Writing about disability
When you write about people with disabilities, focus on each individual’s accomplishments, personality, authentic story, or message. You may not even need to mention someone’s disability unless it’s essential to the content; if you do refer to someone’s disability, follow the guidelines below.
Understand when to use identity-first or person-first language.
People who consider a disability or neurodivergence to be part of their identity may prefer identity-first language, which places an emphasis on culture: A Deaf person, an autistic person.
Others may prefer person-first language, which emphasizes the individual first, then their disability: A person who is deaf or hard of hearing, a person on the autism spectrum.
Preferences for identity-first and person-first language vary; when writing about specific individuals or groups, always ask them how they prefer to be identified.
For advice about specific terms, see A guide to terms about disability, below.
Acknowledge a wide range of disability.
It’s helpful to think about disability on a spectrum. For example, with blindness, there’s a wide range of vision differences—from people who are born blind, to those with low vision, to others with loss of vision in certain areas, such as peripheral vision. In addition, some people may have multiple disabilities.
Avoid ableist language.
Don’t use language that presents people without disabilities as the norm. For example, don’t describe nondisabled people as normal, healthy, regular, or able-bodied. Instead, you can use a person without a disability, a nondisabled person, a neurotypical person, a hearing person, and similar terms.
Avoid treating disability as something to overcome, and don’t describe people with disabilities as brave, courageous, or inspiring, which can come across as condescending.
Avoid language that refers to using specific senses.
When writing instructions (such as in training manuals or user guides), avoid using phrases that refer to the use of specific senses, like you see a message, you see a flashing light, or you hear an alert sound. Instead, simply describe what happens: A message appears, a light flashes, an alert sound plays.
Also avoid using idioms that send negative messages about disability—for example, that’s crazy, fell on deaf ears, or turned a blind eye to.
Some phrases and idioms are OK.
It’s OK to use commonly understood phrases such as the ones below:
I see your point.
You can watch your favorite movies on the Apple TV app.
Hear about the latest news right when it happens.
Don’t hesitate to speak your mind.
Even if people in your audience can’t see, hear, or speak, they’ll typically understand the intent of the words.
It’s also OK to use the common cross-reference See when linking to other material (for example, See the Apple Support article “Set up Family Sharing”).
A guide to terms about disability
Use the table below as a general guide when writing about disability.
In most cases, use identity-first language for people who consider a disability to be part of their identity; otherwise, you can use person-first language. When you’re writing about specific people with disabilities, be sure to find out how they prefer to be identified.
Identity first | Person first | Avoid |
|---|---|---|
A disabled person Disabled people | A person with a disability People with disabilities | Differently abled Special needs Special abilities Handicapped Handicapable |
A blind person | A person who is blind A person who has low vision | Note: Some people may use the term visually impaired. If you’re writing about someone specific, ask them what they prefer. |
A deaf person Note: Use Deaf (with a capital D) to refer to those who identify culturally as Deaf—for example, a member of the Deaf community. | A person who is deaf A person who is hard of hearing People who are deaf or hard of hearing | Hearing impaired Deaf and dumb Deaf-mute |
A deafblind person Note: Some communities capitalize the D, or both the D and B—for example, a DeafBlind person, the DeafBlind community. If you’re writing about someone specific, ask them what they prefer. | A person who is deaf and blind | |
A limb-different person An amputee | A person with limb differences A person who had an amputation | |
A wheelchair user | A person who uses a wheelchair A person in a wheelchair | Wheelchair-bound Confined to a wheelchair |
An autistic person Autistic people Note: Some people who identify culturally as autistic capitalize the A—for example, an Autistic person. If youʼre writing about someone specific, ask them how they prefer to be identified. | A person on the autism spectrum People on the spectrum Note: Many autistic people prefer identity-first language to person-first language. However, if you’re writing about someone specific, ask them what they prefer. | A person with autism, people with autism Autism spectrum disorder (use only to refer to a medical diagnosis; otherwise, use on the spectrum) High-functioning, low-functioning (instead, describe the type of support the person needs) Asperger’s Note: Some people may identify with the term Asperger’s (or Aspie). If youʼre writing about someone specific, ask them what they prefer. |
A neurodivergent person | A person with a neurodivergence | A neurodiverse person (individuals are neurodivergent or neurotypical; a group is neurodiverse) |
A nonspeaking person A nonverbal person Note: The terms above have distinct meanings; if you’re writing about someone specific, ask them how they prefer to be identified. | A person who is nonspeaking A person who is nonverbal | Mute |