Imagine a classroom buzzing with energy, not from disruption, but from focused, joyful engagement. Students are laughing, thinking, moving, and most importantly, using the target language without fear. This is not a dream scenario, it is the everyday reality of a classroom where games are thoughtfully integrated into language learning. Far from being mere diversions, games have proven to be powerful pedagogical tools that can significantly enhance language learning. They offer a dynamic environment where students can experiment with language, take risks, and receive immediate feedback, all while having fun (Pushkina & Krivoshlykova, 2022 ). The playful nature of games boosts intrinsic motivation and reduces learners’ fear of speaking and failing in front of peers.

It is essential to recognize that not all games serve the same purpose or suit the same classroom context. Some games focus on movement and collaboration, others rely on technology and instant feedback, while some immerse learners in imaginative scenarios where language is used in context. Broadly speaking, language learning games can be categorized into three types: traditional classroom games, digital games and gamified platforms, and story-based or role-playing games. Each type brings its own set of strengths and opportunities for language development, from practising target vocabulary and grammar structures to promoting spontaneous speech and real-life communication.

A.    TRADITIONAL CLASSROOM GAMES

Despite the rise of digital tools, traditional classroom games remain some of the most effective and adaptable strategies for language learning. They require minimal resources, can be implemented on the spot, and are especially valuable in creating lively, student-centered environments. These games often involve physical movement, competition, or group collaboration, all of which contribute to deeper engagement and retention (Tomlinson & Masuhara, 2009) . Most importantly, they encourage learners to use language meaningfully in a fun and supportive context. Here are a few tried-and-tested traditional games that consistently boost language learning:

1. Charades: a classic guessing game that offers rich opportunities for language development.In a typical game, one player silently acts out a word or phrase while others try to guess it, encouraging learners to make connections between actions, concepts, and language. The game significantly improves learners’ vocabulary retention and enhances their listening, speaking, and writing skills, while also noting practical classroom challenges like time constraints and participant engagement (Mardhiah, Solekhah & Helmiyadi, 2024).
   
   
2. Word Bingo / Vocabulary Bingo: It is a low-preparation, high-engagement game that reinforces vocabulary recognition and listening skills. In this game, learners listen for specific words called out by the teacher and mark them on their bingo cards. This format promotes active listening, phonological awareness, and word-picture association, especially when adapted for young or beginner learners (Ermawati & Trianasari, 2019). Recent studies have shown that vocabulary games like Bingo not only increase retention but also boost student motivation and classroom participation. Its simplicity and adaptability make it a valuable tool across age groups and proficiency levels.

3. Running dictation: It is a dynamic, multisensory language game that blends movement with literacy skills, particularly reading, listening, writing, and speaking. In this activity, one student reads and memorizes a short text posted on a wall, runs back to a partner, and dictates it for writing, promoting collaborative learning and information retention. Students show significant improvement in their writing accuracy and fluency, along with heightened motivation and engagement. The physical aspect of the game also fosters active learning, especially beneficial in young or kinesthetic learners (Taofik, Ikhsanudin & Salam, 2024) .
   
   
4. Board Race / Flyswatter Game: Also known as “word slap,” it is a fast-paced vocabulary review activity that sharpens listening comprehension, word recognition, and reaction speed. To play, the teacher displays a selection of target words or images on the board or a large sheet of paper. Two students stand in front of the board, each holding a flyswatter. When the teacher calls out a word definition, synonym, or question (e.g., “Which one means ‘angry’?”), the students must quickly identify and swat the correct word. The first to swat the right word earns a point for their team. This game creates a low-anxiety, high-energy learning environment, especially effective for young learners or beginner language users. This method improves both vocabulary test scores and student motivation, thanks to its interactive, competitive nature (Junaid, Paldy & Hasan, 2022) .

B. DIGITAL GAMES AND GAMIFIED PLATFORMS

1. Quizzes (Kahoot! / Quizizz)

Kahoot! https://kahoot.com/ is a real-time quiz platform that uses game-like elements such as timers, points, and music to increase student motivation and recall. Teachers create quizzes or use pre-made sets, and students respond using personal devices. It significantly enhances engagement and short-term retention, especially when used for vocabulary and grammar revision. Its competitive format supports formative assessment and increases participation, even among shy learners (España-Delgado, 2023).
Quizizz https://wayground.com/?lng=en works similarly to Kahoot! but allows students to progress at their own pace, making it ideal for homework or differentiated learning. It provides detailed analytics, allows image/audio integration, and reduces pressure with its self-paced mode. It boosts autonomy, tests readiness, and vocabulary acquisition in EFL settings (España-Delgado, 2023).

2. Games

Wordwall  https://wordwall.net/ offers interactive games such as matching, anagrams, word searches, and whack-a-mole, which can be customized to target specific language points. It’s particularly effective for vocabulary development, sentence structure, and phonics. It increases vocabulary retention and supports diverse learning preferences through its mix of visual and kinesthetic activities (Hasram, Nasir, Mohamad, Daud, Rahman & Mohammad, 2021).

LearningApps https://learningapps.org/createApp.php offers a variety of interactive formats, including multiple-choice, matching exercises, fill-in-the-blank, and classification tasks, that can be customized to suit specific learning objectives. It is particularly effective for reinforcing vocabulary, grammar, and reading comprehension. The platform enhances learner engagement and supports differentiated instruction by enabling educators and students to create, modify, and embed multimedia learning units tailored to diverse needs

Bamboozle https://www.baamboozle.com/  is a visually engaging, team-based quiz game that suits both online and in-person classrooms. It encourages teamwork, turn-taking and spoken interaction, making it ideal for speaking practice, question formation, and vocabulary review. It  improves participation and helps manage large or mixed-ability classes through its flexible format (Lestari, 2024) .

3. Gamification platforms

Quizlet https://quizlet.com/ combines flashcards with built-in games like Match and Gravity, reinforcing spelling, definitions, and collocations. It supports spaced repetition, self-paced study, and collaborative classroom use. It improves academic vocabulary acquisition and fosters learner autonomy among EFL students (Permatasari, Nurulia, Putri, Rohayati, & Tugiawati, 2025) .

Genially https://genially.com/ is a powerful gamification platform that enhances language learning by enabling educators to create interactive and visually engaging content such as quizzes, escape rooms, board games, and storytelling activities. Its user-friendly interface allows for the integration of audio, video, and animations, making lessons more immersive and appealing to learners of all ages. By turning traditional language exercises into game-like experiences, Genially fosters active participation, supports differentiated instruction, and encourages repeated exposure to vocabulary and grammar structures in meaningful contexts. As a result, it promotes both motivation and retention in the language learning process (Cabrera-Solano, 2022).

C. STORY-BASED / ROLE-PLAYING GAMES

1. “Who Am I?” / 20 Questions: It is a deductive reasoning game where players ask yes/no questions to guess the identity of a character, animal, object, or profession. In language learning, this game is especially effective in reinforcing question formation, descriptive vocabulary, and logical sequencing. Learners are encouraged to hypothesize, infer, and use context clues, skills which are vital for spoken interaction and narrative thinking. The game is easily adaptable to different language levels and can be used as a warm-up, vocabulary review, or structured speaking activity.
2. Story cubes: It is a dice-based storytelling game in which learners roll cubes illustrated with images (e.g., a clock, a dragon, a storm) and then create a story using the icons as narrative prompts. This game develops oral fluency, imagination, and cohesion in storytelling. It is especially effective in practicing past tenses, sequencing words, and descriptive language. Students demonstrate improved fluency, idea generation, and confidence in speaking.
3. Chain story (pass the story): In this cooperative storytelling game, each student adds a sentence or short segment to a shared narrative, either orally or in writing. This promotes the use of linking devices, chronological structure, and tense consistency. Chain stories can be structured around target vocabulary or grammar, or left open-ended for creativity. Students using this technique improve in organization, coherence, and vocabulary use, especially in narrative writing. In spoken form, it enhances turn-taking and active listening.
4. Role plays: Role plays are structured speaking activities in which learners take on roles (e.g., a shopkeeper and a customer, a doctor and a patient) and act out real-world or imaginative scenarios. They are a powerful tool for practising functional language, pragmatic skills, and speaking fluency. By simulating authentic communicative situations, role plays develop learners’ ability to express opinions, make requests, apologize, agree/disagree, and use context-appropriate expressions.Students demonstrate improved confidence, accuracy, and interactional competence, especially in dialogic speaking. It is adaptable across proficiency levels and topics, from simple dialogues for beginners to open-ended discussions for more advanced learners (Nhan, 2024) .
5. Escape Room Activities (Digital or Physical): They are immersive, problem-solving games in which learners work collaboratively to solve puzzles and riddles using clues, often within a time limit. In language learning, Escape Rooms create a high-engagement environment where learners communicate under pressure, practise reading comprehension, follow multi-step instructions, and use critical thinking, all while immersed in meaningful language use.Escape Rooms promote collaborative interaction, task-based learning, and targeted vocabulary acquisition. Students show increased motivation, engagement, and improvement in team-based language use, particularly in productive skills. Escape Rooms can be tailored to grammar practice, cultural content, or vocabulary review, and work well in both online and face-to-face settings.

Games offer powerful opportunities for boosting language learning by promoting engagement, authentic communication, and meaningful repetition. To implement them effectively in the classroom, educators should align each game with specific language objectives, scaffold instructions clearly, and ensure all students are actively involved. Challenges such as classroom management, time constraints, or varying learner proficiency can arise, but these can be addressed by setting clear rules, rotating roles, and adapting games to different levels. Ultimately, thoughtful planning, flexibility, and reflection are key to making games not just fun, but genuinely impactful learning tools.

 

References

Cabrera-Solano, P. (2022). Game-based learning in higher education: The pedagogical effect of Genially games in English as a foreign language instruction. International Journal of Educational Methodology, 8(4), 719–729. https://doi.org/10.12973/ijem.8.4.719

Ermawati, E. A., & Trianasari, E. (2019). Bingo game: Hidden treasure among heap of woods (The effectivity of a game in improving students’ vocabulary mastery). Journal of Applied Studies in Language, 3(1), 38–43. http://dx.doi.org/10.31940/jasl.v3i1.1159

España-Delgado, J. A. (2023). Kahoot, Quizizz, and Quizalize in the English class and their impact on motivation. HOW, 30(1), 81–96. https://doi.org/10.19183/how.30.1.641

Hasram, S., Nasir, M. K. M., Mohamad, M., Daud, M. Y., Rahman, M. J. A., & Mohammad, W. (2021). The effects of WordWall online games (WOW) on English language vocabulary learning among Year 5 pupils. Theory and Practice in Language Studies, 11(9), 1129–1137. https://doi.org/10.17507/tpls.1109.11

Junaid, R., Paldy, & Hasan, A. (2022). The use of fly swatter game to improve students’ vocabulary mastery. Journal of English Language Teaching and Applied Linguistics, 4(3), 108–116. https://doi.org/10.32996/jeltal.2022.4.3.11

Lestari, F. (2024). Gamified learning environment by utilizing Bamboozle for EFL: Secondary teacher & students’ voice. LEARNING: Jurnal Inovasi Penelitian Pendidikan dan Pembelajaran, 4(4), 210–220. https://doi.org/10.51878/learning.v4i4.3456

Mardhiah, A., Solekhah, H., & Helmiyadi. (2024). Exploring Charades: The benefits and challenges of gamifying English learning. Proceedings of the International Conference on Multidisciplinary Research, 6(1), 1–10. https://doi.org/10.32672/picmr.v6i1.1177

Nhan, L. K. (2024). Exploring students’ perceptions of role-playing activities in boosting English speaking confidence. International Journal of Innovative Science and Research Technology, 9(10), 456–462. https://doi.org/10.38124/ijisrt/ijisrt24oct708

Permatasari, H. A., Nurulia, A., Putri, C., Rohayati, D., & Tugiawati, L. (2025). Enhancing EFL Learners’ Vocabulary Mastery through Quizlet: A Classroom Action Research Study. AJARCDE (Asian Journal of Applied Research for Community Development and Empowerment), 9(2), 47–52. https://doi.org/10.29165/ajarcde.v9i2.649

Pushkina, A., & Krivoshlykova, L. (2022). Language learning games when teaching English to young learners. Revista EntreLínguas, 8(esp.2). https://doi.org/10.29051/el.v8iesp.2.17313

Taofik, M., Ikhsanudin, I., & Salam, U. (2024). The implementation of running dictation game to create active and productive learning. Journal of English as a Foreign Language Education, 1(2), 115–124. https://doi.org/10.26418/jefle.v1i2.43753

Tomlinson, B., & Masuhara, H. (2009). Playing to learn: A review of physical games in second language acquisition. Simulation & Gaming, 40(5), 645–668. https://doi.org/10.1177/1046878109339969