Unlike other pokemon, who speak and understand numerous languages opaque to humans, each made up of a few repeated syllables, the Chatot have no voice of their own. In the wild, they copy the voices of local pokemon to communicate; the name "Chatot" comes from the first known population, who spoke that word as their name because they were surrounded by Charmander and Kricketot. Chatot's language, if it merits the term (for it must rely extensively on non-verbal elements, for their words vary between individual Chatot so dramatically) is most similar to that of the Muk, even though Chatot often speak in lengthy sentences, for they are unable to mix up the order of their syllables.
Chatot can also be trained to copy messages exactly, not only the words but the tone, emphasis, and everything else they ordinarily change when engaging in communication, like a living frism or an audio recorder. It is this use which has made them popular tools among humans, often used to replace mail carriers such as Pidgeot and Pelipper. Intercepted Chatot remain perfectly silent, and they leave no written letters to decipher, so they are perfect for sending secrets, but they were also used whenever the actual voice was as important as the message it contained.
Chatot have never been nearly as popular in battle, and with the advent of telephones and computers an increasing number are being released back into the wild. They are not particularly strong, so their trainers instead use strategies based on confusion. Most commonly, Chatot fight by hiding their location and exploiting the fact that few things are more disorienting for opponents than the sound of a Chatot and its trainer speaking with a single voice.