French Vocabulary Games can make the process of learning challenging French vocabulary words enjoyable. Traditional methods like endless repetition and rote learning may help students memorize, but they lack the element of fun and fail to encourage practical use of the words in creative thinking.
Admittedly, as a French teacher, incorporating games into the classroom initially stressed me out. The challenge was finding games that effectively built knowledge of French vocabulary while being novel and engaging. Fortunately, I’ve now curated a collection of fun and exciting French vocabulary games that can be adapted to any vocabulary list or theme.
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Best French Vocabulary Games
- Petite souris, où es-tu?
- Bang!
- Splat
- Jeopardy
- Bingo
- Write the room
- “I’m going to a desert island and I’m bringing…”
- Missing word
1. Petite souris, où es-tu?
Translating to “Little mouse, where are you?” it’s a popular game in my classroom. It goes like this: put all the vocab word cards on the carpet or in a pocket chart. Ask the students to put their heads down (no peeking!) and hide a paper mouse behind one of the cards.
The students then take turns guessing where the mouse is hidden. The first one to find the mouse wins!
So, what makes the game so successful? With students still new to French, it’s a brilliant way to familiarize them with several new words. Students learn the words by sight and practice reading them. They can also advise each other on the correct pronunciation.
2. Bang!
As the name suggests, this game ends in a bang. It’s relatively simple but a lot of fun. Put all the vocabulary words in a pile and add a few more cards that say “bang!” Next, split the class into two teams and ask each team to pick a card from the pile one at a time. If they say the word on the card correctly and can identify it, they get a point. If they can’t, they don’t get a point and the other team has the chance to steal.
What about bang cards? Well, if a student picks up a bang card, they lose all their points.
Be a little careful with younger players – games get really competitive, depending on how many bang cards you include. One part skills, another part chance – it’s a brilliant way to master French vocabulary words.
3. Splat
Take word matching to the next level with Splat. Place a bunch of French vocabulary words on the carpet. Two players face off against each other – each has a fly swatter. The teacher (you) says a word, and the first person to swat the correct word wins the round.
Players can play in teams or do a sudden death round – where anyone who loses goes to the back of the queue.
4. Jeopardy
If you attend my core French class, every Friday we play Jeopardy. It’s my favorite way to recap what we’ve learned that week and to spiral back to previous weeks.
The game rules include:
- Divide players into teams.
- Create a Jeopardy board. Use a large poster or digital tool. Divide it into categories relevant to French vocabulary (e.g., Food, Animals, Verbs, Colors).
- Under each category, place cards (or digital equivalents) with different point values. Higher points for more difficult words.
- Teams take turns choosing a category and a point value (e.g., Food for 200 points).
- The host reveals the question or prompts under the chosen category. The format should be in the form of an answer. For example, “This yellow fruit is called ‘une banane’ in French.”
- Teams must respond in the form of a question: “What is a banana?”
Alternatively, behind each card, you could have a word you want in French or a category you want a word for. That helps simplify things for younger or less experienced players. I also use Jeopardy to practice reading and writing skills. They might have to read the word seen on the screen in order to get a point, or I’ll add in a photo and they have to write the word correctly.
Rather than create a board, I use this website for ease. It takes me less than 10 minutes to create a game, and my students love it so much that I even paid for the upgrade that allows you to put pictures as clues. The game usually takes 40 minutes to play, so it’s great to use in a pinch, or set up for a supply teacher!
5. Bingo
Who doesn’t love bingo? This famous classic involves a simple grid where students can choose to place their vocabulary words. You then say the word or show the photo, and they mark it down on the sheet.
The first person to get a line or fill in the whole sheet wins. Again, the game works because it forces the students to match the concept with the word itself. Playing repeatedly locks the word-concept association in their mind.
6. Write the room
It’s as easy as it sounds: hide French vocabulary cards all over the room and have students hunt for them. Once they find a vocab card, ask them to write down the word on their paper.
Amp up the difficulty for older students – creative hiding spots could include on the ceiling or behind a book. But, for your students, keep them in obvious places. Oh, and remember where you put them, or you’ll be finding vocab cards for months!
Want a free write the room recording template? Grab one here.
7. “I’m going to a desert island, and I’m bringing…”
An excellent exercise for reviewing vocabulary related to specific themes. Think up a specific theme, and then say: “I’m going to a desert island, and I’m bringing [French item name].” Your students then take turns saying what they would bring. If it matches your theme, they can come; if it doesn’t, they can’t.
For example, if your theme is pink. You could bring a flamingo. The next student might guess an elephant, so they can’t come. But the student who guesses a pig can. Of course, the student who guesses the theme wins.
The game forces students to interpret what their classmates say, remember the words, and connect them with their characteristics.
8. Missing word
Last but not least, put up a bunch of words on the board. Let the students study the words for a few seconds. Then, ask the students to put their heads down and take one of the words away. Students then need to guess which word has been removed. Using a theme, say, body parts makes the game a little easier to follow.
Want to Practice More French Vocabulary Games?
Most of these games require high-quality French vocabulary word cards. That’s precisely what we’ve created. With the words clearly written and easy-to-identify illustrations, these laminated cards are the perfect resource for your next classroom games. This bundle is endless – meaning as I create a new pack of vocabulary cards, it gets added to the resource and you get to download them for free.
Want to try out a pack before you buy? Check out my free French body parts vocabulary cards pack. It comes with 54 words – including organs! Get it here.
Try the cards out and have fun playing French vocabulary games with your class!
