Your toddler may only be able to say a few words, but you might be surprised by how sophisticated her understanding of language really is. A new study from the University of Toronto found that children as young as 15 months can quickly learn to understand accented speech that they’ve never heard before.

“Fifteen-month-olds typically say relatively few words, yet they can learn to understand someone with a completely unfamiliar accent,” says Elizabeth Johnson, associate professor with the University of Toronto’s psychology department. “This shows that infants’ language comprehension abilities are surprisingly sophisticated.”

The study also found that by two years of age children are remarkably good at comprehending speakers who talk with regional accents the toddlers have never heard before. This is the first study showing that young children rapidly adapt to the way people from other areas speak. The findings illustrate the great developmental steps children take with regards to language comprehension.