Here's how it works:
1. The test: A child is shown a picture of a fictional creature and told it's a "wug".
2. The question: The child is then shown a picture of two of these creatures and asked, "There are two...".
3. The answer: The child is expected to fill in the blank with the plural form of "wug" – "wugs".
Why it matters:
* Demonstrates implicit grammar: The child likely has never seen or heard the word "wug" before, but can still apply the regular English pluralization rule (-s) to it.
* Shows language acquisition: This test demonstrates how children learn and generalize grammatical rules, even for unfamiliar words.
* Developed by Jean Berko Gleason: The wug test was created by Jean Berko Gleason in 1958.
So, while "wug" itself is meaningless, it serves as a powerful tool in understanding how children learn and use language.