Language Development in Babies and Toddlers: What to Expect

Language development is one of the most remarkable things to watch in the first three years of life. A baby who arrives making only reflexive sounds leaves toddlerhood having mastered the foundations of one of humanity's most complex systems.

0 to 3 months

From birth, babies are tuning into the rhythms of language. By two months, most babies will coo in response to your voice and make vowel-like sounds. These early exchanges are the foundation of conversational turn-taking.

Talk to your baby during everything. Narrate nappy changes, walks, mealtimes. Hearing a wide variety of words in context is the single most powerful thing you can do for language development.

4 to 6 months

Babbling begins, typically with repeated consonant-vowel combinations like "babababa" and "dadadadada." This is not yet meaningful but it is your baby practicing the mechanics of speech.

Face-to-face time where you respond to your baby's sounds as if having a conversation, a technique called serve and return, is enormously beneficial at this stage.

7 to 12 months

Babbling becomes more complex and varied. Babies begin to understand that language is meaningful, and comprehension develops significantly before expression. By nine months, most babies understand their own name. By 12 months, they understand simple instructions like "come here" or "give it to me."

Most babies say their first word somewhere between 10 and 14 months, though a wide range is normal.

12 to 18 months

Vocabulary grows slowly at first. Most toddlers have between 5 and 20 words at 15 months, though this varies enormously. More important than word count at this stage is communication intent: pointing, showing, gesturing, and making eye contact to share attention.

18 to 24 months

There is often a vocabulary explosion around 18 months. By two, most children have around 50 or more words and are beginning to put two words together (more milk, daddy gone, big dog).

2 to 3 years

Sentences grow longer. Most 3-year-olds can be understood by strangers most of the time and are beginning to hold simple conversations.

What to do about screens

Screen time before two is associated with slower language development, particularly when it replaces conversational interaction with a real person. Screens with a person the child knows (a video call with grandparents) are much better than passive viewing.

Reading aloud

Reading books together is one of the best things you can do for language at every stage. Start from birth. Point to pictures, name objects, and let your child lead the pace.