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Glite Dictionary
echolalia

echolalia

1 9.9
An automatic repetition of other people's words or sounds without meaning to
  • noun
  • /ˌɛkoʊˈleɪliə/
  • Specialized
translation icon : ecolalia
  • Some patients exhibit echolalia as they repeat phrases they hear during therapy sessions.
  • echolalia, he said
  • called it echolalia

The winning word, the word that he was able to spell, was echolalia.

Examples

  • You may need to acknowledge the echolalia first (for example, if the student is repeating a phrase about airplanes, say something that makes sense within that framework), and then attempt to have a conversation about what is happening in the music classroom.

    Academic text (2009)

  • In order to evaluate this aspect of language, students are often given the Slingerland Echolalia Test (Slingerland, 1970).

    Academic text (1993)

  • My mother called it echolalia and said he would grow out of it.

    Fiction book (1993)

  • Andy engaged in delayed echolalia from preferred TV shows and movies when left alone, often incorporating the names of individuals in the room or nearby.

    Academic text (2015)

  • It's called echolalia.

    Silent Fall (1994)

  • Respond to echolalia.

    Academic text (2000)

  • Other observations are an increased propensity to ask questions, to use echolalia, and to make comments that are seemingly unrelated to conversational topics.

    Academic text (2000)

  • The teacher noticed that the student often used echolalia to communicate his needs.

  • During group activities, his echolalia made it clear he was engaged, mirroring the last words spoken by others.

Synonyms

repetition
vsecholalia
44 2.0

Doing or saying something again

is automatic and targets another person's spoken words or sounds
perseveration
vsecholalia
  • Specialized
9.9

Repeatedly saying or doing the same thing even when you cannot stop

repeats only others' spoken words or sounds automatically

Antonyms

spontaneity
31 6.2

Acting on a sudden feeling without planning or thought

Surface Forms

echolalia singular
echolalias plural

Morphology

echolalia = echo (semi-transparent) = echo + lalia

The element 'echo' signals repetition while '-lalia' is a medical combining form for speech and may be unfamiliar to B1 learners, so the overall structure is partially transparent.

Etymology

Echolalia comes from the Greek parts echo meaning 'sound' and -lalia meaning 'speech', so it literally means a 'speech echo'. It describes when someone repeats another person's words without meaning to, like an echo.