Definition

1. Noun:
   • (Psychiatry) The mechanical and meaningless repetition of words or sounds spoken by another person. This is often observed as a symptom in certain psychiatric or neurological conditions, such as some forms of schizophrenia or autism spectrum disorder.
   • (Developmental Psychology) An infant's or young child's repetition of sounds or words uttered by others. This is a normal part of early language acquisition, where the child imitates speech sounds as they learn to talk.

Examples of Usage

• Noun (Psychiatric context):

  • The patient's echolalia was evident as he immediately repeated every question the doctor asked.
  • In some cases, echolalia can be a communicative strategy for individuals with autism, not merely meaningless repetition.

• Noun (Developmental context):

  • The toddler's echolalia is a positive sign of her developing language skills.
  • Parents often notice a stage of echolalia where their child repeats phrases from favorite videos.

Advanced Usage

• Immediate vs. Delayed Echolalia: These are clinical distinctions.
  • Immediate echolalia: The repetition occurs right after hearing the speech.

    • His immediate echolalia made conversation very difficult.
  • Delayed echolalia: The repetition occurs after a significant delay, sometimes hours or days later.

    • She would use delayed echolalia, repeating lines from a movie she saw last week in seemingly appropriate situations.

Variants and Related Words

• Echolalic (adj): Characterized by or pertaining to echolalia.
  • The child exhibited echolalic speech patterns.

Synonyms

• Verbal stereotypy: (In clinical contexts) A broader term for repetitive, seemingly purposeless speech patterns.
• Palilalia: (A related but distinct term) The compulsive repetition of one's own words or phrases.

Related Phrases

(While "echolalia" itself is not typically part of phrasal verbs, it is used in specific descriptive phrases.) - To exhibit echolalia: To display the symptom or behavior. - The individual was observed to exhibit echolalia during the assessment. - Echolalia as a feature: Used to describe its presence within a condition. - Echolalia is a common feature in some presentations of autism.

Noun

1. (psychiatry) mechanical and meaningless repetition of the words of another person (as in schizophrenia)
2. an infant's repetition of sounds uttered by others