Take the tour ×  I know how words can become racist but I'm not
sure how a word becomes derogatory or politically incorrect. If
seems as though once one does, a new term is created to replace
it that is not derogatory and is politically acceptable. But
those new words and terms often times become derogatory or
politically incorrect over time.  For example, the way crippled
gave way to handicapped, which gave way to disabled.
share|improve this question For example, the way crippled gave
way to handicapped, which gave way to disabled? –  JAM Dec 6 '12
at 17:11 @JAM - Thanks, added the example. –  Justin808 Dec 6
'12 at 17:13 And the 'savage' has given way to 'tribal man' or
'primitive man'. –  Dilawar Dec 6 '12 at 17:14 Also called the
euphemism treadmill. –  Cerberus Dec 6 '12 at 17:51 @JAM Which
is now differently abled. –  MετάEd Dec 7 '12 at 0:09 show 5
more comments  1 Answer  up vote 10 down vote accepted  The
linguistic processes are technically called Taboo (in this case,
Taboo words) and Euphemism, w