How Smart Are You At KiddieTalk? Take the Quiz!

We all know that teenagers are notorious for having their own “language” if you will. POS (parents over shoulder), LOL (laugh out loud), ROTFL (roll on the floor laughing), BTW (by the way), and BRB (be right back) are just a few examples of code phrases broken by crafty parents hoping to get a glimpse into the world of their adolescents. Teenagers don’t really like their parents figuring this stuff out. They’re more secretive with their peer-language because compared to little kids, teenagers are more secretive, period. It’s the age.

But it occurred to me that maybe children of all ages, at all stages, have their own special way of talking. Not because they are trying to exclude you (their parents) but just because they do. It got me thinking about really young kids and all those cute, creative words and phrases they use on the way to learning how to talk like everybody else.

They are so imaginative! Every self-respecting parent on the planet can probably offer up at least one or two examples from their own kids. But time has a way of erasing our memories of those early words and if you don’t write them down somewhere you’ll be struggling to come up with any by the time your kids are 12.

In the meantime though, you’re probably in the thick of it with tiny talkers. And since communication is SO important, let’s see how good you are at deciphering the meaning of the following words and phrases from the world of those little darlings. Maybe you have a gift for toddler-talk and don’t even know it. Maybe you could capitalize on it to make some extra money. Like, maybe you could be a tutor for parents who don’t have that “natural ability with languages”. I’m just saying…

Anyway, the following examples were collected from real-life parents with real-life kids. The words are spelled as they sound coming out of a little kid’s mouth. And since you might be interrupted several times while taking the test by someone needing a bottle or help on the toilet or a cheese sandwich, there’s no time limit. All set? Well then, sharpen your mouse and BEGIN.

1. lake hot toe

a) the lake where a little girl burned the bottom of her feet in very hot sand

b) a hot tub

c) Lake Tahoe

d) the lake with a nice hotel right on the beach where a little boy stayed for a week on vacation

2. down chew chew

a) the subway

b) swallowing

c) take me out of the swing

d) put down my Thomas The Train engine

3. hotshoes

a) sandals

b) shoes that have flames printed on them

c) slippers

d) mommy’s high heels

4. pie-ooter

a) diaper

b) cherry pie

c) computer

d) poop

5. cycle morning

a) sprinklers

b) motorcycle

c) bike with training wheels

d) merry-go-round

6. oh-lees

a) cheerios

b) telephone

c) raviolis

d) stroller

7. friday eggs

a) weekend breakfast place

b) fried eggs

c) anything cooked with a spatula

d) aches from a virus that started on a friday

8. bee bee que

a) bee hive

b) barbeque

c) Scooby Doo

d) fire engine

9. a few wiles

a) a bunch of toy trucks

b) a little bit happy

c) a short passage of time

d) a short distance

10. hot baby

a) a little girl with bright red hair (that looked like fire)

b) a baby with a fever

c) a hotdog

d) a Halloween devil costume

ANSWERS: 1.C; 2.A; 3.B; 4.C; 5.B; 6.C; 7.B; 8.C; 9.C; 10.A

So how did you do? If you did pretty well, congratulations! If not, join the club. But either way, send me your own funny words and I’ll gear up for Round Two!