Word guessing games for students

If you’re looking for some of the best guessing games, then you’re certainly in the right place! Check out these guess game ideas for all ages, including kids, teenagers and adults.

Guessing Games Ideas

Let’s get into all the fun guessing games that you might want to try out! Keep on reading.

#1: Mystery Box Guessing Game for Kids

This is one of my favourite guessing games for kids. Put a bunch of objects into a bag or box and students have to reach their hands it and try to guess what something is before pulling it out. It’s ideal for focusing on things like letters, adjectives, classroom objects, etc. Check it out here:

Mystery Box Game.

#2: Animal Vocabulary Guessing Game

#3: Password Guessing Game

This is a fun guessing game for all ages! Write down a bunch of words that you want to review on large pieces of paper. Students take turns describing it to one of their teammates who has to guess what it is. Have a look here:

Password Guessing Game.

#4: The Memory Circle

Challenge students’ memories with this memory game. It can be used for names or things like the simple past. Basically, students have to add a sentence to the game and then all the further players have to say everything that was previously said and add their own statement.

Does that make sense? Not to worry if it doesn’t! Just have a look here for more details:

Memory Circle.

#5: The Flyswatter Game

Try out this fun game for kids! Write down a bunch of words that you want to review on the board. Then, a student from each team comes up to the board and picks up a flyswatter. The teacher gives hints and the first student to guess the correct word gets a point for their team. Erase that word and replace it with a new one.

Sounds fun? It definitely is and students love this one. Learn more about it:

Flyswatter Game.

#6: General Knowledge Guessing Game Online

#7: Concentration Guessing Game

This is a fun guessing game to play for all ages. It’s ideal for reviewing just about anything. Make up sets of cards (word-definition, word-picture, etc.) and then in small groups, students have to play a memory game. The key is that students place the cards back in the same spot so it’s not a random luck kind of thing. Find out all the details:

Concentration.

#8: Word Challenge Spelling Game

This is a fun game that helps students with their spelling skills. Everyone can stand up and the teacher says a word. Students take turns adding a letter, one by one. If someone gets a letter wrong, they sit down and are out of the game. Check it out here:

Word Challenge.

#9: Guess the Word (with Flashcards)

When I teach kids, I almost never set foot in the classroom without a set of flashcards. There are a ton of things you can do with them, including as simple as “guess the word.”

You can also get students to ask you questions. For example, if you’re teaching about animals, students can ask, “Is it a tiger?” The teacher can answers yes or no. The teacher could also give some hints about it such as the colour.

Have a look here for even more ideas:

Flashcards Activities and Games.

#10: Odd One Out, a Fun Guessing Game

#11: Running Dictation

This is a challenging game for slightly older and higher-level students. Basically, students have to work together to dictate a conversation. Then, when that’s done, they have to put it into the correct order to make a coherent conversation.

It’s a nice activity for getting some energy back into the classroom. Find out more about it:

Running Dictation.

#12: Pictionary Guessing Game

I love to play Pictionary with my students! It’s a nice way to review key vocabulary from previous lessons. Students have to draw a picture, based on the slip of paper that the teacher gives them and the other students have to guess what it is.

#13: Find Someone Who Bingo

This is a fun game that involves students talking to their classmates to try to find a person who fits a certain square. For example, has a brother or plays soccer. Check it out:

Find Someone Who Bingo.

#14: Country Guessing Game

#15: Closest in Meaning

Try out this challenging guessing game with your students. There’s a target sentence and then 2 or 3 other sentences that are similar. Students have to choose the one which is the closest in meaning. Have a look here:

Closest in Meaning.

#16: Charades

This is another classic guessing game. Students have to act out a word or phrase, based on the slip of paper that the teacher gives them. Their teammates have to guess what it is.

#17: Riddles for Kids

#18: Mixed Up Sentences

This is a simple way to help students with making grammatically correct sentences. Write some sentences that have the word order mixed up. Then, students have to unscramble them. Learn more about it:

Mixed Up Sentences.

#19: J0bs and Occupation Guessing Game

#20: Disappearing Text

Try out this fun guessing game for all ages. Write a sentence on the board and students have to read it out loud, together. Then, erase some of the words and students have to say the entire thing again. Eventually, there will be nothing left but students have to remember what it was.

It’s ideal for reinforcing sentence structure or vocabulary. Check it out:

Disappearing Text 

#21: I Spy

This is a fun guessing game idea for kids. I’m sure you’ve played it before. The teacher can say, “I spy, with my little eye something that is green.” Students have to take turns guessing what it is. The person who guesses the correct thing can go next.

#22: 20 Questions

I’m sure you’ve also played 20 questions before! Someone chooses a secret noun (person, place or thing), and then the rest of the people have to ask yes/no questions to try to figure out what it is. My rule is that a guess also counts as a question in order to prevent random guessing which makes this game not that fun.

It’s easy to adapt 20 questions for the level by restricting the object chosen. For example, animals. But I might also make it into the “10 questions game” if I do that.

#23: Prepositions of Place Guessing Game

#24: What Am I?

In this game, students go in groups and choose something. I generally restrict it to a category. Jobs, food, and animals all work well. Then, students have to write 3 hints, starting with the most general. For example:

• This person has to go to university.
• You can find this person in a hospital.
• This person gives medicines and has to deal with needles

The answer? A nurse.

#25: How Many Candies Guessing Game

This is a fun guessing game for all ages that I like to do around the holidays. I get some holiday-themed candies and place them in a jar, counting them as I go and I seal it up. Then, everyone gets one guess as to how many there are. The person closest gets to keep them!

#26: Flip Chart Vocabulary Review

#26: Guess the Number

Someone picks a number. The other people say a number and that person says whether or not it’s higher or lower. Eventually, they can get the original number. The challenge is to do it in the fewest possible guesses.

Guessing Games Online

Want to have some fun with online guessing games? Have a look at our recommendations:

Yaks Games

Drawize

Kid Pillar

Trivia and Riddles

Do you know some kids who want to have some fun with riddles and trivia? Then you’ll definitely want to pick up this handy resource. It’s ideal for teachers!

You can easily find this book on Amazon. Have a look now:

Guess Games FAQs

There are a number of common questions that people have about guessing games. Here are the answers to some of the most popular ones.

What’s a fun guessing game?

A fun guessing game that you might already know is 20 questions. Some other good ones are charades and Pictionary.

What is the game where you guess places?

The game where you guess places is called GeoGuessr. It started as a web app and the challenge is to guess the location based on random street view pictures.

What is the number guessing game?

The number guessing game is played when someone thinks of a random number. The other people guess a number and the person says whether it’s higher or lower. Eventually, the correct number can be found.

Guessing Games: Join the Conversation

Do you have any fun ideas for guessing games? Leave a comment below and let us know what you think. We’d love to hear from you.

Last update on 2022-07-17 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API

Are you looking for a quick, fun vocabulary review game for your classes? Then you’re certainly in the right place. Keep on reading for all the details you need to know about Guessing Game.

Guessing Game: Vocabulary Review Game for ESL Students

Skills: Speaking/listening
Time: 20 minutes
Level: Beginner to Advanced
Materials Required: Flip-chart or flashcards

An Introduction to Guessing Game

The captain sits in a chair at the front of the class facing her team. The teacher stands behind the captain with vocabulary words (some like body parts ESL work well) on a flip-chart or a stack of flashcards. If you use flashcards, make sure they are big enough for everyone to be able to see them, even at the back of the class.

The team has to give hints in English (no gestures) to the captain until she can guess the word. At that point, the team moves on to the next word. Each round is three minutes and you can play 3-4 rounds with different captains. I give each group one pass per round in case there is a word that the captain really doesn’t know.

Teaching Tips for This Vocabulary Review Game

One of the ways that students gain fluency is by employing communication strategies such as substitution, which means that when a student can’t remember the specific vocabulary word that they want to use, they’re able to substitute another word, or phrase to get their meaning across. This game is very useful for practicing substitution skills in a fun way.

Make sure you emphasize that this game requires speaking only English. It is simply too easy for students to say the word in the their first language, the captain says it in English and then it’s not a useful speaking activity. I warn students at the beginning of the game that if I hear a word in their first language, that round will immediately finish, even if they are only 5 seconds into it.

One of the cons of this game is that the other team is sitting idly waiting while the other team is playing. A way to alleviate this problem is by keeping the rounds very short so that waiting time is reduced.

You can also mention that any word that a team has “passed” on could come back into play so it’s good to pay attention. Furthermore, elicit the other team’s help to watch for any infractions such as gesturing, miming, or not speaking in English.

Procedure for this Vocabulary Review Activity:

1. Prepare a large flip-chart of flashcards with your target vocabulary. I often use an old notebook.

2. Put the students into teams of 4-8. They choose their captain for the first round.

3. The first team sends their captain to the front of the class who sits in a chair facing their team, while the teacher stands behind them with the flashcards. Give the team 3 minutes to describe as many words as possible, using only English to the captain who must guess them. The teacher keeps track of how many correct words the team got.

4. Continue to play until all teams have played an equal number of rounds, with different captains for each round.

5. The team with the most points at the end of all the rounds is the winner.

Need More ESL Activity Ideas?

Do you like this ESL speaking activity? Then you’re going to love this book: 101 ESL Activities, available on Amazon. It’s the ultimate ESL game and activity book, and contains enough material to get your through the semester in style.

The key to happy, engaged students who are having fun learning English is to mix things up a bit. The book will help you do just that and you’ll be able to make it through countless classes teaching ESL/EFL vocabulary to teenagers and adults in style.

101 ESL Activities it well-organized into various sections: speaking, listening, reading, writing, vocabulary, review, 4-skills, warm-ups, etc. So, you should be able to easily find what you’re looking for in under a minute.

You can get it on Amazon in both digital and print formats. Keep a copy on the bookshelf in your office as a handy reference guide. Or, take a copy with you to your favourite coffee shop for lesson planning.

It really is that easy to have awesome English classes. Try out the book for yourself and you won’t go back to wasting a ton of time searching around on the Internet for that activity or game you can actually use in your class.

Sounds like exactly what you might need? Learn more about it here by clicking on the link below:

—>101 ESL Activities for Teenagers and Adults<—

Have your Say about this ESL Vocabulary Game

Do you think this would work in your ESL classes? Or, do you have another go-to activity or game to help your students remember new English words? Leave a comment below and let us know what you think.

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