Twenty-five words that all two-year-olds ‘must know’ have been revealed by scientists.

The list of words is designed to be ticked off easily by health visitors and doctors, and to help identify any dyslexia, deafness or autism.

The list, which was announced at the American Association for the Advancement of Science’s annual conference, makes up part of a larger list of more than 300 words that should be in a child’s vocabulary.

The conference, held in Vancouver, heard that up to 20 per cent of toddlers are behind their peers when it comes to speech. However, three quarters could be described as ‘late bloomers’ who catch up over time. The scientists said this was likely to be the case if the child is otherwise developing normally.

The words are: Mummy, Daddy, cat, dog, yes, no, all gone, more, nose, eye, baby, milk, juice, hello, thank you, bye bye, ball, biscuit, banana, hot, bath, shoe, hat, book and car.

Professor Leslie Rescorla, who designed the test, said: “If children don’t use most of these words by 24 months, they may be late talkers.”

Posted by Robert Mair on 20/2/2012