Icebreaker Games for World Languages

One opening game for a world language class, with the sentence frame the teacher puts into the language.

Point to the Color You Hear1. The teacher teaches six colors with colored paper. 2. The teacher calls a color in the language, and every student points at something of that color in the room. Nobody leaves a seat. 3. On the second lap, the class repeats the color aloud while pointing. 4. For the last minute, a volunteer calls the colors. Players: 6 to 35. Time: 4 min. Props: six sheets of colored paper. Noise: medium. Level: first week. Put into the language: "Red." "Blue." "Green." "Yellow." "Black." "White." Words to teach first: red, blue, green, yellow, black, white.

How it works

These icebreaker games for world languages are played in the language the class is learning, with a beginner's words. Each press deals one game with steps, a level, and the frame and words to teach first, in English.

Read the full guide

First week, or first term and later

After the first press an Any level box appears under the button. First week keeps games built on greetings, polite words, numbers, colors or a frame or two. First term and later keeps those that take more: two-digit numbers, dates, a word bank, a question and its answer. Each Level line says first week, first term or second year.

The frame and the words

The last two lines of a game are for the teacher: Put into the language is the sentence frame, and Words to teach first is the handful of words under it. More filters, the last entry in the level box, opens Speaking only and Five minutes or less.

Questions and answers

Do these work as icebreakers in Spanish class?

Yes. Each game lists its sentence frame and its words in English, and a Spanish teacher puts them into Spanish. Nothing on the page is printed in Spanish, so the same list serves a French, German or Mandarin class.

Which games can a class play in its very first lesson?

Hello at the Door, Goodbye at the Bell needs four greetings, How Many Claps? the numbers to twelve, and Point to the Color You Hear six colors. All three are spoken, so nobody reads or writes.

How is this list different from icebreakers for an ESL class?

Here the class shares a first language with the teacher, so the rules are explained in it and only the game is in the new language. The ESL list on this site is for a class with no shared language; no game is on both.

Does the page give the words in the language?

No. Every frame and word list is in English, and the teacher translates it. Nothing here is printed in another language, and the three levels are plain words, not a published proficiency scale.

All 29 games

Names and greetings 6

Choose a Class Name in the Language 1. The teacher writes up a list of first names that are common where the language is spoken, and says each one aloud. 2. Each student picks one as a class name, or keeps their own, and writes it on a name card. 3. Around the room, each student says the frame with the name they chose. 4. The class answers each one together with "Hello" and the name. Players: 6 to 35. Time: 8 min. Props: a list of first names from the language, name cards and markers. Noise: medium. Level: first week. Put into the language: "My name is ___." "Hello, ___." Words to teach first: my name is, hello.
Find the Reply to Your Line 1. Write pairs of lines on cards, a line and its usual reply: "Thank you" and "You are welcome". 2. Deal one card to each student. With an odd number, the teacher takes one. 3. Students walk around saying their line aloud, and listen for the one that answers it. Nobody shows a card. 4. Each pair says its two lines to the class, in order. Players: 8 to 35. Time: 6 min. Props: cards with a line or a reply on each. Noise: loud. Level: first term. Put into the language: "Thank you." "You are welcome." "How are you?" "Fine, thanks." "See you tomorrow." "Until tomorrow." Words to teach first: six lines and their replies, chosen by the teacher.
Hello at the Door, Goodbye at the Bell 1. The teacher stands at the door. Each student who comes in gives a greeting in the language, and the teacher answers with a different one. 2. Before the bell, the class practices two ways to say goodbye. 3. On the way out, each student says one of the two. 4. A student may not use the goodbye that the person just ahead of them used. Players: 6 to 35. Time: 4 min. Props: none. Noise: medium. Level: first week. Put into the language: "Hello." "Good morning." "Goodbye." "See you tomorrow." Words to teach first: hello, good morning, goodbye, see you tomorrow.

Show all 29 games (26 more)

Names and greetings, continued

How Are You? Thumb Answers 1. The teacher teaches three answers with a thumb for each: up for "great", sideways for "so-so", down for "tired". 2. Students walk around and ask five classmates the question. 3. Each answer is said aloud with its thumb. 4. Back at their seats, students show on their fingers how many times they heard "great". Players: 6 to 35. Time: 5 min. Props: none. Noise: loud. Level: first week. Put into the language: "How are you?" "Great." "So-so." "Tired." "And you?" Words to teach first: how are you, great, so-so, tired, and you.
Mime It, Class Says the Polite Word 1. The teacher teaches four polite words. 2. The teacher mimes a small scene: hands a pencil to a student, bumps a desk, reaches past someone, holds out a hand for a book. 3. The class calls out the polite word that fits. 4. After six scenes, volunteers do the miming and the class keeps answering. Players: 6 to 35. Time: 5 min. Props: none. Noise: medium. Level: first week. Put into the language: "Please." "Thank you." "Excuse me." "Sorry." Words to teach first: please, thank you, excuse me, sorry.
Which Greeting at This Hour? 1. The teacher teaches the greetings the language has for different times of day. 2. Show a clock face set to a time, or write a time on the board. 3. The class calls out the greeting that fits that hour. 4. Speed up. Then pairs take turns: one names an hour in the shared language, and the other gives the greeting. Players: 6 to 35. Time: 4 min. Props: a clock face with hands that move, or a board. Noise: medium. Level: first week. Put into the language: "Good morning." "Good afternoon." "Good evening." "Good night." Words to teach first: the greetings for morning, afternoon, evening and night.

Numbers, colors and dates 8

Answer to Your Number All Week 1. Count off around the room in the language. Each student remembers their number and keeps it all week. 2. The teacher calls numbers in a mixed-up order. 3. The student with that number answers "Present" in the language. 4. On the second day, students call the numbers: each one who answers calls the next. Players: 6 to 35. Time: 4 min. Props: none. Noise: medium. Level: first week. Put into the language: "Number twelve?" "Present." Words to teach first: the numbers up to the size of the class, present.
Circled Dates Make a Shape 1. Give each student a copy of one month's calendar page. 2. The teacher reads out eight dates in the language, chosen so that the circles form a digit on the grid. 3. Students circle each date they hear. 4. Hold up the pages. Students who can see the digit say the number in the language. Players: 6 to 35. Time: 6 min. Props: a calendar page for each student, eight dates chosen beforehand. Noise: quiet. Level: first term. Put into the language: "The fourth." "The eleventh." "The eighteenth." Words to teach first: the numbers from one to thirty-one as dates, the name of the month.
Color the Boxes by Ear 1. Each student draws a row of ten boxes and numbers them from one to ten. 2. The teacher says a number and a color in the language: "Three, green." 3. Students color that box. After ten calls, every box is filled. 4. Neighbors hold their rows side by side and check that they match. Players: 6 to 35. Time: 6 min. Props: paper and colored pencils. Noise: quiet. Level: first term. Put into the language: "Three, green." "Seven, red." Words to teach first: one to ten, six colors.
Fingers Out, Say the Sum 1. Pairs sit across a desk from each other. 2. The teacher counts to three in the language, and each partner lays zero to five fingers flat on the desk. 3. Both say the sum of the two hands in the language, together. 4. After five tries, change partners. In the next pairing, both hands are used and the sums run to twenty. Players: 6 to 35. Time: 4 min. Props: none. Noise: loud. Level: first week. Put into the language: the numbers from zero to twenty. Words to teach first: zero to twenty.
How Many Claps? 1. The teacher claps a number of times from one to twelve. 2. The class says the number in the language, together. 3. In pairs, students take turns: one claps, and the other says the number. 4. For a last lap, the teacher claps twice with a pause between, and the class says the sum. Players: 6 to 35. Time: 4 min. Props: none. Noise: loud. Level: first week. Put into the language: the numbers from one to twelve; "and", "is" for the sums. Words to teach first: one to twelve, and, is.
Point to the Color You Hear 1. The teacher teaches six colors with colored paper. 2. The teacher calls a color in the language, and every student points at something of that color in the room. Nobody leaves a seat. 3. On the second lap, the class repeats the color aloud while pointing. 4. For the last minute, a volunteer calls the colors. Players: 6 to 35. Time: 4 min. Props: six sheets of colored paper. Noise: medium. Level: first week. Put into the language: "Red." "Blue." "Green." "Yellow." "Black." "White." Words to teach first: red, blue, green, yellow, black, white.
Show the Number You Hear 1. Each student lays digit cards from 0 to 9 on the desk, or gets ready to use fingers. 2. The teacher says a number in the language. 3. On "show", everyone holds up the digits. Look left and right to check. 4. Start with zero to ten, then two-digit numbers held up with one card in each hand. Players: 6 to 35. Time: 5 min. Props: digit cards from 0 to 9 for each student. Noise: quiet. Level: first week. Put into the language: the numbers from zero to ten, then the tens. Words to teach first: zero to ten, then twenty, thirty and so on.
Step Forward and Make the Number 1. Ten students stand at the front, each holding one digit card from 0 to 9. 2. The teacher says a two-digit number in the language. 3. The two students with its digits step forward and stand in the right order. 4. The seated class reads the number back aloud. Change the ten students after six numbers. Players: 12 to 35. Time: 6 min. Props: ten large digit cards. Noise: medium. Level: first term. Put into the language: two-digit numbers, such as "forty-seven". Words to teach first: the numbers from ten to ninety-nine.

Likes and dislikes 7

Class Vote Among Three, Counted Aloud 1. The teacher draws three things on the board, such as three fruits, and labels each in the language. 2. Around the room, each student says the frame with one of the three. 3. A volunteer makes a tally mark under each drawing. 4. The class counts each tally aloud in the language and says the winner in a sentence. Players: 6 to 35. Time: 6 min. Props: a board. Noise: medium. Level: first week. Put into the language: "My favorite is ___." "The favorite of the class is ___." Words to teach first: my favorite, three nouns, the numbers for counting.
Me Too or Not Me, One Step 1. Pairs stand facing each other, two steps apart. 2. One says a sentence with the frame. The partner answers "Me too" and steps forward, or "Not me" and steps back. 3. Take turns for two minutes. 4. Pairs that end up close together say one thing they both like to the class. Players: 6 to 35. Time: 4 min. Props: none. Noise: loud. Level: first term. Put into the language: "I like ___." "Me too." "Not me." Words to teach first: I like, me too, not me, nouns the class already knows.
Picture Up: I Like It, I Do Not 1. The teacher holds up a picture: pizza, rain, Mondays, cats. 2. The teacher says the word in the language, and the class repeats it. 3. Students give a thumb up or a thumb down, and each side says its sentence together. 4. After ten pictures, students name in the language one thing the whole class liked. Players: 6 to 35. Time: 5 min. Props: ten picture cards. Noise: medium. Level: first week. Put into the language: "I like ___." "I do not like ___." Words to teach first: I like, I do not like, ten nouns from the pictures.
Rank Three, Tell a Partner 1. The teacher shows three pictures: a sport, a food and a school subject. 2. Each student ranks the three in silence, from the one they like most to the one they like least. 3. Partners tell each other their ranking with the frame. 4. Hands up for each first place, and the class says the count in the language. Players: 6 to 35. Time: 5 min. Props: three picture cards. Noise: medium. Level: first term. Put into the language: "I like ___. I like ___ more. I like ___ most." Words to teach first: I like, more, most, three nouns.
Three Secret Likes, Dealt From the Pile 1. In pairs, each student takes three picture cards from a shared pile and keeps them hidden. 2. The cards are the things that student "likes" for this game. 3. Partners take turns asking about any picture in the full set. The answer is yes only if the card is in your hand. 4. The first to find all three of the partner's cards deals the next hand. Players: 6 to 35. Time: 7 min. Props: a set of twelve picture cards for each pair. Noise: medium. Level: first term. Put into the language: "Do you like ___?" "Yes, I do." "No, I do not." Words to teach first: do you like, yes, no, twelve nouns from the cards.
Two Likes and a Dislike, Drawn 1. Each student draws three small pictures: two things they like and one they do not. 2. A partner points at each picture and asks the question in the frame. 3. The owner answers truthfully in the language, and the partner circles the dislike. 4. Swap, then show the pair beside you what you found out. Players: 6 to 35. Time: 7 min. Props: paper and pencils. Noise: medium. Level: first term. Put into the language: "Do you like this?" "Yes, I like it." "No, I do not like it." Words to teach first: do you like, this, yes, no.
We Like: One Line Each 1. Each table of four passes one sheet of paper around. 2. Each student adds a line that names one thing they like, from a word bank on the board. 3. The table reads the sheet and underlines whatever all four like. 4. One voice from each table reads the underlined things to the class as "We like". Players: 8 to 36. Time: 7 min. Props: paper and pens, a word bank on the board. Noise: medium. Level: first term. Put into the language: "I like ___." "We like ___." Words to teach first: I like, we like, twelve nouns in a word bank.

Questions and answers in pairs 8

The Card Has the Answer, Write What Was Asked 1. Each pair gets a card with one short answer on it: "At eight." "Blue." "Yes, I do." "Two." 2. Together, the pair writes a question that the answer fits. 3. Swap cards and questions with another pair, who say whether the two go together. 4. Each pair reads its question and answer aloud as a two-line dialogue. Players: 6 to 35. Time: 7 min. Props: answer cards, paper and pens. Noise: medium. Level: second year. Put into the language: "What time do you get up?" "At eight." Words to teach first: question words, short answers the class already knows.
Draw My Partner's Monster From Answers 1. Each student invents a monster and draws it without letting anyone see. 2. A partner asks about it with the frame: its color, the number of its eyes, legs and arms, big or small. 3. The partner draws the monster from the answers alone. 4. Hold the two drawings side by side and count aloud, in the language, what matches. Players: 6 to 35. Time: 8 min. Props: paper and colored pencils. Noise: medium. Level: first term. Put into the language: "What color is it?" "How many eyes does it have?" "It has three eyes." Words to teach first: what color, how many, it has, eyes, legs, arms, big, small, numbers and colors.
Fill the Gaps in the Class Schedule 1. Partner A and partner B each get a class schedule with different class times missing. 2. They take turns asking for the times they need. Nobody shows a sheet. 3. Each writes in the times they hear. 4. Lay the two sheets side by side and check that they now match. Players: 6 to 35. Time: 8 min. Props: two versions of a class schedule with gaps for each pair. Noise: medium. Level: second year. Put into the language: "What time is math?" "Math is at ten thirty." Words to teach first: what time, at, school subjects, clock times.
Invented Identity Cards 1. Each student gets a card with an invented identity: a first name, a town, a number for an age and a favorite food. 2. Students walk around and interview four classmates with the three questions in the frame. 3. Each answer comes from the card, never from real life. 4. Write the four identities in a grid, and check the grid against the cards at the end. Players: 8 to 35. Time: 10 min. Props: an identity card and a grid sheet for each student. Noise: loud. Level: first term. Put into the language: "What is your name?" "Where are you from?" "What is your favorite food?" Words to teach first: what, where, from, favorite, food, I am from, my favorite food is.
Is It...? Five Questions 1. One partner draws a picture card and keeps it hidden. 2. The other asks up to five questions that can be answered with yes or no. 3. After the fifth answer, they name the thing in the language. 4. Show the card, then swap roles with a new card. Players: 6 to 35. Time: 6 min. Props: a pile of picture cards for each pair. Noise: medium. Level: first term. Put into the language: "Is it big?" "Is it red?" "Is it an animal?" "Is it a ___?" Words to teach first: is it, big, small, colors, an animal, a food, a thing.
Question Volley, No Repeats 1. In pairs, one student asks any question in the language. 2. The partner does not answer it: they send back a different question. 3. Keep the volley going. A question that has already been asked ends it. 4. Count the questions in the longest volley, and say the number in the language. Players: 6 to 35. Time: 5 min. Props: none. Noise: loud. Level: second year. Put into the language: any questions the class knows: "Where is the book?" "What time is it?" "Do you like tea?" Words to teach first: the question words the class has learned.
Same Picture, Somewhere in the Room 1. Deal one picture card to each student from a set in which every picture appears twice. 2. Students walk around and ask each other the question in the frame about any picture. Nobody shows a card. 3. The answer is yes only if that picture is on your card. 4. Twins stand together, and each pair says in the language what it has. Players: 8 to 35. Time: 6 min. Props: picture cards, two of each picture. Noise: loud. Level: first term. Put into the language: "Do you have a ___?" "Yes, I have a ___." "No, I do not." "We have a ___." Words to teach first: do you have, I have, we have, the nouns on the cards.
Three Questions, Fewer Peeks 1. Each pair gets a card with three questions and a model answer for each. 2. Partners ask and answer all three, reading from the card. 3. Change partners. This time, the card stays face down unless someone is stuck. 4. Change once more, with the cards collected by the teacher. Players: 6 to 35. Time: 7 min. Props: a card of three questions for each pair. Noise: loud. Level: first term. Put into the language: "What is your name?" "What do you like?" "What color is your bag?" Words to teach first: what, your, name, like, color, bag.

How this list was compiled: Written by the Game Night Generator editors on 2026-10-03 for the teacher of a world language class, such as Spanish, French, German or Mandarin, whose students share a first language with the teacher. The rules of each game are explained in that shared language, and the game itself is played in the language being learned. Every entry lists, in English, the sentence frame and the handful of words the class needs; the teacher puts them into the language. Nothing on this page is translated, and no game depends on one language. The games and the frames are our own work. The three levels are plain words for when a class can first play a game (first week, first term, second year) and follow no published proficiency scale. "Speaking only" means that students neither read nor write during the game; the teacher may still write the frame on the board. No game asks about home, family or anything more personal than a like or a dislike, an invented identity stands in wherever a game needs personal facts, nobody is out and nobody is touched. Read on 2026-10-03 at Wikipedia (text under CC BY-SA 4.0): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Icebreaker_(facilitation), which says an icebreaker should not embarrass anyone or make them feel compelled to take part. Player ranges and minutes are planning estimates. Games for a class that is learning English and shares no other language are on the ESL icebreakers page, and none is repeated here. Licence: own work