| Mispronounces words and sounds. |
Adds, substitutes, or rearranges sounds in
words, as in phemomenon for phenomenon or
Pacific for specific. |
| Uses wrong word, usually with
similar sounds. |
Uses a similar-sounding word, like generic
instead of genetic. |
| Confuses the morphology (structure)
of words. |
Uses the wrong form of a word, such as calling
the Declaration of Independence the Declaring of
Independence. |
| Has a limited vocabulary. |
Uses the same words over and over in giving
information and explaining ideas. Has
difficulty in conveying ideas. |
| Makes grammatical errors. |
Omits or uses grammatical markers incorrectly,
such as tense, number, possession, and
negation. |
| Speaks with a limited repertoire of
phrase and sentence structure. |
Uses mostly simple sentence construction.
Overuses and to connect thoughts and make
statements. |
| Has difficulty organizing what to say. |
Has problems giving directions or explaining a
recipe; talks around the topic, but doesn't get to
the point. |
| Has trouble maintaining a topic. |
Interjects irrelevant information into a story.
Starts out discussing one thing and then goes
off in another direction without making the
connection. |
| Has difficulty with word retrieval. |
Can't call forth a known word when it is
needed and may use fillers, such as "ummm,"
and "You know." May substitute a word related
in meaning or sound, as in boat for submarine or
selfish for bashful. |
| Has trouble with the pragmatic or
social use of language. |
Does not follow rules of conversation like
taking turns. Does not switch styles of speaking
when addressing different people. |