baby talk

American  

noun

1. the speech of children learning to talk, marked by syntactic differences from adult speech and by phonetic modifications like lisping, lalling, and the omission and substitution of sounds.

2. Also called parentese.  a style of speech used by adults in addressing children, pets, or sweethearts, and formed in imitation of the voice and pronunciation of children learning to talk: it is generally characterized in English by the addition of diminutive endings to words, the use of special words and pet names, and the systematic distortion of certain words, as dolly for doll, teensy-weensy for tiny, oo for you, and twain for train.

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baby talk British  

noun

1. the speech of very young children learning to talk

2. an adult's imitation of this

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Usage

Baby Talk is used as a label in this dictionary for well-known terms traditionally thought to exemplify the type of baby talk used by adults.

Etymology

Origin of baby talk

First recorded in 1830–40

Example Sentences

Other parents said their children have been having potty accidents again, speaking in baby talk or gibberish, sleeping in their parents’ bed and throwing tantrums over small changes in routines.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 6, 2025

“Anybody who has bipolar disorder and is worried and thinking about having a baby, talk to someone with experience in perinatal mental health,” she said.

From Salon • Sep. 10, 2024

It turns out that dolphin mothers also use a kind of high-pitched baby talk.

From Washington Times • Jun. 26, 2023

In Torvald’s presence, Nora remains a recognizable type, the strategically chirpy songbird pursing her lips and cooing in baby talk.

From New York Times • Mar. 9, 2023

“I just wanted to get out of there. Couldn’t stand the baby talk anymore.”

From "When Dimple Met Rishi" by Sandhya Menon