'wheelchair' originates from English as a compound of 'wheel' and 'chair', where 'wheel' goes back to Old English 'hweol' meaning 'a circular object that turns', and 'chair' comes from Old French 'chaiere' (from Latin 'cathedra') meaning 'seat'.

'wheelchair' developed from earlier descriptive phrases such as 'wheeled chair' and hyphenated forms like 'wheel-chair' in Early Modern English, eventually becoming the single word 'wheelchair' in modern English.

Initially it simply meant 'a chair with wheels'; over time the word came to be used specifically for chairs made to transport people with mobility impairments (including specialized manual and powered forms).