WORD POWER

Babies can start building their vocabularies at eight months old. How many of these terms are in yours?

1. echolalia – A: jerky hand movement in infants. B: repetition of speech by a child learning to talk. C: infant’s joyful response on hearing music.

2. bantling – A: young child. B: one-piece sleeping garment. C: baby bed with side rails.

3. bassinet – A: baby safety gate. B: bond between mother and infant. C: baby’s wicker cradle.

4. colic – A: infant’s fear of abandonment. B: intense and frequent crying in an infant. C: cereal for babies.

5. Apgar score – measure of: A: infant intellect. B: physical condition of a newborn. C: health of mother after birth.

6. quintuplet – A: each of three children born at one birth.

B: each of four children born at one birth. C: each of five children born at one birth.

7. fontanelle – A: dimple in cheek. B: sippy cup. C: space between bones in an infant’s skull.

8. babymoon – A: holiday taken by a couple before the birth of a child. B: eve of newborn’s birth. C: newborn’s first birthday.

9. helicopter parent – parent who is: A: distant. B: dangerous. C: overprotective.

10. object permanence – A: understanding that objects exist when out of sight. B: toddler’s refusal to share. C: infant ability to keep muscles still.

11. postpartum – A: following childbirth. B: relating to social-media images of newborn. C: describing the birth of twins.

12. motherese – A: mother’s euphoria after delivery. B: simplified speech used for babies.

C: maternal instinct.

13. au pair – A: person who helps with child care in exchange for room and board. B: stroller that holds two babies. C: swaddling blanket.

14. neonatal – of or relating to: A: newborn children. B: parenting. C: one’s birthplace.