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Original poster

If you have a 2 year old, what's their speech like?

18 replies

INeedANew · 11/02/2020 18:57

DD has just turned 2 this week and I don't know if I'm being unnecessarily concerned about her speech. I can only compare to my other children when they were the same age.

She doesn't seem to be learning new words at a fast rate. She probably only knows around maybe 50 words and even then she just sounds so babyish when she talks like mummy is mee mee etc. Shes not learning new words daily and is nowhere near saying short 2 word sentences. Must add that her understanding is totally fine when I speak to her. She attends nursery a few days a week and they haven't raised any issues.

Do I have reason to worry? Should I speak to the health visitor?

OP posts:
whatisit12345 · 11/02/2020 20:53

It doesn't look like there is any issue. I have a DD 20 months. She joins words together like 'mummy sleeping', 'open door', 'come on quick'. She knows around 20-30 words and sometime says 'oh dear' when she drops something. Please, thank you and sorry unprompted at right time. But total words I don't think she knows more than 30.

Pipanchew2 · 11/02/2020 21:02

Hi
Have a look on the communication trusts website they have milestones and also activity ideas for promoting speech and language.
Many areas have SLT drop ins linked to children centres maybe see if you can access this.
I would always advise talking to a SLT if you have any concerns about a child’s language development, if nothing else just to put your mind at rest.

Pipanchew2 · 11/02/2020 21:03

Forgot to say I’m a paediatric speech therapist (SLT)

Interested in this thread?

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2 year olds Behaviour & development Childcare & nursery Families
winniesanderson · 11/02/2020 21:17

My dd is a little younger than yours (21 months) and I have been very concerned about her speech. She's got maybe 5/6 words but only uses maybe 1 or 2 spontaneously. And these aren't very clear. She doesn't make a huge variety of sounds and has stopped making some sounds and word attempts altogether.

Everybody thought I was being melodramatic, especially because her understanding is brilliant, but it really was causing me a lot of worry so I ended up making a gp appointment, figuring that the health visitor or speech and language service might ask me about her hearing so I may as well rule that out. I wondered if she might have glue ear. Turns out her ears were so blocked with wax that the gp couldn't even see her ear drum to check for glue ear. We've started her on drops and she's already (after a few days) started making lots more sounds again. In retrospect she did rub her ears a lot but I put that down to teething Blush

I realised I wasted all those months worrying and should have just listened to my gut. If you're worried it's definitely worth having a conversation with a health visitor.

Minai · 11/02/2020 21:21

My ds at just turned 2 seemed a bit behind his peers on speech. He said about 40-50 words (most of which were only understandable to me) and didn’t put 2 together. A few weeks after his 2nd birthday he put 2 words together and started gaining new words at quite a quick pace. His vocabulary really exploded at about 2.3 and now he is 2.8 he is saying hundreds of words and puts up to 6 together.

I wouldn’t worry until she is older. Their speech develops so much between 2 and 3. 50 words aged just turned 2 sounds very normal to me.

Lottapianos · 11/02/2020 21:25

'I would always advise talking to a SLT if you have any concerns about a child’s language development, if nothing else just to put your mind at rest.'

Also a speech and language therapist, and I second this advice

Galaxygirl93 · 11/02/2020 21:27

Just to add my experience, my boy has just turnt 2 at the beginning of February and he too has only really started expanding his vocabulary. He didn't say any recognisable words until maybe 18-20 months, and only since Christmas has been making more of an effort to repeat more words. He also says "Lets go" and "all gone" but those are the only 2 word phrases he knows

Natsku · 11/02/2020 21:31

I think 50 words is what they expect at 2 years old and average 100 so sounds like she's on the lower end of normal but it's always worth bringing up your concerns to the HV to either get reassurance or a then a referral if its needed.

My 2 year old was behind with speech, I posted here when he was 18 months old because he wasn't saying a single word and seemed to have very poor understanding. Now he's 2 and he's hit a speech explosion and there's no concern at all any more. Maybe your DD will hit a speech explosion soon.

missanony · 11/02/2020 21:37

It is so hugely variable. Dc2 is a talker so can say quite a few words and is starting to put 2 words together and chatters but she can’t jump or run. Dc1 lacked confidence in talking but understood and has certainly made up for it but he could throw and was very physical.

Try not to worry though and refer to your hv to ease your mind.

Bookbandconfusion · 11/02/2020 22:31

Mine is a month off 2 and has 7 words :-s I have a GP appt booked, despite the health visitor telling me not to worry...

bibbetybobbityhat · 11/02/2020 22:41

Dd is 2.3 years. She is only just starting to put sentences together. She can follow fairly complex instructions, but in comparison with her peers, verbally she seems to be behind Sad
Having said they, physically she is way ahead, as in she will jump off stuff, she can do fairly complex roly polies ending up in a bridge with one leg extended...
I've resigned myself to the fact that she will
be an athlete before she will be a scholar...

Hadenoughofitall441 · 11/02/2020 22:50

DS didn’t talk till he was about 4 and he’s 12 now and knows more words than his 15 year old auntie. where as dd started at 2 and she don’t shut up 5 years later. Kids go at different speeds, just keep an eye on it I’m sure it will be fine.

Poetryinaction · 11/02/2020 23:22

It sounds within normal. My nearly 2 yo says a lot more than that but the range of normal is vast. I think there has been some good advice here.

Original poster
INeedANew · 12/02/2020 07:34

Thanks everyone. It's just that her siblings spoke short sentences at this age and knew loads and loads of words. I could have a little chat with them. They used to ask questions like what's this? Where's daddy? How she is now , they were probably like that around 18m.

I'll keep an eye on it though.

OP posts:
DisgraceToTheYChromosome · 12/02/2020 08:47

DGS 2.5 had clearer speech a year ago, but a very small vocabulary. Now he makes long incomprehensible speeches which leave us scratching our heads.

trilbydoll · 12/02/2020 09:02

DD1 could have a full conversation at that age. DD2 barely said a word until she was 3, and I was worried about her starting preschool at 3.5 because her speech was so unclear.

She's in Reception now and her speech is lazy but wide vocabulary. I think she just didn't see the point in talking!

Damntheman · 12/02/2020 09:51

I didn't get short sentences out of either of mine until they were three :) But do get her checked out if you're worried OP.

KittenVsBox · 12/02/2020 10:03

Mine is old enough that the 2 year check was 10 words in usage - and we didnt meet that target.
However by the time the follow up appointment came through at 2y4m, we had sentences.

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