Disability ServicesCommunication Etiquette | Person-First Language

People with disabilities are just that—people. Everyone has multiple facets to their personalities and different aspects to their lives. Using language that puts the person first is not a matter of political correctness—it acknowledges that people with disabilities are human beings and should not be defined or limited by other’s perceptions of their bodies and minds.

Say	Instead of
People with disabilities	The disabled, the handicapped
The disability community	Special-needs population
Child with a disability	Disabled or handicapped child
Has…	Is afflicted with…suffer from… is a victim of….
Person with cerebral palsy	Palsied or spastic
Without speech, nonverbal	Mute or dumb
Has a developmental delay	Is slow
Has emotional disorder or mental illness	Is crazy, nuts, insane, postal
Can’t hear and has no speech	Deaf and dumb
Uses a wheelchair	Is confined to a wheelchair; is wheelchair-bound
Person with mental retardation	Retarded
Person with epilepsy	Epileptic
Person with Down Syndrome	Mongoloid
Has a learning disability	Is learning disabled
Not disabled	Normal, healthy, able-bodied
Has a physical disability or mobility impairment	Is crippled, lame
Has a chronic illness	Is sickly
Has quadriplegia (paralysis of both arms and legs)	Is quadriplegic
Has paraplegia (loss of function in lower body only)	Is paraplegic

This material was adapted from: Succeeding Together: People With Disabilities in the Workplace by Terri Goldstein, M.S., CRC, Michael Winkler, M.S., and Margaret Chun, M.S., and presented at The Oakland County Employment and Diversity Council’s Workplace Diversity luncheon: From Barriers To Bridges-Honoring Our common Differences, Friday, November 14, 2003, Northfield Hilton, Troy, Michigan.