disabled

Pronunciation

• IPA: /dɪsˈeɪb(ə)ld/^[1][2]

Etymology

It is the past participle of disable, used as an adjective;^[3][4][1] Barnhart analyses it as Middle English dis-abled, from the verb ablen, to make able or fit.^[5]

Earliest recorded meaning

Legally disqualified: the mid-15th century in Etymonline,^[3] 1444 in Barnhart.^[5]

Semantic evolution

The legal sense is now rare or obsolete.^[1] The sense of being made incapable of action or use, especially of a person through injury or illness, is from 1633 in the OED and MWU,^[6][4] the 1630s in Etymonline.^[3] An earlier word for lacking physical ability or strength was unabled, from the early 15th century.^[3] The disabled, used as a plural noun for disabled people as a group, is from 1916 in the OED, the early 20th century in SOED,^[6][1] and the adjective in the sense of designed for the use of disabled people is from the late 20th century.^[1] Collins notes that the collective the disabled is now often considered offensive.^[7]

Timeline

• 1444 – legally disqualified.^[5][3]
• 1633 – rendered incapable of action, especially by injury.^[6][4]
• 1916 – the disabled as a collective noun.^[6]
• late 20th century – for the use of disabled people.^[1]

Modern meaning

Adjective

1. Having a physical or mental condition that limits movement, the senses or activities; impaired.
2. Not working; inoperative: a disabled vehicle.
3. Designed for the use of disabled people.

Noun

1. Disabled people considered as a group, used with the.

Word family

• semidisabled
• nondisabled
• undisabled
• learning-disabled

Related words

• able
• disable
• disability
• unable

Usage notes

Collins advises describing a person's specific difficulty rather than speaking of the disabled as a group, which many find somewhat offensive.^[7]

References

1. ^ a b c d e f Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
2. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
3. ^ a b c d e Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
4. ^ a b c Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
5. ^ a b c Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
6. ^ a b c d Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
7. ^ a b Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins