Babbling is a significant milestone in your baby’s journey to language development.
A babbling baby marks the beginning of vocal experimentation, where they’ll start stringing together sounds that pave the way to their first real words.
In this article we’ll explore the common questions around what age do babies start babbling, different types of babbling, and what babbling means in terms of development. We’ll also cover how to encourage babbling and what to do if your baby is not babbling.
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When Do Babies Babble?
Most babies reach the babbling milestone somewhere between 4 and 6 months of age. At this age you may have already noticed your baby starts cooing when they are happy – babbling will follow cooing on the path to saying real words.
Early babbling often evolves into more complex sounds and repetitive syllables, known as reduplicated babbling, around 7 to 10 months. Some parents refer this to when babies start talking gibberish!
Every baby is unique, so some may begin babbling earlier, while others may take a bit longer.
What Does Babbling Mean?
We define babbling as the stage in infant language development characterized by repetitive sounds and syllables.
As a baby learns to control their mouths, tongues, and vocal cords, they start to test out their voices with simple sounds such as “ba-ba,” “ma-ma,” and “da-da” – this is the definition of babbling!
Since babies love to imitate you, they often will imitate sounds they hear on a day-to-day basis, which could be why “ma-ma” and “da-da” are often the first words a baby says.
Eventually they will start to use babbling as ways to communicate. For example, they could point to “ba-ba” as a way to ask for a bottle.
What does babbling sound like?
Some parents think babbling sounds like gibberish!
In reality, babbling sounds are consonant-vowel sounds. There is often meaning behind some of these sounds they are making though! Babbling can also be different volumes and inflection as your baby experiments with their voice.
As a baby gets older and more experienced at babbling, they will start to make longer strings of sounds that may or may not make sense. Eventually you may start to understand, what they mean, though.
Babbling may sound different in different languages!
Stages of Babbling and Types of Babbling by Age
Since babbling is a more advanced sound a baby makes, it won’t start until your baby is past the newborn stage.
- 6-8 weeks: You won’t hear babbling yet, but newborn babies usually start to make simple speech sounds which form the basis of babbling, such as cooing, gurgling, and simple vowel sounds.
- 4-6 Months: Around the 16-24 week mark you may start hearing marginal babbling, which is when long vowels and consonants come together in single-syllable speech sounds, such as “daaa” or “maaa”. Your baby may use their babbling to express feelings or get your attention, but it’s also a part of their vocal exploration which includes blowing bubbles and clicking their tongue.
- 7-12 Months: Next comes canonical babbling, which is when babies start to string together multiple sounds syllable combination, like “da-da” or “ma-ma”. They may also try to imitate sounds they hear. There are two types of canonical babbling: reduplicated babbling, which means repeating the same syllable such as “da da da” and variegated babbling, which is where your baby combines different syllables such as “ba de da.”
- 10 Months+: When babies start talking gibberish, you’re in the final stage of babbling. The sounds of their babbling mimics an adult conversation, with the same innotation, but it’s just a bunch of gibberish. They may think they’re making themselves clear, though!
How to Encourage Babbling
There are many ways to encourage your baby to babble.
One important way to support this initial way of communicating is to always respond to your little one with supportive language cues when they are making sounds. These can include:
- Maintaining eye contact with your baby while they are cooing or babbling.
- Imitating your baby’s babble. By imitating whatever sounds your baby is making, it prompts them to make the sounds again. It is a great back and forth game to play.
- Try not to interrupt baby’s babbling. Babies needs to hear themselves making sounds.
- Nod or smile to baby as a form of encouragement.
- If your baby tries to say a certain word and you know what they mean, respond to it as if they said the right word. For example, if they ask for their bottle by calling it “ba ba”.
Other ways to encourage babbling is to give your baby a toy or picture book and talk about it with them. Singing songs such as lullabies and reading also helps develop more language skills and vocabulary (here are the 28 best lullabies to help babies fall asleep). Simply talking to them about what they are seeing and doing all day can encourage them to baby babble, too!
Introducing solid foods to your baby is also a great way to encourage your baby’s babbling. When solid foods are introduced to baby, the same muscles used to eat are the same for speech. Each time a baby graduates to a new type of solid food, the oral muscles continue to get stronger.
A note about solids: If your baby is refusing solid foods, this is often normal and shouldn’t affect your baby babbling or reaching other developmental milestones. Babies will continue to get most of their nutrition from breast milk or formula until they are about 1-year-old and sometimes the transition to eating solids can take time. Reach out to your healthcare provider if you’re concerned.
Making sure your baby is well-rested is essential to helping them meet every one of their developmental milestones. If you’re dealing with sleep struggles or think your baby has a bad sleep habit, download the Smart Sleep Coach by PampersTM app. By taking a quick free sleep assessment, you’ll get a personalized plan that’s helped thousands of parents with babbling babies sleep through the night!
When to Worry About Baby Not Babbling
Speech delay in one of the most common developmental delays in children. Often it is nothing to worry much about, and children catch up to their peers with or without intervention.
If your baby is not babbling by 7 or 8 months, there’s no cause of immediate concern. Your healthcare provider will monitor your baby’s development during the frequent checkups throughout the beginning of your baby’s life, and that includes language development.
Like with everything, every baby is unique and develops at their own pace. If your baby is delayed at meeting other developmental milestones, they may also be slightly delayed when it comes to babbling.
If your baby is not babbling by 10 months, many pediatricians will recommend you consult with a speech and language pathologist who can help your baby practice their skills. There are also some health conditions that could also cause a delay in babbling. We recommend you bring any concerns or questions to your healthcare provider at your next appointment.
What to Do if Baby Stopped Babbling
If you notice your previously babbling baby stopped babbling, it could be temporary as they focus on other skills, like crawling or pulling up to stand. Keep on encouraging babbling while they work on other areas of their development.
However, if babbling stops for an extended period, and your baby also seems unresponsive to sounds or social interaction, speak with your healthcare provider. Language delays can sometimes be a sign of another problem that needs to be evaluated by a professional to ensure your baby has the appropriate care and intervention, if needed.
Language Development Milestones After Babbling
Consistent, active babbling is typically a sign of healthy language development.
After the babbling stage, your baby will begin to say words and soon, form sentences. Around 1-2 years of age your toddler may begin to say single words and use gestures such as pointing to make sure you understand them.
As their vocabulary develops, they will begin to form two-word sentences. Around 2-3 years old their growing vocabulary will lead to stringing together a few words at a time.
With patience, practice, observation, encouragement, and imitation, soon they will be speaking in full sentences.
Final Thoughts
Babbling is an important milestone in your baby’s journey to language development – and a fun one for you, too! There is nothing like hearing the squeals and baby gibberish that are the fundamental building blocks of language and knowing what your baby’s first word is.
As with everything related to your baby’s development, they will babble at their own pace. If there are concerns with your baby’s speech and development, speak to your healthcare provider.
