A 3-year-old child says to her mommy, "I goed and watched the mouses at the pet store." This is an example of ________.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The use of "goed" instead of "went" shows overregularization, which is a common error made by young children as they apply grammatical rules too broadly. Holophrasing refers to a stage when toddlers use a single word to convey a complete thought. Abbreviated speech and telegraphic speech both refer to a style of speech where nonessential words are omitted, but neither fully captures the error in the child's use of "goed".

A 3-Year-Old Child Says to Her Mommy, "I Goed and Watched