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.
Instead, she thinks the mothers use motherese to tell their calves to pay attention, and perhaps to better identify whistles directed specifically at them, while enhancing their bond.
From Science Magazine • Jun. 25, 2023
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
This infant-directed speech – also known as motherese – is a special form of social feedback for the vocalizing infant.
From Salon • Aug. 28, 2021
The timbre – the voice color – also changes when people speak "motherese" compared to when talking to other adults.
From Salon • Aug. 28, 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
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.
