To think that an 11 month old does not have 50 words?

[spugzbunny]

I was casually googling 'how many words should my baby speak' yesterday and I came across a thread where numerous people swear blind that their baby can speak 20 odd words, some saying up to 50! Am I right in thinking that's madness? Any more tiny, chatty genius babies out there?

Alexa, It was! His absolute favourite thing to do for ages was to get the bus to Homebase, admire the tools then we’d share a toasted teacake in the cafe. Awwww I miss having a squishy toddler!

My child had loads of words at 13 months but was late to sit up and crawl. It is possible.

Agree with those saying babies are either walkers or talkers!

Mine both had that many words at 11 months, but didn't walk until 17 months and 18 months. They had friends that were walking at 11 months and only saying a few. Now they're older you can't tell which was which! (All can both walk and talk!)

I think people see what they want to see.

One of DD's first words was 'Oh no!' said very dramatically . I think she was around 12-13 months when she started saying it. So I could easily turn that into a 'My child was speaking in 2 wrod sentences at 12 months' story

In reality, every time someone dropped something we said 'oh no!' So she was just parroting what she was hearing. Which is what babies do I guess! If a child is repeating a phrase with 2-3 words in that they've heard, I wouldn't count that as speaking 2-3 word sentences. So If you say: 'more juice please?" And they say back ' More juice please.' It's very different from them saying spontaneously: more juice please Because they are thirsty and understand these are the words to say to get some more juice politely

@MRex I also go to loads of baby groups and I've not met a single baby at 10 months who says more than mama dada maybe booby or ball as well!

Mine said bye to the health visitor and waved yesterday and she was well impressed so smug mcsmug-pants over here thought she'd come and google. Nooooo, baby is proper thick apparently

At 11 months, I think my DD had three words - mumma, dadda and ‘No’ - no prizes for guessing which she used most! But by the time she was two she had a better vocabulary than most four year olds according to our primary school headteacher neighbour. I had no idea of this as she was my first. I think just because they can’t say the words yet doesn’t mean they don’ know them if you see what I mean.

Forgot to say, she was walking at 9 months, so yes probably a walker rather than talker! Oh, and I did know a one year old who had necklace and hedgehog in her vocabulary .... she didn’t walk.

The thing is, I think a lot of people can 'hear' their child speaking when an objective person can't, so they're not lying, but nor is it accurate. I remember my friend declaring with massive pride that her baby (maybe somewhere around 15 months?) was 'talking in sentences now'. He was making completely unintelligible noises. But we all smiled and nodded and said 'oh, wow, clever boy!' then moved on, so I'm sure she's still telling people that he was speaking in clear, fluid sentences very early...

That seems a lot! My daughter could only say ‘mama’ by 11 months. Was speaking in sentences at 16 months though.

My sons 14 months and communicates by screaming.

*Fluent. Apparently my own vocab could do with some work...

What qualifies a word- my 18month old jabbas loads and I try and pick out the odd “word” but I wouldn’t say she’s said her first word yet.
Ma, da, daddy, no—-so far I can pick out

His absolute favourite thing to do for ages was to get the bus to Homebase, admire the tools then we’d share a toasted teacake in the cafe.

I am just so charmed and delighted by your son 😂❤️

Of my 4 children I was able to hold a full conversation with 3 of them by 18 months they were talking in sentences by 12 months and had some speech from a very young age, all of them walked early too, my 1 child was slow to walk and didn't really have much speech till 2 years old and didn't really talk I'm sentences till 2 1/2 years old. I wouldn't say there is much difference in any of them as they get older.

I can't remember how many words DC1 had at that age, but she said her first words at 9mo, and started three word sentences at 15mo. While it was good fun watching people's reactions, the world catches up and at 11 she is now bright but not off the scale clever.

By contrast, DC2 was not even babbling by 18mo, and had very few words at two. She is now as much of a gobshite as her sister .

One of my nieces had a wide vocabulary at 11 months. Her niece, OTOH, barely spoke till she was nearly 2.
My dsis hardly spoke till she was 2, and has been making up for it ever since!
It all comes out in the wash.

My daughter is 1yo and already has a basic grasp of mandarin, English, French and Vulcan.

At least that’s what it sounds like when she’s not screaming at me. Occasionally she shouts MAM or DAD but realistically I’ve not got the faintest sodding clue what she means. I’ll be honest I’m that sleep deprived that I don’t think I have 50 words any more.

I think it’s possible. I remember writing down all the words dc1 could say not long after they were 1 as I could tell she was speaking a lot and it was well over 100. I think they came together after she was 1 though so I doubt she had 50 at 11 months. But it’s also likely there are babies who could speak earlier than her. On the other hand I doubt dc2 had 50 words age 2 tbh. There’s a huge variation and girls tend to talk earlier imo.

DD had that many words, but didn't start walking until19 months. An extreme case of a walker or a talker. Of course I thought it meant she'd be a genius, but she isn't, and she's a lot better with sport than I thought she'd be then.

I knew a child who had about 50 words at that age. She was speaking in full sentences (and complex one at that) when she was 18 months. At 2yo, she was speaking better than my 4yo.

So yes it can happen.

My two dcs were raised bilngual. They probably had about 20+ words due to the fact they had theose words in both languages.

I dint find it that surprising tbh.

There is huge variation, as the PPs demonstrate. My autistic DD had a large vocabulary from very early, could recognise the whole alphabet in upper and lower case (in any order) by 18 months, was reading at 2 and fluent by 3. Her IQ is over 160, so she is definitely an outlier.
Like many autistics she referred to herself in the third person, so it was never “I want”, it was always “DD she want more some choccy” - one of her sample sentences at 18 months! It took a few more months to get the right order for “some more”.

I was talking in sentences before I was 1 in 2 languages. I had a lot of adults around me and was an only child until I was nearly 2.

My child did have over 100 words at 1 years old. We were amazed as completely didn't expect this from what we had read.
She started talking at around 7 months and at 1 years old we wrote down on a piece of paper that we stuck on the fridge all the words she could say - it was around 120 with sentences of 3-4 words.
At 1 she could say the different names for types of flowers and differentiate between different types of birds like saying moorhen, mallard duck etc. She progressed very quickly after that and now has a wonderful descriptive vocabulary as a toddler.
Although her speaking is above average still I would say her physical skills are average or a bit below.

People who claim to have these babies who say dozens of words. Do they use them in context?
One of my DC spoke before one, yes all in context
‘More drink’ ‘get down’ (meaning I want to get down) ‘up high chair’ (meaning wanted to sit in high chair and eat) ‘look dog’ (look there’s a dog). Etc
I’ve got it on video.

BUT DC is now 10 and academically average or below average so it doesn’t mean they are ‘clever’ by any means. Don’t worry, once they all get to school age, it really doesn’t matter who talked early/late etc.

I guess it's possible. My eldest had a vocabulary in double figures before he was 12 months old and was surprising people by talking in sentences soon after. He is still a very bright lad.

My younger son was walking before 12 months and is a talented sportsman.

I have no idea when my third child first talked or walked because she was number three but she's a talented sportswoman who talks more than both her brothers put together!