developmental disorder

noun

plural developmental disorders

: a condition (such as autism spectrum disorder or dyslexia) that is typically marked by delayed development or impaired function especially in learning, language, communication, cognition, behavior, socialization, or mobility : developmental disability

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is the name for a group of developmental disorders that include a wide range of symptoms, skills and levels of disability.

—Meredith Moss

Examples of developmental disorder in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The central question of the study was not about vaccines but aimed to explore a possible relationship between colitis − an inflammation of the large intestine − and developmental disorders. —Richard Ball, The Conversation, 5 June 2025

What makes speech-language pathology particularly valuable is its impact across the lifespan, from children with developmental disorders to adults recovering from strokes. —Dr. Aviva Legatt, Forbes.com, 4 June 2025

The study is connected to Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s promise to find a definitive cause of the neurological and developmental disorder as soon as possible, Bhattacharya said at a public health conference in Washington. —Theresa Braine, New York Daily News, 23 Apr. 2025

All the students in the class at the Small Fish Big Fish swim school had autism, a developmental disorder linked to a higher-than-average danger of drowning. —Jennifer Peltz, The Orlando Sentinel, 21 May 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1919, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for developmental disorder

• boarder
• border
• corder
• order
• warder
• camcorder
• recorder
• reorder
• suborder
• transborder

Medical Definition

developmental disorder

noun

: a condition (such as autism spectrum disorder or dyslexia) that is typically marked by delayed development or impaired function especially in learning, language, communication, cognition, behavior, socialization, or mobility : developmental disability