Glossary

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Intergenerational Communication(also: Cross-generational Communication)

Communication between people of different generations, particularly between older adults and younger family members or caregivers, which can be complicated by differing expectations, technology literacy levels, and communication styles. In accessibility and aging contexts,…

Just-in-Time Programming(also: JIT Programming, Real-Time AAC Configuration)

A method of configuring AAC devices in real time by capturing an image of a current activity, social interaction, or object and immediately creating a visual scene display with relevant communication options. Just-in-time programming enables communication partners to take…

Just-in-Time Support(also: JIT Support, Just-in-Time Programming, JIT Vocabulary)

In augmentative and alternative communication, the programming and availability of language concepts at the moment they are needed, rather than requiring pre-planning. Just-in-time support can be mentor-generated (e.g., a conversation partner quickly creating a hotspot on a…

Kenyan Sign Language(also: KSL)

The primary sign language used by the deaf community in Kenya, recognized as a national language in Kenya's 2010 Constitution. KSL has its own grammar, syntax, and vocabulary distinct from spoken Kiswahili and English. In accessibility contexts, KSL is significant because many…

Language Erasure(also: Linguistic Erasure, Language Flattening)

The process by which a language's unique characteristics, variations, dialects, and cultural significance are diminished, homogenized, or eliminated — often through the dominance of a majority language or through technologies that oversimplify linguistic complexity. In the…

Langue des Signes Québécoise(also: LSQ, Quebec Sign Language)

The sign language used by the Deaf community in francophone Quebec and in francophone Deaf communities elsewhere in Canada. LSQ is a distinct natural language with its own grammar, lexicon, and cultural tradition — not a signed version of French — and developed historically from…

Libras(also: Brazilian Sign Language, Língua Brasileira de Sinais)

The official sign language of the Deaf community in Brazil, recognized by Brazilian federal law (Law No. 10.436/2002) as a legitimate means of communication and expression. Libras has its own grammar, syntax, and linguistic structure distinct from spoken Brazilian Portuguese. It…

Linear Communication Model(also: Shannon-Weaver Model, Sender-Receiver Model)

A model of communication in which information flows in one direction from a sender to a receiver through a channel, with no feedback mechanism. In the context of AAC, a linear model means the user constructs and delivers a message through the device while the communication…

Lingraphica

A commercially available computerized visual communication system designed to help people with aphasia communicate through icon-based sentence construction. Lingraphica provides a vocabulary of purpose-designed icons that users can arrange to form phrases and sentences, with the…

Linguistic Accessibility

The principle that information, services, and opportunities for participation should be available in a person's preferred language and communication modality. For Deaf and Hard of Hearing individuals, linguistic accessibility means providing content and interaction opportunities…

Lip Reading(also: Speechreading, Visual Speech Perception)

The practice of interpreting speech by visually observing the speaker mouth movements, facial expressions, and gestures. While commonly associated with deaf and hard of hearing individuals, lip reading is also used by people with ADHD and auditory processing difficulties as a…

Lip-reading(also: Speechreading, Speech Reading, Visual Speech Perception)

The practice of understanding speech by visually interpreting the movements of the lips, face, and tongue, often used by deaf and hard-of-hearing individuals as a communication strategy. Lip-reading relies on watching the mouth region and facial expressions to decode spoken…

Lipreading(also: Lip reading, Speechreading (narrow sense))

The practice of understanding spoken language by visually interpreting the movements of a speaker's lips, tongue, teeth, jaw, and facial expression. Lipreading is used by many Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing people — especially those who acquired hearing loss after learning spoken…

Listener Feedback(also: Listener Response, Feedback Signals)

The signals produced by a listener during conversation that communicate their attentiveness, understanding, agreement, confusion, or emotional response to the speaker without taking a full conversational turn. Listener feedback encompasses verbal backchanneling ("mm-hmm,"…

Literal language processing(also: Literal interpretation)

The tendency to interpret language at face value, understanding words and phrases according to their explicit, dictionary meaning rather than inferring implied, figurative, or contextual meanings. Literal language processing is common among many autistic individuals and can lead…

Look to Speak

A free Android application developed by Google Creative Lab that enables people with speech and motor impairments to communicate by selecting images or pre-written phrases using eye movements detected by the smartphone's front-facing camera. Users navigate by looking left,…

Low-Tech AAC(also: No-Tech AAC, Unaided AAC)

Augmentative and alternative communication methods that require no or minimal technology, including communication boards, picture cards, letter boards, eye-pointing frames, sign language, and gestures. Low-tech AAC is often more immediately accessible, sustainable, and…

Makaton

A language programme that uses a combination of speech, signs (borrowed from British Sign Language), and graphic symbols to support communication for people who have difficulty with spoken language. Unlike BSL, which is a complete natural language with its own grammar, Makaton…

Mediated Communication(also: Proxy Communication, Supported Communication)

Communication that is facilitated or interpreted through a third party, such as a caregiver, support worker, family member, or communication partner who knows the person well. In research involving people with intellectual disabilities or complex communication needs, mediated…

Micro-Culture(also: Communication Micro-Culture, Subculture)

A distinct set of communication norms, practices, and shared understandings that develop within a specific community or group of individuals. In AAC communication, micro-culture refers to the unique "listener-feedback dialect" that AAC users form—blending device output with…

Minimally Verbal(also: Minimally Speaking, Non-Speaking, Limited Verbal)

A term describing individuals who use very few or no spoken words as their primary means of communication, despite potentially having communicative intent. This term is commonly used in autism contexts to describe autistic individuals who may have fewer than 20-30 functional…

Mixed Hearing Groups(also: Mixed Hearing Settings, Mixed Ability Hearing Groups)

Groups that include people with different hearing abilities, typically d/Deaf individuals, hard of hearing individuals, hearing individuals, and sign language interpreters communicating together. Mixed hearing groups face unique challenges in both in-person and virtual settings…

Mobile AAC(also: Smartphone AAC, App-Based AAC)

Augmentative and alternative communication systems delivered through mainstream mobile devices such as smartphones and tablets, rather than dedicated AAC hardware. Mobile AAC applications can significantly reduce costs and stigma associated with dedicated devices, and are…

MobileASL

A research project from the University of Washington that developed video compression technology enabling real-time, two-way American Sign Language (ASL) video communication on mobile phones. MobileASL addressed the challenge that standard mobile video calling consumed too much…

Morse Code(also: Morse Code Input)

A communication system that encodes text characters as sequences of short signals (dots) and long signals (dashes). Originally developed for telegraphy, Morse code has found significant application in assistive technology as an alternative text input method for people with…

Motion-Based AAC(also: Physical Expressive AAC, Expressive Sidekick)

An emerging form of augmentative and alternative communication that uses physical movement of objects or robotic devices to convey nonverbal communicative intent during conversations. Unlike traditional AAC which focuses on generating speech, motion-based AAC addresses the…

Multi-Modal Communication(also: Multimodal Communication)

Communication that simultaneously uses multiple channels or modes—such as speech, gesture, facial expression, gaze, device output, and body movement—to convey meaning. AAC users are inherently multi-modal communicators, blending whatever channels are available to them to create…

Multichannel Signal(also: Multi-Channel Signal, Parallel Signal Channels)

A communication signal that conveys information simultaneously through multiple independent or semi-independent channels. In the context of sign languages, a multichannel signal includes the concurrent streams produced by a signer: manual signs (dominant and non-dominant hand…

Multilingual AAC(also: Multilingual Communication Device)

Augmentative and alternative communication systems designed to support communication in multiple languages, reflecting the linguistic diversity of users and their communication partners. Multilingual AAC is particularly important in the Global South, where multilingualism is…

Music Therapy

A clinical and evidence-based practice that uses music interventions to accomplish individualized therapeutic goals, including improving communication, social interaction, emotional expression, and motor skills. For people with disabilities, music therapy can be particularly…

Narrative Skills(also: Narrative Competence, Storytelling Skills)

The ability to recount events — real or imagined — as a coherent, temporally ordered, causally linked story that another person can follow. Narrative skills rest on autobiographical memory retrieval, event sequencing, referential clarity (introducing and tracking characters),…

Non-Verbal Communication(also: Nonverbal Communication, NVC, Body Language)

Communication through means other than spoken or written words, including facial expressions, eye contact, gestures, body posture, touch, tone of voice, and spatial behavior. Non-verbal communication conveys emotions, attitudes, and social signals that complement, modify, or…

Oral Language(also: Expressive Oral Language, Spoken Language)

Oral language is the system of spoken communication comprising articulation (producing speech sounds), vocabulary (tact or naming), grammar and linguistic structure, and pragmatic or conversational use. It is distinct from written language and from augmentative communication…

Parkinson's Disease(also: PD)

A progressive neurodegenerative disorder affecting movement, including tremor, rigidity, slowness of movement, and balance problems. Parkinson's disease can also significantly affect speech (causing quiet, monotone, or slurred speech), facial expression, and fine motor control.…

Perpetual Contact

Perpetual contact is a sociological term coined by James Katz and Mark Aakhus to describe the state, enabled by mobile phones and later by ubiquitous internet messaging, in which people maintain constant availability to their social network regardless of physical location. For…

Person-First Language(also: People-First Language, PFL)

Person-first language is a linguistic convention that places the person before the disability or condition, such as "person with a disability" or "person with autism," with the intent of emphasizing personhood over diagnosis. While widely adopted in professional and medical…

Personal Narrative(also: Storytelling, Conversational Narrative)

The act of telling others about one's own experiences, events, and feelings — a fundamental aspect of human social interaction. Personal narrative serves multiple functions: building and maintaining relationships, developing identity and sense of self, processing experiences…

Phoneme(also: Speech Sound)

The smallest unit of sound in a language that can distinguish one word from another. For example, the /b/ and /p/ sounds in "bat" and "pat" are different phonemes. American English has approximately 39 phonemes, compared to 26 letters in the alphabet. In accessibility and AAC…

Phonemic Spelling(also: Phonetic Spelling)

The practice of spelling words based on their pronunciation rather than their conventional orthography, used as a workaround when text-to-speech systems do not support a desired language. In AAC contexts in Ghana, speech and language therapists experimented with typing English…

Phonocentrism

The ideological privileging of spoken language as the default and superior mode of communication, with corresponding devaluation of signed, typed, symbolic, or augmentative forms. In accessibility, phonocentrism surfaces when technologies (voice assistants, automatic speech…

Photo-based Communication(also: Visual Communication Aid, Image-based Communication)

A communication strategy that uses photographs or images as the primary medium for conveying meaning, sharing experiences, and supporting conversation. For people with aphasia, intellectual disabilities, or other conditions that affect spoken and written language, photographs…

Phrase-Based Communication(also: Phrase-Based AAC, Pre-Stored Phrase Communication)

An augmentative and alternative communication approach where users select complete pre-composed phrases or sentences rather than constructing messages letter by letter or word by word. Phrase-based systems offer faster communication rates than spelling-based methods, which is…

Pictograph(also: Pictogram, Picture Symbol, Graphic Symbol)

A simplified visual symbol or image that represents a word, concept, or action, used as an alternative or supplement to written text. Pictograph systems such as Sclera, Beta, and Widgit are widely used in augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) to support people with…

Picture Communication Symbols(also: PCS, Boardmaker Symbols)

A widely used graphic symbol system for augmentative and alternative communication (AAC), consisting of simple, colorful line drawings representing words, phrases, and concepts. Developed by Mayer-Johnson (now part of Tobii Dynavox), PCS is one of the most common symbol sets…

Picture Exchange Communication System(also: PECS)

A structured augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) system that teaches individuals to use pictures to communicate with others. Developed by Andrew Bondy and Lori Frost in 1985, PECS uses a series of six phases to teach individuals — typically children with autism or…

Pidgin Signed English(also: PSE, Contact Signing, Sign Supported English)

A hybrid communication system that combines elements of American Sign Language (ASL) and English. In PSE, signers use ASL signs for the main content words of an English sentence, following English word order, but generally do not include extra signs for English word endings or…

Pragmatic Language(also: Pragmatics, Social Language)

The aspect of language that deals with how context, social norms, and communicative intent shape how language is used and interpreted in real social interactions. Pragmatic language skills include understanding conversational turn-taking, using appropriate backchanneling,…

Pragmatic language(also: Social language, Language pragmatics)

The aspect of language concerned with how context, tone, social norms, and shared knowledge shape meaning beyond the literal words spoken or written. Pragmatic language skills include understanding sarcasm, irony, and implied meaning; interpreting tone and intent; making…

Preverbal Communication(also: Prelinguistic Communication)

The stage of communication development before the consistent use of recognizable words, typically occurring in neurotypical children between birth and approximately 12 months of age. Preverbal communication includes vocalizations (babbling, cooing), gestures, eye gaze, facial…

Prosodic Breaks(also: Prosodic Pauses, Prosodic Boundaries)

Pauses or breaks in the flow of communication that convey grammatical, syntactic, or emphatic meaning. In sign language, prosodic breaks occur between signs and serve functions similar to intonation and pausing in spoken language — marking sentence boundaries, separating clauses…