15 Most Interesting Online Games To Practice English

Elly Kimreviewed byIryna Andrus / more about Editorial Process15 min
Created: Sep 21, 2022Last updated: Oct 23, 2024
Online Games To Practice English

Nowadays it is not necessary to learn English in the traditional way. The use of various games helps to captivate both children and adults with a foreign language. Games bring children and adults the joy of education and create conditions for success in language learning.

Now online learning is an opportunity to organize the learning process at a convenient time for a person. The Promova platform makes the process of learning English comfortable, and accessible, involving the student in the language environment. The tutors of the platform professionally apply various learning technologies, including gaming.

Of course, there should be a different approach for adults and children. But sometimes you can forget about seriousness a little, relax and play. The main thing is to remember that by playing, you can also learn.

Games for learning English

Game mechanics include involuntary attention — a person learns new vocabulary without stress and cramming.

Online language games come in different levels of complexity, but they have one task — to help a student learn words and understand the grammar of one of the most popular foreign languages in the world. The games are also aimed at the formation of language skills and abilities. Many games can be downloaded to your computer to play offline.

There are many games, for example, it is distinguished table games or computer games. A student can learn the language without looking up from his favorite computer game on a PC. For this, a user needs to change the settings from his native language to English and start the gameplay. At first, the student may need a dictionary, but over time he will be able to navigate the game and learn in parallel. There are also different applications for learning English online and learning English games on the phone.

It's time to put aside the textbooks and have some fun. Below there are 15 online games related to the English language. They will not only help you have an interesting time but also remind you of the basic rules of the English language, improve your knowledge of grammar and spelling, refresh your vocabulary, and test your wit.

Online English learning games for Beginner & Elementary 

Action Verbs

Action Verbs help to train your knowledge in the field of verbs. It is necessary to activate the lexical vocabulary - words that denote actions (fly, run, climb, take, push, and much more). Words need to be combined in meaning with pictures that denote this or that action.

SpellQuiz

SpellQuiz is a very interesting game to learn English where you can test your spelling abilities. You can also challenge your knowledge of vocabulary, practice quizzes, and knowledge of English idioms. During the game, every word and sentence is immediately checked. If an error is made, the computer points to this error.

The program takes into account your mistakes and gives you more and more complex suggestions as you move forward and become better.

Monster Phrases

Monster Phrases help to consolidate the grammar of the English language. The game offers you an image. Below the pictures are words and phrases. Using them you need to make a grammatically correct sentence. To earn points, you need to follow the ball and click on the word when the ball stops. If you calculate the time correctly, you will score points. Monster Phrases offer to practice various topics; there are about 28 of them.

Hangman

Hangman is a very popular and beloved game by everyone. The most important rule is to guess the word with 10 moves!

Depending on your knowledge of English, you can choose the level of the game. To ease your torment a little, use two types of help: a description of the word and a hint of the letter. For the wrong letter and the hint of a word, you lose 1 turn.

The rules of the game are very clear. The Hangman game is an exceptional case when everything is more complicated in theory than in practice. Learn English words, test your intuition and just have fun playing the English educational games online!

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Online Games for Intermediate & Upper-Intermediate

Stay Afloat

Stay Afloat is an entertaining online game for learning English. It is quite easy to use and useful. The user's task is to guess the word on the selected topic. Press one letter at a time. If the letter is in the word, you get one step closer to the goal. If there is no letter in the word, for every wrong answer, loads are put in your boat. And your chances of holding the boat are getting smaller and smaller. If you did not guess the word, then your boat is drowned.

Choose a topic of interest and try yourself at guessing words. You can play starting from the Pre-Intermediate level.

It is assumed that students have already known a lot of words within a given topic. The game is aimed at forming active and passive vocabulary.

Word Confusion

Word Confusion is one of the most interesting and useful games for teaching English. Many words are often pronounced the same but spelled differently. To sort out this confusion once and for all, users are offered to play the Word Confusion game. You are given a sentence in which one word is missing and two possible answers. You need to choose a word that fits the meaning.

This unique game will teach you how to correctly use words that are often confused in English, for example: there and their, accept and except, advise and advice. Be sure to play it!

FreeRice

FreeRice is an unusual approach to self-motivation in language learning. With the help of FreeRice, you can both replenish your vocabulary, and improve your reading, writing, and grammatical skills. There are separate tasks on the site, both in grammar and vocabulary. The definitions of words for the site are taken from various dictionaries and carefully checked. Tasks for the development of lexical skills have 60 levels of difficulty and include more than 12 thousand words. For each correct answer, the sponsors of the project send a handful of rice to starving people around the world.

Compound Words, ESL Grammar Game – Space Game

Compound Words, ESL Grammar Game – Space Game is suitable for more confident English language users. In this game, you can work out complex words, and remember your passive vocabulary.

The player is asked to answer the question and choose one of the two suggested answers. If the answer is correct, then the astronaut dog gets a bone. If the answer is wrong, then the aliens take the bone.

There is a childish interface, but such a fascinating filling. Try, play, and improve your vocabulary!

Online Games for Advanced

Along with educational games, you can also use games played by native English speakers.

Many of these games have multiplayer options with text and voice chat so that communication with friends is guaranteed to you.

Scrabble

Scrabble was originally a board game. Now this game is played online because it's a great way to test your English skills with friends or with a computer.

The rules in Scrabble are simple: you need to make words interconnected on the principle of a crossword puzzle on the playing field. On each cell, in addition to the letter, there is another number that gives you points for using this letter. The goal of the game is to score the most points. Players compete and place their dice with letters in such combinations and positions to get the most benefit from the value of letters and prize cells on the field.

When you play online, you can chat with other players. Just enter the messages in the chat. And remember that Scrabble gets harder as the game progresses, even for native English speakers. So don't be upset if you don't pick up the word and miss a move. It happens to everyone!

Spelling Bee

Spelling Bee is designed for more advanced English users. Phonetic game is used to form and adjust the pronunciation (phonetic) skills of students. The computer pronounces a word that the player must spell. If your phonetic hearing is well developed, then you can easily write the word correctly. Welcome to the game!

The purpose of using Spelling Bee in English lessons is to train the pronunciation of English sounds and the formation of phonetic hearing skills.

Knoword

Knoword is an intellectual game in English that trains logic, typing skills, and responsiveness. With its help, you will be able to learn new words and practice writing terms.

Different definitions are given in this game. Your goal is to guess from the description which term is in question. The first letter of the term has already been given. It is necessary to spell the word correctly, only after that you will be given the next task. At the same time, you are limited in time: at first, you are given only a minute and a half. But you can add time and points if you correctly guess the words. Points are deducted for mistakes.

Unique English games for all levels

Wordshake

Wordshake is for fans who like to tickle their nerves. The rules of the game are very simple, as well as the interface. This is a game for the time. The user is offered 16 different letters of the alphabet, from which you need to come up with as many words as possible. The user should combine different letters thus making various English words. For each new word, you get points. You can choose the letters in any order. The main feature of the game is that time is limited. 3 minutes are given. And every second the player needs to accelerate.

The game helps to activate the vocabulary and helps to develop memory and attention.

4 Pics 1 Word

4 Pics 1 Word (Android / iOS) is a game program in which you need to guess the English word from four pictures. This game is suitable for all levels. It will interest both native speakers and those who are just starting to learn English. Words are often offered polysemous. To simplify, the user is given a dozen letters from which this word can be composed.

The 4 Pics 1 Word game is very interesting. Look at the 4 Pictures and find the connection between them. If you can't guess the word, then you can use hints. They will help you guess.

The Grammar of Doom

The Grammar of Doom is designed to study grammar. It has adventures in a mysterious castle, where a pleasant surprise or a hard fiasco is hidden in every room. To find chests / guess puzzles / find a way out, you need to solve puzzles in English.

The game resembles the adventure movie, Indiana Jones. There are only 10 rooms in the temple. Each room has a series of puzzles that need to be solved with the help of English. To move to the next room and ultimately win the game, you must use your grammar skills and vocabulary. You should create English sentences and solve these puzzles.

Human Brain Cloud

Human Brain Cloud is a game for your associations, related expressions, and words.

The rules of the game to practice English are uncomplicated. You are offered a choice of a word, for example, space. Your goal is to write down as many words as possible that come to mind when you mention the word space. These can be words and expressions such as the moon, a star, a spaceship, an astronaut, and so on.

These are just your associations, so there are no right and wrong answers here.

After you submit your answer, you will be told how many people in the world have created the same word association. And if you are the first, you will receive the message “new association”.

The game is suitable for upgrading your knowledge in the field of English. It activates your lexical skills and spelling. Be the first, be unique, and be sure to play this game.

Advantages of online games to learning English

  • Learning a foreign language with fun is possible - you just need to use online English learning games.
  • During the game, learning a foreign language is faster and more effective. Games have an interactive element that makes our brain perceive and remember information better. Plus, the game form is interesting and fascinating, so you can have a good time. And also, if you need to win the game, then it motivates you to think more and, accordingly, focus more.
  • If you like the game, then you can play it for a long time, and this will have a beneficial effect on your knowledge.
  • The availability of games is one of the main advantages. Any game can either be bought or downloaded for free;
  • A variety of genres and storylines attracts more and more people;
  • Also a big plus is that you can combine the gaming sphere with the learning process. When you play, you learn something new and expand your vocabulary;
  • In online games you can communicate with people from all over the world - the practice of conversation is always present;
  • You can select players by age in the game settings, choose interlocutors by level, and make communication as pleasant as possible;
  • Playing games, you will go through the same material many times. As a result, you will learn English easier.

It is worth noting that games alone will not help you speak English on par with a native speaker. It is necessary to maintain a balance between the traditional approaches. This is reading books, doing grammar exercises, etc. Therefore, games can only be considered a pleasant tool for additional practice. In any case, you need to approach the study of English thoroughly. People play, not to learn English, but to help themselves in this process. Learning usually happens unconsciously, so many people perceive this knowledge as due.

How to improve my language by learning English online games?

  • Keep an open dictionary on your smartphone to view the meanings of words and phrases without distracting from the game.
  • Write down all new expressions to repeat in the future. Highly specialized and fantasy vocabulary can be fixed at your discretion.
  • Do not mentally translate English speech into your native — try to immediately perceive images. This will speed up understanding and give an impetus to the active development of the language.
  • Choose the games that you like. Do not try to play through the force — you will not get pleasure, so you will not improve your English.
  • Don't get too carried away with games. An hour a day will be enough to relax and work on English. If you play longer, the effectiveness of learning new vocabulary will drop significantly.
  • Remember that computer games cannot replace the classical study of English with a tutor. This is just an additional tool that increases motivation and makes learning more diverse.
  • Learn English wisely and use all the tools to improve your language skills!

Conclusion

English can be learned in various ways. You can study English from textbooks. You can watch movies and TV series in English with subtitles. Listen to music and podcasts. Or you can play video games in English. Video games fuel interest in learning English.

Online English language learner games have a positive effect on English language learning, expand the vocabulary of players, improve their auditory-pronunciation skills, and arouse interest in the study.

Games also combine business with pleasure. Games teach new words. New vocabulary constantly sounds in dialogues and flashes in the inventory. Words are easy to remember because of their frequent repetition, and also because they are really needed here and now. Third, the games are interactive. Unlike a movie or a TV series, in the game, willy-nilly, you have to interact with other characters: follow their instructions, and choose lines in dialog branches. Fourth, the games are diverse. Medieval conflicts, futuristic wars, detective investigations, criminal showdowns — the list of plots can be continued. And, therefore, the language in such games is very different.

FAQ

How do games help in learning English?

Each new game can become a source of new words, which will expand your vocabulary and help you understand not only the game but also the foreign people around you. The perception of English speech by ear in online games is also quite an important aspect of learning new words and, in general, grammar and phonetics of the language. When talking to a person or just listening to the storyline of the game, you can memorize different phrases that can be used in situational dialogues and conversations.

What are the games for learning English?

Games used in online and offline English lessons are usually classified into five groups: grammatical, lexical, phonetic, spelling, and creative. Each of these groups is characterized by certain parameters: the form of conduct, aims, tasks, and functions.

Why are games an effective tool for learning a language?

When we start learning a foreign language, we strive to master the following skills: speaking, reading, listening, and writing. The big advantage of games is that you combine listening, and reading skills. It has also full immersion in the language environment. When you play, you are fully involved in the game process. You are passionate about the plot and gameplay. You start to play the game and learn English along the way. With the help of quests, you develop logic and attentiveness. With the help of action games, fighting games, and shooters, you train the speed of decision-making.

How to learn English by playing games?

You can learn English today not only in the classroom but online. The Promova platform offers entertaining classes with tutors. Tutors combine all modern technologies in teaching English. One of the directions is games. Online games will definitely help you learn English because you will be able to chat with other players or use a microphone to talk. With the help of online games, you will learn popular expressions, and slang, that native speakers use.

 

Comments

KADEN P.Sep 27th, 2023
I love how this article combines education with entertainment)