, chubs are a distinct subgroup within the gay male population and are often confused with bears. Many bears reject extremely large or obese chubs and do not consider them as part of their subgroup. Chubs even have their own events, such as Mr. Chub International. According to my research, an extremely large chub is referred to as a superchub.

Along with chubs, I should note a group of people called chasers. These individuals are attracted romantically and physically to chubs and are typically much smaller than chubs.

T H E  P U P

A pup is a gay male who is fairly young—we’re talking late teens to early 20s more or less. Pups are known for their lack of experience in the gay world, as well as for being naïve, energetic, and cute. They may have similar body types to twinks (see the end of the article) however, pups usually are super new to the gay world whereas twinks are not.

Though they share some similarities to cubs, pups are not involved in the bear community and likely do not even know this community exists.

You often hear seasoned gay men tell very young gay men who are just coming out things like, "You are just a young pup - you have a lot to learn." or "You are just a pup - you’re just a baby!"

T H E  B U L L

In the gay community, bulls are body builders that weigh between 215 and 300 pounds. They are not necessarily part of the bear community and usually herd together as a bull might in its natural environment.

T W I N K S

In gay terms, twinks are younger, slim men with minimal body hair and no hair on the face. They’re usually between 18 and the mid-20’s, give or take a few years. A wrap on the twink is that many think the world revolves around them.

T W U N K S

Twunks are a more muscular version of twinks, and some have assigned feminine and masculine characteristics to twunks. For example, sugar twunk describes an affectionate twunk.

Some make the mistake of confusing twinks and twunks with tweakers when they’re actually not related. Tweakers are younger gay men that use party drugs, like E and crystal meth and are very thin as a result of not eating enough. However, one does not need to be a tweaker to tweak.

T H E  G Y M  B U N N Y

Gym bunnies are native to both straight and gay worlds. They can be any age but are usually younger than 50. Gym bunnies spend an obsessive amount of time working on their physique and are muscular and sculpted as a result.

Bunnies are similar to jocks except that their fitness is not usually connected to sports. They work out to create a physique others will notice and look at. You will often find gym bunnies at the beach, and they are typically considered pretty.

T H E  J O C K

For gay men, jocks are almost always considered attractive, muscular males with low body fat. A jock can be of any age, but they are generally considered to be younger because of their athletic abilities, and they are usually linked to playing sports and being active.

Years ago, the term "jock" used to have a negative connotation in the straight world. However, for gays, being called a jock is a compliment.

T H E  G Y M  R A T

Gym rats are somewhat similar to gym bunnies but are distinguished by their addiction to working out. While they may enjoy attention from others in public, that is not their motivation for being fit. Their primary motive for long, daily lifting sessions relates more to an obsessive need to get bigger. They are typically lean and very well-built. Like a rat lives in the basement, gym rats live at the gym and are always there. The straight equivalent would be a muscle head.

Gym bunnies and gym rats are closely related. Again, the primary difference is that gym bunnies care most about sculpting their bodies, whereas gym rats are typically concerned with adding muscle size in hopes of becoming a bull.

S O M E  F I N A L  T H O U G H T S

There has always been disagreement within the gay community around descriptive terms for body types and their associated characteristics. It is possible that some readers could feel they don’t fall into any of the above categories.

If this is the case, there is always the "average" category, which is an area that many gay men fall into and simply means that the person is average in most areas, including body weight, height, and hairiness.

Note that the term "daddy" not used here. This is because a "daddy" is not connected to a specific body type. Wolves, bears, chubs, and otters can all technically be daddies.

A great video to stream or download is The Adonis Factor, a documentary that goes into fairly deep detail on gay body types.