# Which phrase is correct? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [July 4, 2021, 4:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-phrase-is-correct/945664 "2021-07-04T16:05:51Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2021, 4:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-phrase-is-correct/945664/1 "2021-07-04T16:05:51Z")
“Ethically challenged”, “ethically handicapped”, “differently ethicked”, or something else? ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2021, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-phrase-is-correct/945664/2 "2021-07-04T16:10:04Z")
I like a simple “unethical” unless you are trying to make it sound like a mental deficiency. ---
**Author:** ![digs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/digs/32/14889_2.png) [@digs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/digs)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2021, 8:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-phrase-is-correct/945664/3 "2021-07-04T20:14:13Z")
“Ethically challenged”, “ethically handicapped” or “differently ethicked” all sound like you’re making fun of the person. Or, at the very least, insulting them. Which I’m all for… unless you’re trying to engage in a serious discussion. And for heaven’s sake, if the less-than-ethical person is in the discussion, I don’t think you’re playing fair if you’re calling someone names like these. ---
**Author:** ![TheKingOfSoup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/34f0e0/32.png) [@TheKingOfSoup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TheKingOfSoup)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2021, 8:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-phrase-is-correct/945664/4 "2021-07-04T20:35:39Z")
I prefer “left his moral compass in the pocket of his other suit.” ---
**Author:** ![CookingWithGas](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cookingwithgas/32/485_2.png) [@CookingWithGas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CookingWithGas)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2021, 2:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-phrase-is-correct/945664/5 "2021-07-05T02:58:27Z")
What effect are you looking for? “Ethically challenged” is a wry understatement. Perhaps the Victorian “is a scoundrel” or perhaps “rogue” would sound classy. Or maybe “makes Bernie Madoff/Jeffrey Skilling look like a saint” if you’re looking for something a bit more glib that shows you pay attention to the news. “Has the ethics of a cockroach-eating wasp” for something with good visuals and just enough snark. Or just “unethical” or “has no ethics” for a flat statement of fact. ---
**Author:** ![Mallard](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b9bd4f/32.png) [@Mallard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mallard)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2021, 3:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-phrase-is-correct/945664/6 "2021-07-05T03:28:42Z")
Seems like whomever you’re describing is just a plain old fashioned a\*\*hole. That should be good enough. 🧐 ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2021, 7:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-phrase-is-correct/945664/7 "2021-07-05T07:18:13Z")
_Overdrawn at the Ethics Bank_ ---
**Author:** ![Maserschmidt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/maserschmidt/32/18829_2.png) [@Maserschmidt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maserschmidt)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2021, 11:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-phrase-is-correct/945664/8 "2021-07-05T11:13:40Z")
It sounds like you might be feeling out the implications of using phrases that have parallels to descriptions of physical disabilities? I’ve used “ethically challenged” (as someone notes) as wry understatement, but hadn’t really thought about the parallel. “Their moral compass is perpetually spinning” for humor, I’d say, and straight out “I don’t trust their intentions” for being unethical. Or just ‘unethical’. ---
**Author:** ![PatrickLondon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/patricklondon/32/4422_2.png) [@PatrickLondon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PatrickLondon)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2021, 12:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-phrase-is-correct/945664/9 "2021-07-05T12:10:25Z")
“…is a stranger to scruples” Or “probably thinks “Scruples” is a nightclub” ---
**Author:** ![Bayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bayaker/32/3454_2.png) [@Bayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bayaker)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2021, 12:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-phrase-is-correct/945664/10 "2021-07-05T12:38:50Z")
> [@PatrickLondon](#): > > Or “probably thinks “Scruples” is a nightclub” Well, it _[was](https://www.galvnews.com/business/article_dbe3759e-99e4-11e3-bab1-0017a43b2370.html)_ ---
**Author:** ![mbh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a6a055/32.png) [@mbh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mbh)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2021, 1:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-phrase-is-correct/945664/11 "2021-07-05T13:47:28Z")
“Mad, bad, and dangerous to know.” — Lady Caroline Lamb, describing Lord Byron. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2021, 6:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-phrase-is-correct/945664/12 "2021-07-06T06:19:45Z")
Of those three, I’d go with “ethically challenged.” “Handicapped” is usually the word that those two-word constructions are trying to avoid. And “differently ethicked” sounds too much like saying “your bad ethics are just as good as my good ones.” “Ethically challenged” conveys what I assume is the intended understated tone that you are going for. And, if you’re not going for that, you can just use more direct terms. If you do want to act like people have different ethics, then I’d go with “Your ethics and mine are incompatible” or similar. ---
**Author:** ![don\_t\_ask](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@don\_t\_ask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_t_ask)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2021, 8:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-phrase-is-correct/945664/13 "2021-07-06T08:50:28Z")
Unencumbered by ethical considerations. A minimally ethically-regulated individual.