Say. . .

Instead of. . .

child with a disability

disabled or handicapped child

person with cerebral palsy

C.P., spastic

person who is deaf or hard of hearing

deaf and dumb

person with a cognitive or intellectual disability

mentally retarded, retard

person with epilepsy or person with seizure disorder

epileptic

person who has...

afflicted, suffers from, victim

without speech, nonverbal

mute, dumb

developmental delay

slow

emotional disorder or mental illness

crazy, insane, mentally ill

uses a wheelchair

confined to a wheelchair, wheelchair bound

with Down syndrome

mongoloid, retard

has a learning disability

is learning disabled

developing typically

normal, healthy

has a physical disability

crippled

congenital disability

birth defect

condition

disease (unless it is a disease)

seizures

fits or spells

cleft lip

hare lip

mobility impaired

lame

medically involved, has a chronic illness

sickly

paralyzed

invalid or paralytic

has hemiplegia (paralysis of one side of the body)

hemiplegic

has quadriplegia (paralysis of both arms and legs)

quadriplegic

has paraplegia (loss of function in lower body only)

paraplegic

of short stature

dwarf or midget

accessible parking

handicapped parking