What Counts As a Word for a Toddler?

How do I know if what my toddler is saying is a real word?

Milestone charts often get parents thinking about what actually counts as a word in their toddler’s vocabulary. This is when friends ask me, “How do I know if something my child is saying is a word or not?”. It can be confusing to know what to count as a word in the early days of language development, even for a trained therapist!

There are some general guidelines speech-language pathologists (SLPs) follow for categorizing if a vocalization a child is making can be considered a word. These criteria are:

• They use the word consistently and independently (not just imitating after you have said it.) Every time your child sees the neighbor’s bright red car outside or his favorite toy car, he says, “kah!”, it is consistent.
• It sounds similar to what it should sound like, for example, “meh” for “milk.” The word doesn’t have to be perfect to count, but it should be recognizable to someone listening to him in context.
• They use the word in a meaningful and intentional way rather than just babbling. For example, if they’re thirsty and head to the fridge or pull at mom and say, “Meh!” this one is probably a word. If you hear “meh-meh-meh” while playing and it doesn’t seem to be attached to requesting milk or labeling milk during play/reading, it may not be a real word yet.
• A word is consistent, intentional, and sounds like the target word.

Words are symbols that represent concepts. When your child consistently produces a meaningful and purposeful verbalization of “kah” for “car” he is relating the concept of the sounds “k+ah” to the concept of metal containers that transport people! 

What else can count towards my toddler's vocabulary?

You can also count signs, exclamations, and play sounds in your child’s vocabulary!

This means that if your child is signing the word “more” or saying “woof woof” for a dog barking, those count toward the total number of words in his vocabulary. We love it when a child is communicating through the use of signs!

Baby signs and ASL are wonderful resources for children that really help reduce communication frustration as they are just beginning to learn how to talk. As an SLP, I often observe that once a child can say a word, they tend to drop the sign and quite often will also be less inclined to pick up new signs. After all, why would a toddler use a sign when they can holler at the top of their lungs “WAWA!” as soon as they realize their mouth is but the tiniest bit parched? Speaking as the mother (maid, personal assistant, and chef) of two young children!

If you notice that your child’s sign repertoire is growing, but their verbal word vocabulary isn’t, you should consider having a hearing evaluation to rule out a hearing loss.

Learning sign language doesn’t delay a child’s verbal speech. It actually helps teach children why we communicate and how amazing using verbal speech is for getting their wants and needs met! To learn more about using signs with babies and toddlers, check out our post about it here.

My toddler doesn't seem to be saying any real words; what do I do?

Language develops on a continuum; he may be missing the pre-requisite skills to really start using sounds and words to communicate. It’s important to examine if your child understands the words you use because understanding comes long before verbalizing.

You can always request an assessment with a qualified speech-language pathologist to get a better idea of where your child’s language skills are functioning and what areas they may need support in before jumping into expressing words. For information on how to request a public assessment through your state or public school click here.

Toddler assessment of speech and language is one of the services we provide here at Little Language Lab. For more information on how to request an assessment, check out our 1:1 speech therapy services.