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Speech and Language Milestones, Ages 1 to 3 Years
Overview
Speech and language development milestones relate to two areas:
- Receptive language. This is the ability to understand words and sounds.
- Expressive language. This is the ability to use speech and gestures to communicate meaning.
Most 1-year-olds start to understand the meanings of words. Their receptive language grows from understanding names of people and objects to being able to follow simple requests sometime between ages 1 and 2. Expressive language advances from primarily using gestures and babbling at age 1, to using words, simple phrases, and some early sentence structures between ages 2 and 3.
Age | Receptive language | Expressive language |
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1-year-olds (12 months to 24 months): |
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2-year-olds (24 months to 36 months): |
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Related Information
Credits
Current as of: August 3, 2022
Author: Healthwise Staff
Medical Review:
Susan C. Kim MD - Pediatrics
John Pope MD - Pediatrics
Kathleen Romito MD - Family Medicine
Louis Pellegrino MD - Developmental Pediatrics
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Current as of: August 3, 2022
Author: Healthwise Staff
Medical Review:Susan C. Kim MD - Pediatrics & John Pope MD - Pediatrics & Kathleen Romito MD - Family Medicine & Louis Pellegrino MD - Developmental Pediatrics
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