# Speech --- **Speech** is the act of communicating vocally. The ability to speak develops during [[infant]] when the child [[language acquisition|picks up]] their native language. ![[speech pathways.png]] There are two main areas of the [[brain]] that help us speak; both are typically only located in the [[corpus callosum|left hemisphere]]. **Wernicke's area** is involved in recognizing, understanding and comprehending spoken or written language. Damage to this area of the brain can lead to [[aphasia#Receptive Aphasia or Fluent Aphasia|receptive aphasia]]. The **motor speech area**, sometimes called **Broca area** is responsible for the specific and precise motions that our face, mouth and throat have to use to physically produce speech. Damage to this area of the brain can lead to [[aphasia#Expressive Aphasia|expressive aphasia]]. ___