Inclusive Language: Essential Tips for Professional Writers

Inclusive language isn’t a trend—it’s the difference between being read and being respected. Here’s how to nail the nuance.

---

---

---

Words age faster than wine—and when they go bad, everyone notices. What was “harmless” in 1995 can sound like a red flag in 2025. The difference? Awareness.

As professional writers, we don’t just describe the world; we help build it. Every noun, descriptor, and acronym signals who belongs in our stories—and who’s been left out. Inclusive language isn’t about being polite; it’s about being accurate. The world is bigger, louder, and more diverse than ever. Our sentences should reflect that.

And yes, it’s still English we’re wrestling with—a language that loves exceptions and resists rules. But that’s the challenge and the fun of it. We don’t need to write like committees; we just need to write like people who see the whole room.

What is inclusive language?

At its core, inclusive language means writing that reflects reality—the full, complicated, beautiful mess of it. It’s language that respects gender identity, sexual orientation, ethnicity, age, ability, and socioeconomic background without reducing anyone to a label.

In practice, that means avoiding lazy shorthand—the throwaway joke, the outdated descriptor, the assumption that “normal” looks one way. It also means watching for microaggressions, ableist language, and gendered pronouns that slip into our drafts out of habit, not intent.

Inclusive writing means paying attention to:

• Gender: Avoid unnecessary gendering (“chairman,” “policeman,” “mankind”) and use gender-inclusive language wherever possible.
• Ability: Replace ableist terms (“crazy,” “confined to a wheelchair”) with neutral or empowering phrasing.
• Culture and identity: Let communities define themselves—say American Indian or Indigenous, depending on context and preference.
• Context: Know when to use people-first (“person with autism”) or identity-first (“autistic person”) language. Both have their place.

Because language isn’t static, staying inclusive isn’t about memorizing a list—it’s about staying curious. Words evolve, meanings shift, and as writers, our job is to evolve with them.

📌 Pro Tip: When in doubt, listen before you label. Ask communities how they describe themselves—and update your style guide regularly. Language evolves. So should your drafts.

Key principles of inclusive language

The best writing starts with curiosity. Inclusive language isn’t about memorizing the “right” words—it’s about asking better questions before you choose them.

Start with this: Who gets centered in my sentence, and who gets reduced to a category? The answer tells you almost everything you need to know.

• Lead with respect, not rules: There’s no universal formula for talking about people. Some communities prefer identity-first language (“autistic person,” “deaf person”), while others prefer people-first (“person with autism,” “person who is deaf”). Both approaches are valid depending on the context and the community. The key is to stay curious—language is lived experience, not a checkbox.
• Default to gender-neutral: English defaults masculine by habit, not accuracy. Words like “mankind,” “chairman,” or “policeman” subtly center one group while excluding everyone else. Gender-neutral terms—“humanity,” “chair,” etc—are more precise, modern, and reflective of how we actually speak. They don’t strip away personality; they open the door a little wider.
• Name communities with care: Be specific when referring to people of color, Latin American, Indigenous, or other marginalized groups. General labels are often convenient for the writer, not the reader. If a phrase collapses multiple experiences into one neat acronym, question whether it still feels true. Specificity signals respect; vagueness often signals distance.
• Choose words that empower, not diagnose: Language around ability, identity, and mental health carries weight. Phrases like “suffers from depression” or “confined to a wheelchair” define people by circumstance, not self. Swap them for neutral, factual phrasing—“lives with depression,” “wheelchair user.” The goal isn’t to sanitize; it’s to describe without diminishing.
• Stay curious: Words can evolve faster than your style guide can keep up. What felt neutral five years ago might feel outdated now. Writers who treat language as conversation, not law, are the ones who stay relevant. Curiosity is the only rule that never expires.

📌 Pro Tip: Inclusive writing isn’t about rules—it’s about responsibility. The more thoughtfully we describe others, the more fully our stories reflect the real world.

Putting inclusive language into practice

Writing inclusively is about developing radar. It’s noticing when a word centers the dominant group, when a label flattens underrepresented groups, or when a phrase that once sounded fine now lands with a thud. The more you practice noticing, the better your instincts get.

Start by questioning your defaults. Do your sentences rely on outdated assumptions about gender, age, or culture? Would a Latinx or Asian American reader feel represented—or generalized? Does “older adults” say what you mean, or are you still writing “the elderly” out of habit? These aren’t trick questions; they’re invitations to pause before you publish.

When you revise, look for the patterns you’ve stopped seeing:

• Words tied to ableism or sexism (“confined to a wheelchair,” “career woman”).
• Gendered phrasing where gender-inclusive language would serve better.
• Terms that use cisgender, white, or male as the unspoken default.
• Labels that treat communities—Indigenous people, African American, Romani, Native American, BIPOC—as interchangeable.

And because this work is never finished, make a habit of staying curious. Check the APA or GLAAD guides, yes—but also pay attention to how people talk about themselves on social media, in publishing updates, and within their own communities. Transgender, nonbinary, Latino, Latina, and Latin American people, for example, often have nuanced preferences about terminology that evolve faster than any manual can track.

Most importantly, handle corrections with grace. If someone points out a misstep, don’t defend the sentence—thank them for helping you grow. Updating your word choice isn’t about being “woke”; it’s about being accurate, professional, and kind.

📌 Pro Tip: The best editors don’t chase perfection—they chase precision. Inclusive language isn’t about avoiding mistakes; it’s about understanding the weight every word carries and using that weight wisely.

Common mistakes writers make (and how to avoid them)

Even the most thoughtful writers slip up when trying to get inclusive language right. It’s easy to overthink, over-correct, or lose the rhythm of your writing in pursuit of “perfect.” The goal isn’t to sound cautious, it’s to sound clear.

• Over-correcting the humanity out of it: In an effort to be precise, some writers make their copy sound robotic. “Individuals experiencing houselessness” may technically pass the inclusive language guide test—but it sounds clunky. When in doubt, favor clarity and compassion over jargon.
• Forgetting that language varies by culture: Inclusive terms don’t translate neatly. A phrase like “nonbinary” in English doesn’t have a direct equivalent in Spanish, and gendered language is baked into many languages. Always consider how terms like “Latinx” or “Hispanic” land in context—what feels inclusive in one region may feel alienating in another.
• Using acronyms without context: Acronyms like LGBTQ+, BIPOC, or “DEI” can be useful shorthand, but they risk becoming code words if overused. Spell them out when clarity matters, and remember that most readers care more about people than labels.
• Flattening intersectionality: Mentioning diverse groups of people isn’t enough if you erase nuance. A nonbinary person who’s Hispanic or Indigenous will experience identity differently than someone white or cisgender. Avoid treating intersectionality like a checklist; think of it as texture.
• Ignoring connotations and bias: Words carry history. “Minority” or “at-risk” can imply weakness; “underrepresented” shifts the frame toward opportunity and agency. Awareness of implicit bias isn’t about guilt—it’s about precision.

📌 Pro Tip: The goal of inclusive writing isn’t to prove you know the rules—it’s to prove you’ve been listening. The most powerful language doesn’t correct people; it connects them.

Inclusive language swaps

Here’s where theory meets the keyboard. Inclusive writing isn’t about sanitizing your sentences—it’s about finding language that’s accurate, modern, and human. Think of this as a quick-reference guide for writers, marketers, and editors who want their words to meet the moment.

Outdated or imprecise	Preferred or more inclusive	Why it works better
Chairman	Chairperson / Chair	Gender-neutral and accurate; titles don’t need gender.
The disabled	Disabled person / Person with a disability	Reflects people-first language and emphasizes identity, not limitation.
Non-white	Use the specific group (e.g., Black, Asian American, Indigenous)	“Non-white” defines people by what they aren’t; specificity shows respect.
The elderly	Older adults / Aging population	Avoids infantilizing language and keeps tone respectful.
Homosexual	Gay / Lesbian / Queer (if self-identified)	“Homosexual” feels clinical and outdated; these terms reflect self-identification.
Transsexual	Transgender / Trans person	The preferred term in both LGBTQ+ and linguistic initiatives.
The poor	People experiencing poverty / Low-income communities	Centers people, not their socioeconomic status or circumstances.
Crazy / Insane	Person with a mental health condition	Removes ableist framing while staying clear and factual.
At-risk youth	Young people in under-resourced communities	Avoids deficit framing and implicit bias.
Gypsy	Romani / Traveller	“Gypsy” is considered derogatory in many regions; use specific, accurate identifiers.

Writing that opens doors

Inclusive language isn’t about walking on eggshells—it’s about opening doors and creating equal opportunities for everyone to be seen. The difference between “non-white” and naming a racial group isn’t politeness; it’s precision.

Words shape the world. Use them thoughtfully, and your writing does more than describe—it includes.

Want more smart, practical insights on language, publishing, and the writing life? Join The Wordling’s free weekly newsletter—where writers who care about words (and the world) get better at both.

---

---