Holy crap Lest someone mistakenly visit a talk page expecting to read some truth and hence be confused reading this gentleman s comment and mistaking the writer for someone who knows what they re talking about I d just like to point out the above explanation for the word handicap is complete bollocks handicap has meant to place at a disadvantage for a long long time According to Merriam Webster the etymology is Etymology obsolete English handicap a game in which forfeit money was held in a cap from hand in cap which obviously has nothing at all to do with being Handy with a cap or even related to the disabled Certain individuals may have a negative connotation with the use of the term which happens merely due to the words close association with 1960 s era community welfare practices but that is an individuals choice to associate negativity with the word not the words fault at all