The way we talk about health and the language we use can influence the way people think about disability, the behaviors they adopt when seeking care, and, not least, the very outcome of their care journey. An interesting series of editorials recently published in the Journal of Orthopaedic and Sports Physical Therapy calls for an urgent change in this regard by proposing a shift from a language fundamentally based on mechanical damage and impairment to one focused on the patient’s active role and participation. Starting with the case of osteoarthritis, used in the series as an example condition, there is an urgent need to embrace this change by adopting it, in clinical practice, with all people who present with orthopedic problems of a musculoskeletal nature.