Reading hte thread about ‘dyke’ being derogatory, I wondered,“Is butch as offensive?”
Not usually. It’s just descriptive. It can be used offensively, of course, but just because one word for lesbians is widely considered offensive doesn’t all words connected to lesbians are.
I just read a guide to terms that includes “butch” as an offensive one, not to be used. I forget the origin but it’s a university reference doc.
As a lesbian, I say ‘meh.’ It’s all about context/tone, nothing inherently offensive about ‘dyke’ or ‘butch.’