Retard is a short term for mental retardation. Mental retardation means persistently slow learning of basic motor and language skills as a child, and a significantly below normal intellectual capacity as an adult. There are many different classes of mental retardation. These consist of borderline mental retardation being the least serious type of mental retardation, mild mental retardation, moderate mental retardation, severe mental retardation and profound mental retardation being the worst. The word retard can be used in many different ways. It can be used in the correct way, or in the incorrect way. Many teens often misuse the term retard whether they are referring to their friends being stupid or just making fun of something “funny”. Using this word without knowing the real meaning can be rude and unkind.

To begin with, the word retard means slow. Mental retardation is a serious disability that is caused by a lack of chromosomes or an extra chromosome. Mental disability can also result when the fetus does not develop inside the mother properly. For example, there may be a problem with the way the fetus’s cells divide as is grows. Statistics show that a woman who drinks an excessive amount of alcohol has higher risk of having a child with a disability (kidshealth.org). Mental retardation consists of Down syndrome, fragile X syndrome, Phelan-McDermid syndrome, and phenylketonuria also known as PKU. In addition, some signs of being mentally handicapped include having trouble speaking, finding it hard to remember facts, solving typical problems, and trouble thinking logically. It is clear to see that most people who use this word incorrectly obviously do not think and do not know the real meaning.

“An interesting fact is one in four teens use the word “retard” incorrectly at least once a day”(nichcy.org). This means about twenty-five percent of the United States teens do not know what the word retard really means. In addition to that, teens often replace words such as dumb or stupid with the word retard. The word retard can have many different meanings to teens. In fact, the meaning of the word retard can change meanings everyday to teens; they could actually be referring to the handicapped or making fun of someone or something. In summary, when teens use the word retard in the incorrect way, they clearly do not realize the correct true meaning of the word and how big of an impact this word truly has on society.

To conclude, the term retard can have many different meanings, but truthfully only has one. The word retard means slow in motor and basic language skills. Mental retardation can be caused by a woman who drinks while they are pregnant. This can lead to a problem with the fetus’s cells dividing and result in a loss of a single chromosome or a gain in a chromosome, which eventually leads to mental retardation. When teens use the word retard in the correct way they are most likely referring to someone with disabilities and are not making fun of this person. The word retard can also be used in a disrespectful way by people who do not know the real meaning. The people that use this word incorrectly are obviously immature and have dreadfully embarrassing level of vocabulary. One can see that this word can be used in a correct and respectful manner, or an incorrect and disrespectful manner. Teens should think before they use the word retard and decided whether or not the word is appropriate to use.