autism

[aw-tiz-uhm]

noun

Psychiatry.

1. a developmental disability of highly variable presentation, commonly characterized by social and communication differences, repetitive behaviors, intense specialized interests, and differences in sensory processing; autism spectrum disorder.

2. Sometimes classic autism (no longer in clinical use) a developmental disability that commonly manifests in early childhood, characterized by repetitive or restricted behaviors, differences in understanding social interactions, and delayed development of linguistic and cognitive abilities: formerly contrasted with Asperger syndrome.

autism

/ ˈɔːtɪzəm /

noun

1. psychiatry a developmental disorder whose symptoms include difficulty in responding conventionally to people and actions and limited use of communication

Usage

Rather than talking about an autistic or autistics , it is better to use phrases such as a person with autism and people with autism

Other Word Forms

• autist noun
• autistic adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of autism¹

First recorded in 1910–15, for an earlier sense; coined in 1944 by Austrian-American psychiatrist Leo Kanner (1894–1981), for the current sense (in the phrase infantile autism ); from German Autismus (in the earlier sense), from New Latin; aut- + -ism

Word History and Origins

Origin of autism¹

C20: from Greek autos self + _-ism

Example Sentences

A month later, Kennedy backtracked on these remarks, saying “The causative association between Tylenol given in pregnancy … is not sufficient to say it definitely caused autism, but it is very suggestive.”

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For followers of medical disinformation, the claim that autism is linked to childhood vaccinations is the reddest of red flags.

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Kennedy told the New York Times on Thursday that he personally directed the CDC to change its website to abandon its position that vaccines do not cause autism.

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Patients have received “medical aid in dying” for schizophrenia, depression and autism, among other mental conditions.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

On Wednesday the CDC updated a Vaccine Safety page on its website that previously advised: “Vaccines do not cause autism.”

Read more on The Wall Street Journal