retard

«retard» in Mova's school dictionary: To slow down or delay something: to retard growth… — its meaning for a pupil, its sense in the lessons and examples, with 1 sentence of Mova's corpora that use it.

part of speech

verb (retard, retards, retarded, retarding — said ri-TARD, formal); noun (a retard — said REE-tard, offensive slur)

meaning for a pupil

1) (formal, science) To slow down or delay something: to retard growth, fire-retardant material. tree →

2) (rude, offensive) A very hurtful insult for a person with a learning disability or for someone thought stupid — never use it. tree →

sense in the lessons

In science and safety «retard» means slow down; «fire retardant» fabric slows burning, which keeps people safe. The insult sense is hate speech: in stories it shows a bully being cruel; in real life using it hurts people with disabilities. Old medical words like «mentally retarded» are now replaced by «learning disability» or «intellectual disability».

examples

• Cold weather retards the growth of plants. tree →
• The curtains are treated to retard fire. tree →
• Fire-retardant pyjamas are safer for children. tree →
• Salt can retard the rotting of meat. tree →
• (rude, a bully in a story) «Don't call him that word — it's cruel,» said the teacher. tree →

note

The slur is one of the most hurtful words in English; do not use it, even as a joke. Safe words: slow, delay; «retardant» (a substance that slows burning). In music, «ritardando» means getting slower.

In the corpora

• Picture running for the school bus with a French friend who shouts "On est en retard !" - we're late!

Trees and pragmatics

Every meaning and example of «retard» parsed by Mova, each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.