Terminology

Planning an Accessible Meeting

The following words and expressions are currently preferred and reflect a positive attitude toward people with disabilities and people who are deaf. Some meanings may vary depending on context or locale. The ideal is to incorporate these words into our language in a way that expresses the dignity of the person to whom we are referring or to whom we are speaking.

• person with a disability
• disabled
• person who is differently-abled
• hearing impaired
• deaf
• psychologically / emotionally disabled
• non-disabled
• developmentally disabled
• mentally retarded
• mentally disabled
• mobility disabled
• wheelchair-user or uses a wheelchair
• person with cerebral palsy
• person with paraplegia
• blind
• low vision
• vision impaired