What is a key characteristic of Wernicke's aphasia?

Wernicke's aphasia is characterized by fluent speech that may lack meaningful content, often including the production of neologisms, which are made-up words that may have no recognizable meaning. Individuals with Wernicke's aphasia typically have difficulty understanding language and may produce sentences that sound grammatically correct but do not convey the intended message due to the insertion of these nonsensical terms. This condition contrasts with non-fluent forms of aphasia, such as Broca's aphasia, where speech is effortful and characterized by a struggle to find the correct words.

In the case of Wernicke's aphasia, patients are usually unaware of their language deficits, which is why they do not exhibit a heightened awareness of their errors. Rather, their speech is often fluent and can flow without interruption, but it lacks coherence and relevance to the conversation, further demonstrating the presence of neologisms.