Twelve boys (24-30 months old) with specific expressive language delay (SELD) and with normal development in every other sphere were identified for longitudinal study. Children were videotaped while playing. Analysis using an ordinal play coding scheme revealed strikingly poor pretend play skills. They appeared deficient in either the ability or the motivation to spontaneously produce varied and complex play behaviors. Their play was also strikingly different from the play of the normal boys. Findings suggested that the boys' slow expressive language development and their immature play may reflect some delay in the spontaneous expression of socially mediated meanings. (CL)