motherese
Britishnoun
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Elise Piazza, a brain and cognition scientist and motherese specialist at the University of Rochester who was not involved with the work, agrees.
From Science Magazine ● Jun. 25, 2023
The behavior—the first time motherese has been found in a nonhuman animal—may enhance bonding and, possibly, learning.
From Science Magazine ● Jun. 25, 2023
And babies, as anyone who has ever found themselves in the presence of one knows, also prefer the higher pitched, universal singsong that researchers call "motherese."
From Salon ● Oct. 23, 2022
It's the exaggerated pitch, tempo and intonation that parents use when talking to their little ones — what linguists call "motherese" or "parentese."
From Salon ● Dec. 18, 2021
Aigner-Clark hired the women from a nearby language school and instructed them to speak in "motherese," the universal, high-pitched tone that many mothers use when talking to their children.
From Time Magazine Archive
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Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.