Antonym
An antonym is a word's opposite.
When it comes to adjectives for people, it's a much better mindset to use antonyms instead of "normal", as it doesn't suggest either type of person is better than the other, even if they're more common.
Here are some handy examples:
| Type of person | Antonym |
|---|---|
| Gay | Straight |
| Trans | Cis |
| Intersex | Endosex |
| Autistic | Allistic |
| Neurodivergent (in any neurological minority) | Neurotypical |
Quotes
The most insidious sort of social inequality, the most difficult sort of privilege to challenge, occurs when a dominant group is so deeply established as the "normal" or "default" group that it has no specific name, no label. The members of such a group are simply thought of as "normal people," "healthy people," or just "people" — with the implication that those who aren't members of that group represent deviations from that which is normal and natural, rather than equally natural and legitimate manifestations of human diversity.
— Nick Walker, Neuroqueer Heresies, 2013[1]
References
- Neuroqueer Heresies Nick Walker, 2021, ISBN 978-1-945955-26-6, p. 23
Autistic paradigms and terminology: Antonym | Asperger syndrome | The autism spectrum | The pathology paradigm
Gender paradigms and terminology: Antonym | The pathology paradigm