Do Animal Sounds Count as Words? (Yes. Here's Why That's Great News.)
It's 11pm. Your 16-month-old said "moo" at a picture of a cow today. Clearly, on purpose, without you saying it first.
Now you're lying in bed wondering: does that actually count as a word, or am I grading on a curve?
It counts. Not "counts because you're their parent and you're proud." Counts officially. Speech-language pathologists include animal sounds when they tally a toddler's vocabulary — the same tally they use to decide whether a child's language is on track.
Here's why "moo" is a real word, why it usually shows up before "cow," and how to use that to your advantage.
The official answer, from the people who count words for a living
When a speech therapist asks "how many words does your child say?", they're not only counting dictionary words. Word approximations ("ba" for ball), exclamations ("uh-oh!"), sound effects ("beep beep"), signs, and yes — animal sounds — all count.
There are three quick tests. A sound counts as a word when it's:
- Consistent — they say "moo" for cows regularly, not once by accident
- Intentional — they're using it to mean something ("that's a cow!"), not just babbling
- Independent — it comes out on their own, not only as an echo of you
If your toddler points at the neighbor's dog and says "woof" to every dog, every time, unprompted — that's a word. Full stop.
Why "moo" beats "cow" (the actual science)
This isn't just a technicality to make parents feel better. There's a reason animal sounds show up so early, and researchers have spent the last decade figuring it out.
Words like "moo," "baa," and "woof" are what linguists call iconic, which refers to the sound of the word resembling the thing it means. "Cow" is an arbitrary label your child has to memorize. "Moo" is a sound the cow itself hands them for free.
And it turns out that mapping matters. A large study of roughly 600 early-vocabulary words in English and Spanish found that the words children learn earliest are the ones rated most iconic, with onomatopoeia sitting at the very top of the list (Perry, Perlman & Lupyan, 2015, PLOS ONE). Follow-up work found that toddlers don't just learn iconic words earlier, they say them more often, and adults instinctively use more of them when talking to babies (Perry et al., 2018, Developmental Science). You've probably noticed you say "the cow says moooo" to your toddler and never, ever to another adult. That instinct is doing real work.
The newest evidence is even more direct: a 2026 study in Child Development taught young children brand-new made-up words and found they learned the ones that sounded like their meaning faster than the ones that didn't (Green, Perlman & Kita). Iconic sounds aren't a shortcut around language, they're the on-ramp to greater understanding.
Bonus: "moo" and "baa" are also just easier to say. Simple consonant-vowel combos, no tricky blends. Your toddler's mouth can build them months before it can build "elephant."
So what do you actually do with this?
Sing farm songs. Genuinely — that's most of the advice.
Animal-sound songs are basically first-word practice disguised as fun. Every verse hands your child a word that's iconic, easy to pronounce, and attached to something toddlers already find fascinating. Here's how to squeeze the most out of them:
1. Leave the gap.
Sing "and the cow says..." and stop. Wait. That pause is an invitation, and even pre-verbal kids will eventually fill it. The moment they do, they've produced a word — not just heard one.
2. Sing it, then say it.
After the song, connect the sound to the label: "Moo! That's the cow. The COW says moo." The animal sound is the bridge; the noun walks across it later. You don't have to drill it — just narrate.
3. Take the song to the animals.
Books, toy animals, actual cows if you've got them. When the same "moo" shows up in the song, the book, and the toy bin, your child learns it's not a song lyric — it's a word that works everywhere.
4. Let them be the expert.
Toddlers love knowing the answer. "What does the sheep say?" is the easiest quiz they'll ever ace, and every correct "baa" builds confidence to try harder words.
5. Repeat it more than you can stand.
The 40th play-through is doing more for your toddler than the 1st. Repetition is how words move from "heard it" to "own it." (Same principle as the activities in our post on teaching toddlers colors with songs — the song is the delivery vehicle, the repetition is the medicine.)
Watch it in action
Our farm animal sounds video was built around exactly this — clear animal sounds, room to answer, and melodies you won't mind on repeat:
Also available in Spanish → Los sonidos de animales cuentan como palabras.
You can find the song on The New ABCs wherever you stream, and the rest of our music videos here.
And if your little one is into animals doing what animals do — our next video is about birds eating worms (yes, really — it's a whole thing). It lands August 16 on our YouTube channel. Hit subscribe and the reminder does the work for you.
When "moo" is the only word
One honest note, because that's what we're here for. Animal sounds counting as words is great news, but if your toddler is past 18 months with only a handful of words (animal sounds included), or you just have a gut feeling something's off, mention it to your pediatrician or a speech-language pathologist. Early check-ins are quick, low-stakes, and either reassure you or get support started sooner. Both outcomes are wins. This post is for singing along, not for diagnosing — the professionals are for that. For more song-based ideas that fit everyday family life, see our For Families page.
Quick answers
Do animal sounds count as words for a 1-year-old?
Yes. Speech-language pathologists count animal sounds toward a child's total word count, as long as the child uses them consistently, intentionally, and on their own.
Why does my toddler say "moo" but not "cow"?
Totally normal and backed by research. "Moo" is iconic (it sounds like what it means) and easier to pronounce, so it typically arrives first. "Cow" usually follows as vocabulary grows.
When do babies start making animal sounds?
Many children start between 12 and 18 months, often before most "regular" words. Animal sounds are among the most common entries in toddlers' earliest vocabularies.
Do songs actually help toddlers learn to talk?
Songs deliver the repetition, rhythm, and predictable pauses that give toddlers repeated chances to hear and produce new words — animal-sound songs especially, since their key words are the easiest kind to learn.
Sources
- Perry, L. K., Perlman, M., & Lupyan, G. (2015). "Iconicity in the Speech and Gestures of English and Spanish-Speaking Children." PLOS ONE, journals.plos.org.
- Perry, L. K., Perlman, M., & Lupyan, G. (2018). "How Iconicity Helps Us Learn and Use Spoken Language." Developmental Science, onlinelibrary.wiley.com.
- Green, A. D., Perlman, M., & Kita, S. (2026). "Sound Symbolism Supports Early Word Learning in Preschoolers." Child Development, doi.org.
Zaydio makes music for kids ages 2–8, written by composer Bradley Schachter, a musician with over 45 years of playing experience — real songs built to be sung together, not just watched. Sing along to Farm Animal Sounds on The New ABCs on Spotify, Apple Music, and Amazon Music. Browse more albums on our homepage, or learn more on our For Families page.