When children use words in a narrower way than adults do, it is referred to as:

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Underextension is the tendency for young children to use words in a narrower way than adults would. For example, a child may only use the word "dog" to refer to their own pet and not generalize it to other furry animals resembling dogs. Jargoning refers to a stage in language development where a child produces strings of sounds and syllables that have intonation patterns similar to adult speech but are not actual words. Telegraphic speech refers to the early stage of language development where a child only uses essential words to convey meaning. Overextension is the tendency for a child to apply a word too broadly to include things that the word does not accurately describe, such as calling all four-legged animals "dogs".

When Children Use Words in a Narrower Way Than Adults