Oprah Winfrey and her friend Gayle King want to be clear: they’re not gay.

In the August issue of O, the Oprah Magazine, the talk-show host explains that some people misunderstand her close friendship with King.

“I understand why people think we’re gay,” she says. “There isn’t a definition in our culture for this kind of bond between women. So I get why people have to label it — how can you be this close without it being sexual?”

In a long article, Winfrey, 52, and King converse about their 30 years of friendship and “four-times-a-day phone calls.” King, who hosted “The Gayle King Show” in 1997, is an editor of O, the Oprah Magazine.

The two friends say they would have no problem telling the public if they were in a sexual relationship.

“The truth is, if we were gay, we would tell you, because there’s nothing wrong with being gay,” says King.

Says Winfrey: “Something about this relationship feels otherworldly to me, like it was designed by a power and a hand greater than my own. Whatever this friendship is, it’s been a very fun ride.”

On the Net:

http://www.oprah.com/omagazine/omag—landing.jhtml