Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

people-first language

Word Rarity Common

Frequency: Zipf frequency 5.03 in modern English

Syllables: peo-ple--first lan-guage
IPA

28

Scrabble Score

19

Letters

5

Syllables

13

Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

Language that refers to people with disabilities by saying people first, for example "people with disabilities", instead of adjectives ("disabled people") and copulas ("he is disabled") that would give primacy to the disability.

Uncountable

Example Sentences

"People with disabilities and professionals in the human services field are promoting the use of "people first" language, which refers to the person first and the disability second: "Americans with disabilities," for example, rather than "disabled Americans"."

Etymology

The term first appears in 1988, used by advocacy groups in the United States.

Usage

Uncountable

Frequently Paired Words

identity-first language

Questions

What does people-first language mean?: Language that refers to people with disabilities by saying people first, for example "people with disabilities", instead of adjectives ("disabled people") and copulas ("he is disabled") that would give primacy to the disability.
Where does people-first language come from?: The term first appears in 1988, used by advocacy groups in the United States.

How to pronounce people-first language

Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “people-first language”.
Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling () so you know which sounds to aim for.
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Repeat and practice — Say “people-first language” aloud, matching stress and vowels until it feels natural.