Which is right?

[chinadog]

At the surgery today looking around I noticed the signs for the toilets. For the disabled the sign showed a wheelchair with "Disabled Toilets".
I think it should be " Toilets for the disabled" as the first sign reads as if the toilets are out of order. Thoughts please. Thanks.

[TCL-MUMPING]

Chambers online dictionary says

"disabled adj 1 said of a person: having a physical or mental handicap. 2 said of a machine, etc: made unable to work. 3 said of a device, facility, etc: designed or intended for people with physical disabilities."

so it could be either meaning 1 or 3 which applies in this particular case.

[chinadog]

So I was wrong then eh TCL? I've read the quote you posted,makes sense now. Thanks. China.

[Quizmonster]

This is a figure of speech sometimes referred to as a transferred epithet. You see it, for example, in the phrase, 'the condemned cell'. It's the prisoner within that is condemned, not the cell, but I don't imagine we will ever say 'cell for the condemned'. Similarly with the toilet and disabled people.

[heathfield]

A good example of QM's transferred epithet was bars that advertised ''topless service''

Another that I see every weekend is in a shopping mall car park, where bays for disabled drivers are nonsensically signposted ''Accessible parking only''