The number of words a child uses regularly is referred to as his or her “expressive vocabulary”. Since children’s vocabularies vary, the chart below can be used as a guideline for the approximate number of words your child should be using according to his or her age in the left column.
|
Age |
Approximate Words in Expressive Vocabulary |
|
12 months / 1 year |
2-6 words other than mama and dada |
|
15 months |
10 |
|
18 months / 1.5 years |
50 |
|
24 months / 2 years |
200-300 |
|
30 months / 2.5 years |
450 |
|
36 months / 3 years |
1,000 |
|
42 months / 3.5 years |
1,200 |
|
48 months / 4 years |
1,600 |
|
54 months / 4.5 years |
1,900 |
|
60 months / 5 years |
2,200-2,500 |
|
6 years |
2,600-7,000 |
|
12 years |
50,000 |
Lanza, J., & Flahive, L. (2008). Guide to communication milestones. East Moline, IL: LinguiSystems. https://speechhearing.columbian.gwu.edu/sites/g/files/zaxdzs1996/f/downloads/Milestonesguide.pdf