E: Echolalia

 The Vocabulary of Life is an A–Z journey through the unspoken.

Inspired by my toddler’s wonder and his relentless curiosity for “why,” I’m exploring 26 days of word-nerd gems and sensory wonders that name the feelings we often share but can’t always describe. Whether you’re a parent, a dreamer, or a seeker, there’s a word here for you.

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One day, I caught my toddler whispering a new word he’d overheard me say during a phone call. He wasn’t using it in a sentence; he was simply tasting the sound of it over and over—Absolutely… Absolutely… Absolutely. It reminded me of the rhythmic, punchy delivery in an episode of Maamla Legal Hai, where a single word, “Egregious”, is leaned into just for its dramatic weight. My son was doing the same; he was smiling at the way the “Ab” burst at the start and the way the “ly” lilted at the end. To him, the word wasn’t an affirmation; it was a melody.

This rhythmic, sensory repetition is known as Echolalia.

Echolalia is the repetition of words or phrases, often used by children as a bridge to process the “music” of language before they fully grasp the definition. As a writer, watching him was a gentle correction for my own soul. We spend so much time using words as functional tools—to explain, to argue, or to persuade—that we often forget the importance of simply enjoying them. We forget that before a word is a meaning, it is a vibration and a texture.

While we often associate this with early childhood, we all experience a form of “internal echolalia.” It’s that poetic phrase that gets stuck in your head or a word like “Massachusetts” that you find yourself typing just to feel the rolling sibilance of the keys. Echolalia is a reminder that communication starts with a feeling. By mimicking the sounds around him, my son isn’t just “copying”; he is harmonizing with the world. He is reminding me that as writers, our first job isn’t just to be understood—it’s to fall in love with the sound of the world, one syllable at a time.

As writers or readers, we often have “word crushes.” What is one word you just love the sound of? For me, when young, it used to be “Massachusetts” for its rhythm, and having watched Maamla Legal Hai recently, it’s “Egregious” for its sheer, courtroom-drama power. What’s yours?

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Tomorrow : for the letter F, we’ll look at a tiny piece of stationery that we use every day but never think to name. See you for Ferrule!

This post is a part of BlogchatterA2Z Challenge 2026