{"h1":"Developmental Language Disorder: ICD-11 Definition & Early Features","faq":[{"a":"DLD is coded 6A01.2 within the ICD-11-MMS developmental speech or language disorders grouping.","q":"What is the ICD-11 code for Developmental Language Disorder?"},{"a":"DLD is persistent and disproportionate to other development, whereas many late talkers catch up. Persistence below age expectations, with functional impact and exclusion of differential causes, points to DLD.","q":"How is DLD distinguished from a late talker?"},{"a":"Yes. The language deficit must not be better explained by hearing impairment, intellectual disability, autism spectrum disorder or neurological injury for a DLD formulation.","q":"Does DLD require excluding autism and hearing loss?"}],"lang":"en","slug":"what-is-developmental-language-disorder-and-what-are-its-icd-11-features-in-early-childhood","title":"Developmental Language Disorder: ICD-11 Definition & Early Features","entity":{"key":"dld","kind":"condition","name":"Developmental Language Disorder","slug":"developmental-language-disorder"},"lenses":[{"kind":"stakeholder","label":"Doctor","value":"doctor"},{"kind":"domain","label":"Communication","value":"communication"},{"kind":"intent","label":"Definition","value":"definition"},{"kind":"lifecycle","label":"Screen","value":"screen"},{"kind":"route","label":"Special-Education","value":"special-education"},{"kind":"empowerment","label":"Early Clarity","value":"early_clarity"}],"parent":{"key":"conditions","label":"Conditions"},"related":[{"lang":"en","slug":"what-are-the-known-contributing-factors-for-developmental-language-disorder-in-early-childhood","title":"Contributing factors for Developmental Language Disorder"},{"lang":"en","slug":"what-is-developmental-language-disorder","title":"What is Developmental Language Disorder?"},{"lang":"en","slug":"how-is-developmental-language-disorder-diagnosed-in-a-child","title":"How Developmental Language Disorder Is Diagnosed in a Child"},{"lang":"en","slug":"what-is-the-icd-11-classification-for-developmental-language-disorder","title":"ICD-11 Classification for Developmental Language Disorder"},{"lang":"en","slug":"what-is-developmental-language-disorder-and-what-does-it-look-like-in-early-childhood","title":"What is Developmental Language Disorder, and what does it look like in early childhood?"},{"lang":"en","slug":"what-are-the-early-signs-of-developmental-language-disorder-in-young-children","title":"Early Signs of Developmental Language Disorder"}],"summary":"Developmental Language Disorder (ICD-11 6A01.2) is a persistent, primary difficulty acquiring and using language that falls substantially below age expectations and is not explained by hearing loss, intellectual disability, autism or neurological injury. In early childhood it presents as delayed first words, limited vocabulary, immature grammar and under-recognised comprehension difficulties.","answer_md":"*The child who understands far more than they can say — and whose words lag behind every other domain — is often a child with DLD, not a child who is simply \"slow to talk\".*\n\n## In short\nDevelopmental Language Disorder (DLD), coded **6A01.2** in ICD-11-MMS, is a persistent difficulty in acquiring, understanding, producing or using language that emerges in the developmental period and falls substantially below age expectations. Crucially, it is **not** attributable to hearing impairment, intellectual disability, autism, neurological injury or environmental deprivation — the language deficit is the primary, disproportionate problem.\n\n## The science, briefly\nUnder ICD-11, DLD sits within developmental speech or language disorders. In early childhood the picture typically includes delayed onset of first words and word combinations, restricted expressive vocabulary, immature or error-prone grammar (morphosyntax), and difficulties with comprehension that may be subtler and under-recognised. Receptive and expressive subtypes are distinguished clinically. The deficits are persistent rather than transient — distinguishing DLD from the late-talker who self-corrects — and they impair everyday communication, social participation and later literacy. Standardised language assessment, normal-range nonverbal ability and exclusion of differential causes (notably hearing loss and ASD) anchor the working formulation.\n\n## The Pinnacle way\nAbilityScore® is part of Pinnacle’s developmental assessment. Diagnosis, where needed, requires an appropriately qualified healthcare professional — never from an online form. Pinnacle pairs structured language profiling with targeted [speech therapy](https://www.pinnacleblooms.org/top-speech-therapy-center-india-proven-improvement-rate) and family coaching. Explore [Developmental Language Disorder](/developmental-language-disorder) and [how the AbilityScore® is established](/ask/what-is-the-abilityscore-and-how-is-it-calculated).\n\n## Trusted sources\nWHO ICD-11-MMS (6A01.2); ASHA practice guidance on language disorders.\n\n**Next step —** Refer a child with disproportionate, persistent language delay for structured assessment at a Pinnacle centre.\n\nThis is general information, not a diagnosis — individual assessment and diagnosis require an appropriately qualified healthcare professional.","canonical":"https://pinnacleblooms.org/ask/what-is-developmental-language-disorder-and-what-are-its-icd-11-features-in-early-childhood","editorial":{"reviewed_at":"2026-06-11T20:12:18.613642+00:00","reviewed_by":null,"developed_by":"SETU Consortium · Pinnacle Blooms Network"},"alternates":[{"href":"https://pinnacleblooms.org/ask/what-is-developmental-language-disorder-and-what-are-its-icd-11-features-in-early-childhood","lang":"en","indexable":true},{"href":"https://pinnacleblooms.org/ask/what-is-developmental-language-disorder-and-what-are-its-icd-11-features-in-early-childhood-te","lang":"te","indexable":true}],"dimensions":[{"key":"conditions","label":"Conditions"}],"meta_title":"Developmental Language Disorder (ICD-11 6A01.2)","meta_robots":"index, follow, max-image-preview:large","everyday_tip":"When taking a history, ask specifically about comprehension, not just expressive output — receptive difficulties in DLD are easily missed when a child appears socially engaged.","published_at":"2026-06-10T10:42:00.172548+00:00","reading_paths":[{"key":"understand","items":[{"lang":"en","slug":"what-is-developmental-language-disorder","title":"What is Developmental Language Disorder?","reason":"Linked from this answer"},{"lang":"en","slug":"what-is-developmental-language-disorder-and-what-does-it-look-like-in-early-childhood","title":"What is Developmental Language Disorder, and what does it look like in early childhood?","reason":"Linked from this answer"},{"lang":"en","slug":"what-is-the-icd-11-classification-for-developmental-language-disorder","title":"ICD-11 Classification for Developmental Language Disorder","reason":"Linked from this answer"},{"lang":"en","slug":"what-is-the-snomed-ct-concept-for-developmental-language-disorder","title":"What is the SNOMED CT concept for Developmental Language Disorder?","reason":"Same topic"},{"lang":"en","slug":"how-does-developmental-language-disorder-affect-a-child-s-daily-life","title":"How does Developmental Language Disorder affect a child's daily life?","reason":"Same topic"},{"lang":"en","slug":"is-developmental-language-disorder-considered-a-disability","title":"Is Developmental Language Disorder considered a disability?","reason":"Same topic"},{"lang":"en","slug":"is-developmental-language-disorder-genetic-or-hereditary","title":"Is Developmental Language Disorder Genetic or Hereditary?","reason":"Same topic"},{"lang":"en","slug":"what-are-common-myths-about-developmental-language-disorder","title":"What are common myths about Developmental Language Disorder?","reason":"Same topic"},{"lang":"en","slug":"what-are-the-types-or-levels-of-developmental-language-disorder","title":"What are the types or levels of Developmental Language Disorder?","reason":"Same topic"},{"lang":"en","slug":"what-causes-developmental-language-disorder-in-children","title":"What causes Developmental Language Disorder in children?","reason":"Same topic"},{"lang":"en","slug":"what-does-current-research-show-about-early-intervention-outcomes-for-developmental-language-disorder-in-children-under-7","title":"Early Intervention Outcomes for Developmental Language Disorder Under 7","reason":"Same topic"},{"lang":"en","slug":"what-other-conditions-often-occur-alongside-developmental-language-disorder","title":"What other conditions often occur alongside DLD?","reason":"Same topic"}],"label":"Understand the subject","total":13},{"key":"signs","items":[{"lang":"en","slug":"what-are-the-early-signs-of-developmental-language-disorder-in-young-children","title":"Early Signs of Developmental Language Disorder","reason":"Linked from this answer"},{"lang":"en","slug":"what-clinical-red-flags-for-developmental-language-disorder-warrant-referral-in-a-young-child","title":"Clinical Red Flags for Developmental Language Disorder","reason":"Same topic"},{"lang":"en","slug":"what-early-indicators-of-developmental-language-disorder-should-a-paediatrician-watch-for","title":"Early Indicators of Developmental Language Disorder","reason":"Same topic"},{"lang":"en","slug":"when-should-a-doctor-refer-a-child-with-suspected-developmental-language-disorder-for-developmental-therapy","title":"When should a doctor refer suspected DLD for developmental therapy?","reason":"Same topic"},{"lang":"en","slug":"can-developmental-language-disorder-be-cured","title":"Can DLD be cured? 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Disorder?","reason":"Same topic"},{"lang":"en","slug":"how-does-early-intervention-for-developmental-language-disorder-advance-un-child-rights-uncrpd-and-the-sdgs","title":"How early DLD intervention advances UNCRPD child rights and the SDGs","reason":"Same topic"},{"lang":"en","slug":"what-causes-developmental-language-disorder-in-young-children","title":"What Causes Developmental Language Disorder in Young Children?","reason":"Same topic"},{"lang":"en","slug":"what-is-the-cost-effectiveness-of-early-therapy-for-developmental-language-disorder-in-young-children","title":"Cost-Effectiveness of Early Therapy for Developmental Language Disorder","reason":"Same topic"},{"lang":"en","slug":"what-is-the-prevalence-and-public-health-burden-of-developmental-language-disorder-among-young-children-in-india","title":"Prevalence and Public-Health Burden of DLD in India","reason":"Same topic"}],"label":"Explore causes & 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communication.","authority_links":[{"url":"https://icd.who.int/","code":"6A01.2","label":"WHO ICD-11-MMS — Developmental Language Disorder"},{"url":"https://www.asha.org/","label":"ASHA — Spoken language disorders"}],"last_reviewed_at":"2026-06-10T10:42:00.172548+00:00","meta_description":"DLD (ICD-11 6A01.2) is a persistent primary language deficit not explained by hearing loss, intellectual disability or autism. Early-childhood features and","related_materials":[],"related_techniques":[]}