Also written: Dwarf, Midget, Short Stature, Person of Small Stature, Little People, Dwarfism
| Source | Year | Position |
|---|---|---|
| SumOfUs | 2016 | Avoid |
| National Center on Disability and Journalism | 2021 | Use with care |
| Sierra Club | 2021 | Use with care |
| Diversity Style Guide | 2023 | Use with care |
| American Psychological Association | 2023 | Use with care |
“dwarf, midget, vertically challenged”
SumOfUs lists "dwarf, midget, vertically challenged" together in its column of terms avoided or questioned by disability rights activists. It is a flat avoid-list item with no per-term nuance — the guide does not separate "dwarf" from "midget" or note the medical-condition exception that later guides draw out.
“Use of the word "dwarf" is considered acceptable when referring to the genetic condition, but it is often considered offensive when used in a non-medical sense. The term "midget" … is now widely considered a derogatory slur.”
NCDJ — the chapter's anchor — separates the three forms: "dwarf" is acceptable for the genetic condition or in a quote but offensive in a non-medical sense; "midget" is now widely considered a derogatory slur (citing Little People of America's "the M word" statement); and "little person" / "short stature" are the descriptors LPA recommends, though their appropriateness is disputed within and outside the community. It directs writers to ask the person which term they prefer.
“The word "dwarfed" … comes from the word "dwarf," which is not how most people with the medical condition dwarfism prefer to be described. … Exceptions are proper names and scientific terms that include "dwarf"…”
Sierra Club addresses the metaphor "dwarfed" (to mean diminished or made small by comparison) rather than the noun for people, but explains the metaphor traces back to "dwarf," which most people with dwarfism do not prefer as a description. It advises choosing scale language not tied to identity or medical condition, carving out exceptions for proper names and scientific terms such as "dwarf reindeer."
“The term midget … is now widely considered derogatory. … Avoid the term dwarf unless it is being used in a quote or in a medical diagnosis. Avoid using the terms vertically challenged and midget.”
The Diversity Style Guide mirrors NCDJ's per-form split: dwarfism is a medical or genetic condition; "dwarf" can be offensive in a non-medical sense though many accept it for the condition; "midget" is now widely considered derogatory; and "little person" / "little people" have been in common use since LPA's founding in 1957, with appropriateness disputed. LPA recommends "short stature, little person or someone with dwarfism," and the guide tells writers to ask which term a person prefers.
“TERM TO AVOID … SUGGESTED ALTERNATIVE … midget … little person … person of small stature … dwarf … having dwarfism (Little People of America, 2021)”
In its ableist-terms table, APA lists "midget" as a term to avoid and offers "little person," "person of small stature," "dwarf," and "having dwarfism" (crediting Little People of America, 2021) as suggested alternatives. So the table prescribes against "midget" while presenting "little person" and "dwarf" as the recommended forms — the recommendation differs by which facet of the term is in view.
This page covers a cluster of forms that carry different recommendations, so the first task for a communicator is to stop treating them as interchangeable. “Midget” is the clear case: every source that addresses it lands on avoid, and NCDJ and the Diversity Style Guide both describe it as a derogatory slur, pointing to Little People of America’s “the M word” statement. “Dwarf” is conditional — acceptable when it names the medical or genetic condition (dwarfism) or appears in a direct quote, but offensive in a non-medical or metaphorical sense. “Little person” and “short stature” are the descriptors Little People of America recommends, yet NCDJ and DSG both note their appropriateness is disputed within and outside the community, which is why the underlying rule across all the sources is to ask the individual.
The sources agree on where to land and differ mainly in how much detail they give. SumOfUs (2016) gives a flat avoid-list bullet, “dwarf, midget, vertically challenged,” grouped without per-term distinctions. NCDJ (2021) and the Diversity Style Guide (2023) supply the nuanced per-form split, drawing the medical-condition exception for “dwarf” and separating the slur (“midget”) from the disputed-but-usable descriptors. APA (2023) renders the same picture as a table row: “midget” in the term-to-avoid column, with “little person,” “person of small stature,” “dwarf,” and “having dwarfism” offered as suggested alternatives — which means APA’s guidance reads as avoid on the “midget” facet and use on the “little person” / “dwarf” facet. Read in order, the guides accumulate detail rather than contradict one another: a 2016 flat avoid, then 2021–2023 entries that keep the avoid on the slur while carving out the medical and self-identification exceptions.
A separate thread runs alongside the noun question. Sierra Club (2021) addresses the metaphor “dwarfed” — made small by comparison — and notes it traces back to “dwarf,” which most people with dwarfism do not prefer as a description; it suggests scale language not tied to identity or a medical condition, with proper and scientific names like “dwarf reindeer” as exceptions. The practical synthesis: never use “midget”; use “dwarf” only for the condition or in a quote; default to “little person” or “short stature” while recognizing those are debated; avoid “dwarfed” as a metaphor; and in every case let the person’s own word govern.
The forms have moved on different timelines. “Little people” / “little person” came into common use after Little People of America was founded in 1957, per NCDJ and DSG. The guides in this commons trace a chronology in their own treatment: SumOfUs (2016) bundles “dwarf, midget, vertically challenged” into a single avoid bullet; NCDJ (2021) and the Diversity Style Guide (2023) then separate the slur from the medically-acceptable and disputed-but-usable forms; and APA (2023) encodes the same split in a term-to-avoid table. The medical-condition exception for “dwarf” and the explicit naming of “midget” as a slur are the distinctions the later entries make explicit.