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How many words is normal for a 19 month old to speak?

Marlena - posted on 12/02/2008 ( 25 moms have responded )

I swear my daughter does nothing but talk all the time.She says a ton of words and i was wondering roughly how many words are they suppose to be saying at this age. So far she says the following

Hi, bye, bye-bye, night-night, juice, pee, up, no, yes, please, thank you, i dont think so, i dont know,

mama, mom, mommy, papa, pop-pop, horsey, kitty, puppy, nose, ear, mouth, eye, block, baby, happy, apple, banana, orange, cheese, come on, tickle, teeth, Book, Boots, Dora, mine, pepper, boys, boing, go

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Sabrina - posted on 02/24/2009

My daughter is 22 months and only speaks a few words. I did ask my doctor about it and he said it is because she does not have to talk. All she does is point and grunt or babble something and we end up doing it for her. This has made her somewhat lazy. She is my youngest of 3. Her older sister is 13 and brother is 11 so they do things and talk for her all the time. So we have been working with her about using her words more but I know she understands a lot more then she says. She can sit downa do a puzzle new right out of the wrapping paper. So we know she has it in her to understand what we are saying it is just getting her to say what she wants. It is going to take time and we know that so we just keep working on it.

Grace - posted on 02/17/2009

I think every child is different. Developmentally, they should understand all of what you say, and speak about 5-20 words. My big girl could speak in complete sentances at 15 months with over 200 words in her vocabulary. Now my little one (adopted from Ethiopia in September) speaks about 30 words and "babbles" non-stop. I don't expect the baby to speak as many words since she is still learning English, and she also does not speak when she is at day care even though she talks non-stop when she is with family.

Hannah - posted on 02/17/2009

My little boy is 22months and says half to a third of that amount of words so your lucky, he doesnt even say mummy :(

Kristine - posted on 02/16/2009

My 22 month old girl rarely talks, although i know she understands. She has a three year old sister who talks for her. I think she figures she does not need to talk as she has her own translater.

Jessica - posted on 02/14/2009

My 21 month old son doesn't say a whole lot, probably only 10-20 words, but I think that girls chatter more than boys do. My sister's daughter said more than her son did at this age. That's great that yours talks so much!

Janet - posted on 02/13/2009

Be thankful - my 22 month old says nothing at all!

Marie - posted on 02/09/2009

My son Ollie says maybe 5 things.. everything else is a whine... if he tries to say other things it completely uninteligible.

He says Daddy, Mommy, Mama.. shoe.. Doggy.. sissy.. (sissy sounds like eesee) and please sounds like eeeese

"Thank you" just recently graduated to Ting You

My husband tried to tell me he is sloow.. because he is comparing him to my supersmart daughter, who is now 7. We had no qualms on Morgan's development, she did things before we thought of them. So the old saying Boys are different than girls applies here.

Heather - posted on 02/09/2009

Babies all develope at different rates. My oldest son (now 10) was talking in full sentences ALL the time at 18 months. My Daughter Syd (almost 3) was the same, and then my youngest daughter Cameron (2 in april) hardly says anything, but understands everything! she does say, mom, momma, ta-ta, hop, help, up, papa, dog, kitty, horsey (ee-ee), juice, can, i/eye, love, you, one, two, three, ten, yea, hi, bye, no, uh-uh, pee, poo, off, dave, bu-bu, and she signs milk and more.

Lorraine - posted on 02/09/2009

my son is nearly 22 months and doesnt say a huge amount. prob about 15-20 words if i counted. and hasnt yet put 2 words together. my HV said he is fine so im not concerned. he was a very early walker (8 months) so i guess they cant be good at everything! lol...my daughter (who is now 3 1/2) was a very early talker and was talking in sentences by the time she was 19 months...i think girls are generally more advanced than boys :-)

Angelique - posted on 02/04/2009

Girls always seem to be faster than boys. My little girl is 21mths and honestly it might be easier to tell you what words she cant say. She never stops talking and telling us what to do. She has in the last three weeks started singing twinkle twinkle, baa baa black sheep and rock-a-bye baby all the way through and also sings along to Britney (womanizer). As for animals she can name pretty much all including kangaroo, hippopotamus and rhinocerous. And constanly surprises me with sentences such as " No mummy i not drank it all up yet"

I wouldnt worry about it though, I talked really early and my brother really late and academically we are probably equal both being graduates.

As long as your child can understand and respond to what you are saying and is saying some words at this stage i wouldnt worry at all! X

Tina - posted on 02/04/2009

That's normal and you are blessed, some start talking much later. My daughter is a chatterbox as well - she says the same as yours as well as.... Cow, Moo, Moose, Mia, Work, Miss You, Drums, Snowman, Chicken, Bird, Where'd it go, Jello, Matt-Matt, Gram, Ashley, Joey, Gage, Cold, Brush, Color, What's that, Noodles, Potty, Juice and the list could go on.... your daughter is going to be talking your ear off very soon :)

Tanya - posted on 02/03/2009

As I'm sure by all the comments that we all know that all children are so different, but I must say that girls are more advanced when it comes to talking.I have 3 children two boys aged 5&4 & a little girl aged 22months. My eldest didn't start speaking properly till he was almost 3 & my daughter speaks full sentences when she wants to boss her brothers around & counts with them passed 10.Just love them all for their differences & try not to compare them with others, they are all unique.Try not to stress to much about it,I found that I was too busy anticipating all my eldest needs that he never had to ask. SO WHY SPEAK.We all learn as we go & it gets easier.

Claire-Louise - posted on 02/03/2009

my daughter is 21 months and chatters away all the time but its rubbish gobble de goop - she can say some words like names of family members and the dog name but thats about it - my other daughter who is nearly 7 was alot further forward at 21 months but not just in talking in everything - so i think ive just got a lazy toddler who will do things in her own good time - i not worried at all xx

Caroline - posted on 02/01/2009

I wish my daughter would say all that!

She's 21 months and says: mama, dada, woof, baa-baa, moo, mew, nose, and I think that's about it!!! (you notice most of that was animal noises! lol)

Your daughter is definitely ahead of what I think MOST children can say!!! (Especially mine!!!)

Hannah - posted on 01/31/2009

So its ok if youre 21 month old child doesnt speak many words? My daughter is really smart and knows whats up with talking.. she would just rather not (in front of people that is).. I hear her in her room, and she talks, and talks. But any other time.. its jibber jabber with a few occasional words that slip out!

Freda - posted on 01/30/2009

my son is 21 months and only says a handful of words but the understanding is there so im not too worried but he gets frustrated cos he cant get his point across and i get frustrated with hearing "ah ah ah" a thousand times a day!!

Lori - posted on 01/29/2009

My son has about 5-10 words, but we taught him to sign please, cup, thank you, I love you, and bye bye. It's not that he can't communicate with us, it's just he doesn't have the motor skills for it yet. My nephew was exactly the same way. He didn't speak very well til he was about 3. Just remember, all kids are different and will mature at their own pace.

Amy - posted on 01/27/2009

very good! my little boy doesnt say much at 21 months. All my other girls were early talkers... He can only say 5 words. When I addressed this with the pediatrician, she said that if he is not saying more by his 2nd bday in April, then she would refer him for a speech evaluation.

Rebecca - posted on 01/26/2009

Each child is different but they should say around 30-50 words and start saying two word sentences. Some kids are much more verbal which sounds like your daughter is. My daughther is also very talkative and can say many sentences and is great at letting me know what she does and does not want. Well hope that was helpful

Kelly - posted on 01/26/2009

i think some are just chatter boxes and others take there time like us adults -mine is a chatter box too -she is 21 months and can sing the first 2 lines of twinkle twinkle perfectly -sometimes though i just want her to slow down she is growing up so quiclky

Tamara - posted on 01/26/2009

My daughter is 21 months now, and she has always been a little chatterbox, i've lost count of all the words she can say, and she has a great understanding when we ask her to do something. As long as your child is trying to talk, and your giving them a chance to use their words, its pretty ok. If they get to about 2 and there still isn't much attempt at communication happening i would suggest you see your peadatrician just to be careful, but most children will start to talk around this point, and its amazing how fast they can start saying things.

Laura - posted on 01/26/2009

Hi, well your daughter says loads more than my son and he's 21 months, he don't say half the amount of words that you've listed...

Alicia - posted on 01/25/2009

Im not sure but My daughter says some full sentences now.. (ex.. mommy i want to watch a movie) and my husband and i have counted almost 100 words in her vocab that are actually clear, an she knows her cousin aunt uncles and grandparents names by heart. I think that this is normal for their age.. My daughter was 2 months premature so i thought she might be behind but someone told me she was advanced.. but i think its pretty normal for them to speak A LOT at this age

Catherine - posted on 12/09/2008

I received an email from BabyCenter today - it said that for a 19-month old, a vocabulary of anywhere between 10 and 50 words is normal for this stage of development. But remember, even children who only speak a couple of words at this point are usually fine too... as long as the pediatrician is aware of the child's progress. I know someone whose child went from no words at 20 months to speaking in full sentences at age 3, and is quite the little genius now. Every child is different.

I haven't counted how many words my daughter knows, maybe a 100 or so, but there are many more that I understand but which she doesn't say perfectly. She'll try anything that's a couple syllables or less. Some words are just too difficult for her right now. e.g. for colors: "wed, ohranj, yeyoh, geen, boo" but when we get to purple, it's "pickalocka"-somethin'. Who knows what.

Then she'll surprise us... one time I was taking a shower (she stays in the bathroom while I do, so I know she is okay) ...and she pulled back the shower curtain, and said, pointing, "Mommy, wawa (water), Mommy cleaning!" and I said "Yes, Mommy is putting SOAP in her HAIR to make it CLEAN" (I speak plainly so she can pick up on the words) and she looked at me and almost rolled her eyes and said, "ahem, SHAMPOO, Mommy?" Laughing, I said, "yes, good girl, this is shampoo." My husband and I have no idea who taught her that word. This is how we know that we have to be careful what we say because even if we only say something once she may pick up on it.