Which term is used to describe short two- to three-word sentence style in early speech?

• A. Holophrase
• B. Telegraphic speech
• C. Syncretic speech
• D. Child directed speech

Answer: (B)

The idea being tested is how young children first form sentences. Telegraphic speech describes the stage where a child uses two to three content words to convey a whole idea, dropping nonessential words like articles and function words. You might hear or see examples such as “Want cookie” or “Mommy go,” which clearly express a message even though they omit parts like “I” or “the.” This reflects the child’s growing ability to combine words into simple, meaningful phrases while still developing grammar. Holophrase would be when a single word stands for a whole sentence, like “Milk!” meaning “I want milk.” Syncretic speech isn’t a standard term for this stage, and child-directed speech refers to how adults talk to children, not the child’s own speech pattern. So the two- to three-word, content-word-only pattern is telegraphic speech.