Motherese, or infant-directed speech, is characterized by

Motherese, or infant-directed speech, is characterized by

• A. Monotone speech.
• B. Rapid tempo with compressed vowels.
• C. Absence of intonation.
• D. Higher pitch, slower tempo, exaggerated intonation; directs attention and aids learning.

Answer: (D)

Infant-directed speech is shaped to attract a baby’s attention and support early language learning, so the prosody stands out in meaningful ways. It typically uses a higher overall pitch, a slower tempo with longer vowels, and exaggerated intonation. This combination makes speech more salient and easier for a young listener to process: the higher pitch grabs attention, the slower rate gives the baby time to hear and segment sounds, and the exaggerated rise and fall of pitch helps signal phrase boundaries and the emotional content of what’s being said. Together, these cues aid attention, help infants track word boundaries, and facilitate mapping sounds to meanings, which supports early vocabulary and later language development. Monotone speech, a rapid tempo with compressed vowels, or a lack of intonation don’t provide the same perceptual cues or processing time, making them less helpful for language learning.

Infant-directed speech is shaped to attract a baby’s attention and support early language learning, so the prosody stands out in meaningful ways. It typically uses a higher overall pitch, a slower tempo with longer vowels, and exaggerated intonation. This combination makes speech more salient and easier for a young listener to process: the higher pitch grabs attention, the slower rate gives the baby time to hear and segment sounds, and the exaggerated rise and fall of pitch helps signal phrase boundaries and the emotional content of what’s being said. Together, these cues aid attention, help infants track word boundaries, and facilitate mapping sounds to meanings, which supports early vocabulary and later language development. Monotone speech, a rapid tempo with compressed vowels, or a lack of intonation don’t provide the same perceptual cues or processing time, making them less helpful for language learning.