Verbal reference is the ability to use language to communicate about objects, events, or ideas, even if they are not witnessed directly, such as past events or faraway places. It rests on a three-way link between words, their referents, and mental representations of those referents. A foundational human capacity, verbal reference extends the communicative power of language beyond the here-and-now, enabling access to language-mediated learning and thus fueling cognitive development. In the current review, we consider how and when verbal reference develops. The existing literature suggests that verbal reference emerges around infants’ first birthdays and becomes increasingly robust by their second. In discussing the powerful developmental advantages of acquiring verbal reference we propose that this achievement requires a dynamic interplay among infants’ cognitive and language development, fueled by general learning capacities. We close by describing new research directions, aimed at advancing our understanding of how verbal reference emerges.

语言参考是使用语言交流对象、事件或想法的能力，即使它们没有被直接目击，例如过去的事件或遥远的地方。它依赖于单词、它们的所指对象和这些所指对象的心理表征之间的三向联系。作为人类的一项基本能力，语言参考将语言的交流能力扩展到此时此地之外，从而能够获得以语言为中介的学习，从而促进认知发展。在当前的审查中，我们考虑了口头参考是如何以及何时发展的。现有文献表明，语言指称出现在婴儿一岁左右，并在他们第二岁时变得越来越强大。在讨论获得口头参考的强大发展优势时，我们提出这一成就需要婴儿的认知和语言发展之间的动态相互作用，由一般学习能力推动。最后，我们描述了新的研究方向，旨在促进我们对口头参考如何出现的理解。