Glossary
Searchable terminology from accessibility, web standards, and related fields.
125 results found in deaf and hard of hearing.
- ASL (American Sign Language)
- Abbreviation for American Sign Language, the primary sign language used by Deaf communities in the United States and much of Canada. ASL is a complete, natural language with its own grammar, vocabular…
- ASL education technology (Sign language learning technology)
- Technology designed to support the teaching and learning of American Sign Language, ranging from video-based instructional platforms and feedback systems to computer vision tools that analyse signing …
- ASR Captioning (Automatic Captioning, Live Auto-Captioning, AI Captioning)
- The use of automatic speech recognition (ASR) technology to generate real-time text captions of spoken language, commonly used as an accessibility tool for Deaf and Hard of Hearing individuals in meet…
- American Sign Language (ASL)
- A complete, natural language with its own grammar, syntax, and vocabulary, expressed through hand shapes, facial expressions, and body movements, used primarily by Deaf communities in the United State…
- Audio-Reactive Visuals (Sound-Reactive Displays, Audio-Visual Feedback)
- Visual display systems that respond in real time to audio input, translating sound properties such as frequency, amplitude, pitch, and rhythm into light, color, and movement. In accessibility contexts…
- Auditory processing disorder (APD, Central auditory processing disorder, CAPD)
- A neurological condition in which the brain has difficulty interpreting and organizing sounds despite normal hearing ability. Unlike hearing loss, auditory processing disorder affects how the central …
- Aural Interface (Voice Interface, Voice-Controlled Interface, Voice User Interface)
- An aural interface is a user interface that relies primarily on spoken language for both input (voice commands) and output (spoken responses). Examples include Amazon Alexa, Apple Siri, and Google Ass…
- Backchannel Feedback (Backchannel, Backchanneling, Backchannel Cues)
- Verbal or non-verbal signals given by a listener during a conversation to show attention, understanding, or agreement without taking over the speaking turn. Common examples include head nods, vocaliza…
- Bimodal Bilingualism (Bimodal-Bilingual)
- The ability to use two languages that exist in different modalities — typically a signed language (visual-gestural modality) and a spoken/written language (auditory-vocal modality). Unlike unimodal bi…
- CEA-708 (CTA-708, EIA-708, Digital Closed Captioning)
- A US standard for digital closed captioning on digital television broadcasts and streaming, superseding the analog-era CEA-608 standard. CEA-708 supports richer presentation than its predecessor, incl…
- Caption Occlusion (Caption Blocking, Subtitle Occlusion)
- The phenomenon where captions or subtitles visually block or cover other important information displayed on a video screen. Caption occlusion is a significant accessibility concern for Deaf and Hard o…
- Caption Placement (Caption Positioning, Subtitle Placement)
- The decision of where captions or subtitles are positioned on a video screen, which significantly affects the viewing experience of Deaf and Hard of Hearing users. Poor caption placement can occlude i…
- Caption quality metric (ACE metric, Caption evaluation metric)
- A measure designed to predict how understandable automatically generated captions are for Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing users, as an alternative to standard Word Error Rate which correlates poorly with act…
- Certified Deaf Interpreter (CDI)
- A Deaf or Hard-of-hearing individual who has obtained professional certification from the Registry of Interpreters for the Deaf (RID) to provide interpreting, translation, and transliteration services…
- Chinese Natural Sign Language (CNSL)
- Chinese Natural Sign Language (CNSL) is the language used by roughly twenty million Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing people in China. Unlike Chinese Sign Language (CSL) — an artificial, school-and-broadcast s…
- Circumplex Model of Affect (Russell's Circumplex Model, Valence-Arousal Model)
- A psychological framework that represents emotions along two continuous dimensions: valence (pleasure vs. displeasure) and arousal (activation vs. deactivation). Proposed by James Russell in 1980, the…
- Closed Captioning (CC, Closed Captions)
- Text displayed on a screen that transcribes spoken dialogue, identifies speakers, and describes relevant sound effects in video content. Unlike open captions which are permanently embedded in the vide…
- Cochlear Implant (CI)
- A surgically implanted electronic device that provides a sense of sound to individuals who are deaf or have severe hearing loss. Unlike hearing aids which amplify sound, cochlear implants bypass damag…
- Communication Burden (Burden of Communication, Conversational Burden)
- The disproportionate effort that people with communication-related disabilities must exert to participate in conversations, particularly in mixed-ability groups. In the context of Deaf and Hard of Hea…
- Continuous Sign Language (Connected Sign Language, Continuous Signing)
- Sign language produced in natural, flowing sentences and discourse, as opposed to isolated individual signs. Continuous sign language includes phenomena like co-articulation (where one sign influences…