intellectual disability

American  

[in-tl-ek-choo-uhl dis-uh-bil-i-tee] / ˌɪn tlˈɛk tʃu əl ˌdɪs əˈbɪl ɪ ti /

noun

1. a developmental disorder characterized in varying degrees by significant limitations on intellectual abilities, such as learning, problem solving, and reasoning, and on adaptive abilities such as social and practical skills: the diagnostic term intellectual disability replaced the older designation mental retardation in the 2010s. ID

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Etymology

Origin of intellectual disability

First recorded in 1805–10

Example Sentences

Researchers analyzed outcomes for 262,852 children assessed for autism, 335,255 evaluated for ADHD, and 406,681 assessed for intellectual disability.

From Science Daily • Jan. 19, 2026

That is why the relevant clinical authorities all agree that an individual with an IQ score above 70 may properly be diagnosed with intellectual disability if significant limitations in adaptive functioning also exist.”

From Slate • Dec. 8, 2025

Clinicians might also be less frequently assigning other labels such as intellectual disability, formally referred to as mental retardation, some data suggest.

From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 14, 2025

One study shows that between 2000 and 2018, new autism diagnoses of those with intellectual disability rose about 20%, while autism diagnoses in those without intellectual disability rose 700%.

From BBC • May 2, 2025

In 2002, there were about a hundred people with mental retardation facing execution when the Court banned the death penalty for people with intellectual disability.

From "Just Mercy" by Bryan Stevenson

Related Words

• cognitive impairment
• debilitation
• impairment
• incapacitation
• limitation
• restriction