The Best Board Games to Improve My English

Whether you’re trying to improve your English skills, or want your child to start learning the language, board games can be of great help to you. Playing these board games is as fun as it is educational. So, discover the best board games that will definitely help you improve your English skills.

Brainbox: Let’s learn English

Pros:

✓ Easy English learning, with supporting images
✓ Game for all ages
✓ Varied themes, to get everyone’s curiosity

Cons:

✕ Cards get worn out after being handled for a while
✕ The levels of all players are not necessarily the same

Characteristics:

● Brand: Brainbox
● Number of players: 1 to 4
● Age: 8 years and over
● Duration of a game: 15 minutes
● Type of game: Learning, English, memorization, observation

Brainbox is a game that comes in several variations. The goal is to learn, through observation, and by answering questions. The Let’s Learn English variant allows you to learn English, with game cards. The player has 10 seconds to observe a card. Then, after returning that card, they find questions that they must answer.

The questions refer to the content of the face of the card. The players will have to think about the question and utilize their memory, to be able to respond. The goal is to find as many correct answers as possible. The game includes 55 cards, with 440 questions, to allow for extensive learning.

The player must prove their understanding of the content, their knowledge of English grammar, and spelling. Apart from English, they will be able to take advantage of this game, to test their general knowledge in terms of art, nature, history, etc. A roll of the die determines the card to be dealt.

Our opinion: This game must be taken seriously for a player to effectively learn English and increase their knowledge. The players must therefore apply themselves, and make the necessary efforts. The true objective of the game is to garner as much new information as possible and improve the language skills of the player.

Scrabble

Pros:

✓ Very popular board game
✓ Can gather up to 4 people around the board
✓ Significantly improves vocabulary

Cons:

✕ The reference dictionary exists in 2 different versions

Characteristics:

● Brand: Mattel Games
● Number of players: 2 to 4
● Age: 10 years and over
● Duration of a game: 60 minutes
● Type of game: Letters, English, vocabulary, spelling

Scrabble is a very popular game that families tend to enjoy very much. The first player forms the best word they manage to find, placing in the middle spaces of the board. All the other words that follow will be attached to the letters already placed on the board. The board has special colored boxes, which increase the value of letters and words.

The objective is to find valid words, from the 7 letters drawn from the bag. If a player manages to use all 7 letters all at once, they are entitled to a bonus of 50 points, apart from the value calculated from the letters themselves and the special boxes. The player with the most points wins the game.

Scrabble has 2 reference dictionaries, to check officially accepted words. The Official World List (OWL) is used by Americans, Canadians, Israelis and Thais. British players and English speakers from other countries prefer Collins Scrabble Words as a reference.

Our opinion: Scrabble is one of the most popular and admired board games. Those who play to improve their vocabulary must make an effort to find more difficult and obscure words. The game helps to develop basic knowledge of the English language, which is greatly helpful for small children.

Taboo

Pros:

✓ A game that allows you to practice English, while having fun
✓ Rules are easy and straightforward
✓ Possibility to pass, if the question is too difficult

Cons:

✕ The list of Taboo words is long, but each word gives the opponent a head start

Characteristics:

● Brand: Hasbro
● Number of players: 4 or more
● Age: 12 years and over
● Duration of a game: 10 to 15 minutes
● Type of game: English, riddle, mime, general culture

The games are played in teams of 2. One of the players will make their teammate guess the words. They can use other expressions, gestures, and they can even sing. The players will have to do their best to find the correct words. Turns ends when the hourglass completes a cycle. A team must guess as many words as possible during their turn.

The game board has squares to cross, but there are no dice. Each team has its token, and moves it according to the number of words found during a round. If a player says a “taboo” word, the opposing team gains a lead. The teams must remember to be quick as the hourglass can end their turn unexpectedly if they hadn’t been paying attention to it.

The first team to reach the finish square wins the game. During riddles, players are not allowed to pronounce words of the same family as the one to find, neither a translation nor an abbreviation. If the word is too difficult to find, players can pass and move on to the next question.

Our advice: This game can widen your vocabulary and teach you a lot of expressions that you didn’t know before. The game can help children improve their English, while still being fun for adults.

Articulate!

Pros:

✓ A fun way to learn English in good company
✓ Development of general knowledge as well as language
✓ Easy to set up, and rules are within everyone’s reach

Cons:

✕ Watch out for words that sound like the one you are looking for
✕ Apart from knowledge of the English language, the fastest players have an advantage

Characteristics:

● Brand: Drummond Park
● Number of players: 4 to 20
● Age: 14 years and over
● Duration of a game: 15 minutes
● Type of game: English, mime, riddle, atmosphere

Articulate! is a board game, where the boxes indicate the categories of the words to guess. A category corresponds to a color. Each team is represented by a token on the board. One player will be assigned to describe the word that’s to be guessed, and the other player will try to find out what the word is. The player who is describing must avoid saying words that sound similar to the word to be guessed.

Each team is allowed 30 seconds to find the most words. their token advances according to the correct answers. The squares have their characteristics, depending on their color. By spinning the wheel, a player can advance a few more squares. Sometimes it’s the opposing team that moves backward a few squares.

If a team fails to find a word, sometimes the opposing teams will steal that word by guessing it correctly. This means that the fastest team gets the point. The questions cover all sorts of categories: nature, world events, actions, objects, etc. Gradually, the tokens go around the board. The first team to finish the entire board wins the game. 

Our opinion: This game improves many aspects of the players language skills as they have to use full sentences to describe the word to be guessed. Players should take advantage of this to improve their vocabulary. This game is especially good for kids as it improves their pronunciation and allows them to use the same words in different contexts.

Shopping List

Pros:

✓ Teaches basic English words
✓ Designed for children
✓ An entertaining game, even for adults

Cons:

✕ The list is quickly exhausted with regular play
✕ The game would be fairer if the players are of the same age

Characteristics:

● Brand: Orchard Toys
● Number of players: 2 to 4
● Age: 3 years and over
● Duration of a game: 10 to 15 minutes
● Type of game: English, shopping, speed

This is a game where players will have to make purchases at the supermarket. This game is especially great for kids as it teaches them the names of common groceries. For this, everyone has their own shopping cart, with a list of items to put inside. Purchases include products for everyday use. The first player to finish shopping wins the game. To start, everyone takes a shopping cart, and keeps their list in their hand. The 32 food cards are placed on the table, face down.

However, the list does not include all cards. During a player’s turn, they turn over a food card, say the word aloud, and check their list. If the name matches an item on their list, they put the card in their cart. If the food is not on the list, they put the card back among the others, face down. Their opponent does the same. They can recover the card that was given, if it is on their list. The game continues like this, until a player has gathered all the foods on their list.

Depending on the age of the player, it is possible to reduce the number of cards, as well as the location provided in the cart. The size of the list increases based on the English level of the child playing. The game exists in several other editions, to learn words belonging to other fields: clothes, fruits and vegetables, recipe ingredients, etc.

Our opinion: The game teaches elementary level English words, which is great for children. It can however get tiring and dull over time. It is therefore a good idea to play the different editions of this game.

Twist Delire

Pros:

✓ This game is suitable for all ages, even those who don’t know any English words
✓ Playful, especially when speed is involved
✓ A game that exercises memory

Cons:

✕ There may be a conflict, if the players do not agree on the interpretation of the word
✕ Once the cards are memorized, the game becomes less interesting

Characteristics:

● Brand: Mattika Twist Delire English
● Number of players: 2 to 6
● Age: 7 years and over
● Duration of a game: 10 to 15 minutes
● Type of game: English, vocabulary, memorization, speed

The game depends on visual recognition. It consists of finding the cards containing the words that have the vowels shown on the 2 dice. However, the cards are positioned so that only the pictures are seen, not the words. It is by turning the cards over that it is possible to confirm whether it is the right word or not.

Each player receives 8 picture cards and a Twist Delire card. The picture cards are to be placed around the Twist Delire card. The player rolls the dice. The two dice are identical, and their faces represent vowels. The dice roll result shows 2 vowels. Among the cards, you will have to find the one that contains the corresponding picture.

When a player finds the correct card, they tap that card as fast as they can. The last player to tap the card, picks it up. The first player to get rid of all their cards wins the game. Once all the cards have been identified, it is a good idea to try to learn that word and memorize it. The pictures can greatly aid in memorizing the words.

Our opinion: The 2 faces of the picture cards make it possible to easily memorize the words. Children should be mentored by adults, at least during their first few games.

Cartatoto

Pros:

✓ Adaptable to player’s skill level
✓ Multiple themes that cover everyday life
✓ Players can choose how to play

Cons:

✕ Getting started is not easy for everyone, especially when the game mode changes
✕ Skills levels of players must be the same to avoid frustrations

Characteristics:

● Brand: Cartatoto
● Number of players: 2 to 4
● Age: 7 years and up
● Duration of a game: 15 minutes
● Type of game: English, memorization, drawing, speed

The game consists of finding the words that correspond to the drawings on the cards. It includes 110 cards divided into 9 different themes. The goal is to recognize the word, pronounce it correctly, and memorize it. There are different ways to play using the same cards.

In the Quick Word variation, the players choose the theme together. The cards are distributed equally among all of them. The starting player places a card in the middle of the table, with the drawing faceup. If there are several players, the one to the left of the active player must give the answer. If they give a correct answer, the person who asked the question takes back their card.

When a player gives a wrong answer, they take the card from the player who asked the question. The player who has no more cards wins the game. In the variation On your marks, players should draw according to the word displayed on the card. If the drawn card is correct, the player receives 1 point. Whoever has the most points is declared the winner of the game.Our opinion: The game is rich in themes and words. In addition, the variants allow you to change the game mode and atmosphere. Everyone learns at their own pace, and in their own way.

Comparison Table