Glossary
Physical Therapist Assistant Terms & Vocabulary
15 essential physical therapist assistant terms with plain-English definitions: the vocabulary you’ll hear in training and on day one.
Key physical therapist assistant vocabulary
These 15 terms come up constantly in physical therapist assistant training, on the job and in interviews. Knowing them helps you follow instructions, document accurately and sound prepared.
- AROM and PROM
- Active range of motion (patient moves) and passive range of motion (clinician moves).
- Assistive device
- Equipment such as a walker, cane or crutches that supports mobility.
- Contraindication
- A reason a treatment should not be used.
- Functional mobility
- Everyday movements such as getting out of bed, walking and climbing stairs.
- Gait training
- Teaching or retraining walking.
- Goniometer
- A tool that measures joint angles.
- Guarding
- Staying close and ready to support a patient to prevent falls.
- HEP
- Home exercise program.
- Modalities
- Treatments such as heat, cold, ultrasound and electrical stimulation.
- Plan of care
- The physical therapist’s written goals and treatment plan for a patient.
- Proprioception
- The body’s sense of position and movement.
- ROM
- Range of motion: how far a joint can move.
- SOAP note
- A note format: subjective, objective, assessment, plan.
- Therapeutic exercise
- Exercises designed to improve strength, mobility or endurance.
- Weight-bearing status
- How much weight a patient may put on a limb, as ordered.
Practice these terms
Test yourself with the free Physical Therapist Assistant practice test: it includes vocabulary questions built from this list. For a complete course, see Physical Therapist Assistant training.
Browse terms from every career in our career glossary.