Here's my list of my ESL student's favorite vocabulary games.

1. Crossword Puzzles. Why do students like them so much? They'll puzzle and work over them whereas a regular vocabulary study assignment, they won't work on for five minutes. This one allows you to put in your own list and then play it online or print out worksheets.

2. Word Find. This game combines vocabulary hints with an anagram or scrabble like word play. Again, the game can be loaded with the list of your choice.

3. English Slang or Idioms. This game has a few hundred of the most commonly used English slang terms. What does it mean to be "as sick as a dog" or "under the weather." The game only uses currently used idioms and every expression is appropriate for business or classroom use (nothing suggestive or obscene).

4. Word Root Games. This game teaches the common word roots in English by focusing on root word as full-fledged word in and of themselves. For example, the word "port" is the root word for export (which has a prefix) and portable (which has a suffix). It's like giving the students the keys to the language.

5. HangMan Games. The mystery of why hangman is so popular is beyond me but I'm sure that it helps kids build fluency in recognizing English words. These versions of hangman are particularly popular.

A capitonym is a word whose meaning changes based on whether or not it is capitalized.

online games, resources, and printables

Time4Writing provides eight-week online writing courses that help elementary, middle and high school students build writing skills through one-on-one interaction with a certified teacher. Using an easy-to-use online system, teachers assign a weekly topic for study. Students log in and work through automated exercises, lessons, readings, and written assignments. A personal writing teacher reviews and provides feedback on each assignment the day after it is submitted.

Non-native English learners are often amused, intrigued, and confused by the use of compound words in English. Oddly, in English, there are three forms of compound words: closed form (notebook), hyphenated form (mother-in-law), and open form (real estate).

Great site for learning English with a vocabulary of 45,000 words spoken in sentences. Teachers and students can create their own lists for practice. Free.

Help make spelling time a fun time! SpellingCity.com can be an invaluable part of every child's spelling and vocabulary education with over 42,000 spelling words and customizable sentences.

There are a dozen word games on SpellingCity to build familiarity with the usage, pronounciation, and spellng of each word. Teachers can build their own word lists for a library of 45,000 words. The price is right (free for these uses)

Improve your vocabulary while having fun. Test Preparation & Vocabulary Building for K-12 & ESL Students. Free Flash word games including Hangman, Word search, Match Game, The Vocabulary Quiz

Learning to recognize word roots early on is crucial in a child's education as it not only helps carry spelling skills over to reading fluency but also greatly increases general comprehension skills, reading or otherwise. A fun way for kids to build their repertoire of root words is by playing online root word games.

Fun word games by category for ESL