Which term should be avoided when referring to people with disabilities?

• A. Disability
• B. Impairment
• C. Handicap
• D. Barrier

Answer: (C)

Language around disability has shifted toward terms that keep the person at the center and describe the condition or environment in a respectful way. Handicap is the term to avoid because it has long carried a stigmatizing, outdated sense of a person being intrinsically limited by society or circumstance. It’s seen as demeaning and no longer appropriate for referring to people.

Disability is a broad term used to describe a condition or difference; impairment refers to a loss or abnormality in body or function in a medical sense; barrier describes an obstacle in the environment or attitudes that makes participation harder. None of these are used to label a person in a negative way the way handicap historically was, which is why handicap is the term to steer clear of.