Non-op
adj, noun, slang ·Moderate ·College level
Definitions
- 1 A transsexual or transgender person who has chosen not to undergo sex reassignment surgery. informal
"It is interesting that Galatea makes reference to some encouragement from "post-op" transsexuals, though other "non-ops" advise surgical candidates to reconsider their decision."
- 2 A nonoperator; a rail worker not directly involved in the mechanical operation of trains. informal
"For example, in the fall of 1973, when we had a rail strike, the government brought in legislation putting the non-ops back to work at an increase of only 30 cents an hour […]"
- 1 Nonoperational; not functioning. informal, not-comparable
"Why he had taken refuge in the chapel, he didn't know. His mind had been non-op for a long time now and he just let the impulses flow."
- 2 Nonoperative; not using or requiring surgical treatment. informal, not-comparable
"Richt says the surgery should help speed Samuel's recovery. "It was debatable on whether it could have been non-op or not, but this will absolutely stabilize it immediately and allow him to get stronger quicker," Richt said."
- 3 Having chosen not to undergo sex reassignment surgery. informal, not-comparable
""Just so you know, Vincent, I was a pre-op transsexual. But after my breasts grew and my hips got wider, I was happy with what I had and decided to go non-op.""
- 4 Nonoperating; not directly involved in the mechanical operation of trains. informal, not-comparable
"About 200000 "non-op" workers - clerks, telegraphers, machinists, and others not actually involved in operation of the roads - are not union members."
Synonyms
All synonymsExample
More examples"Why he had taken refuge in the chapel, he didn't know. His mind had been non-op for a long time now and he just let the impulses flow."
Etymology
From non- + op (“an operation; an operator; operational; operative; operating”).
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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.