mental retardation
4
8.9
- noun
- /ˈmɛn.təl rɪˈtɑr.deɪ.ʃən/
- Slur
:
retraso mental (ofensivo)
- None of the children suffered from severe developmental or intellectual disorders (e.g., autism, mental retardation) or psychotic symptoms.
- mild mental retardation
- severe mental retardation
- children with mental retardation
Examples
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Literally, it could result in convulsions, coma, severe brain damage, and in some cases, mental retardation.
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If PKU is not caught early, it can lead to mental retardation and death.
Blog text (24) -
The results show that 37% of parents have children with mental retardation.
Academic text (2008) -
The diagnosis of mental retardation usually is not made until a child is approximately eight years old.
Academic text (1996) -
Obviously, students with FAS present more concerns beyond just mental retardation.
Academic text (1996) -
Because of that process, the identification will generally occur when the child with mild mental retardation is approximately 9 years of age.
Academic text (1997) -
Despite Turner's efforts, an assumption of mental retardation persists among those who have limited knowledge of the disorder.
Academic text (1990) -
Autistic children usually suffer from seizures, mental retardation, and psychiatric disorders.
Blog text (2) -
Of the 30 students, 15 had additional documented disabilities, including hearing impairments, physical disabilities, mental retardation, speech impairments, and learning disabilities.
Academic text (1997) -
Lack of iodine is the largest preventable cause of mental retardation worldwide.
Synonyms
1
8.4
Lower than usual ability to think and learn
A condition of low ability to learn and think that starts in childhood
A condition in which a person has lower than usual thinking ability
Antonyms
How Severe
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning is directly compositional: 'mental' (relating to the mind) plus 'retardation' (delay or slowed development) yields the idea of slowed or below-typical cognitive development, so a learner who knows both words can infer the MWE's meaning. Its status as an outdated and offensive term does not reduce its morphological transparency, though learners should be made aware of the preferred term 'intellectual disability'.
Etymology
Mental retardation comes from the words mental meaning 'mind' and retardation meaning 'slowing'. Because that picture of someone's learning being 'slow' feels negative and hurtful, the phrase is now seen as old and 'offensive', so people use the kinder term 'intellectual disability'.