ESL Classroom Language Bingo Card Generator
Print free ESL Classroom Language bingo cards from 40 entries such as Try again, Share with a partner and Listen carefully. Each 5x5 card with a free center holds 24 of them, so every card in a set is different; with 30 players the first line usually comes after about 12 calls, roughly 2 minutes at 10 seconds a call.
| B | I | N | G | O |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Repeat after me | I don't know | What does it mean? | Stand up | Share with a partner |
Pay attention | Match the pictures | Can you repeat that? | Take turns | Can I borrow a pen? |
Well done | Work in pairs | FREE | Underline the word | Circle the answer |
Copy this down | How do you spell it? | Read aloud | Close your books | I don't understand |
Work in groups | Speak more slowly | Clean up | Check your answers | Take out a pencil |
Free: up to 30 different cards per set. Pro: up to 1,000.
Free sets stop at 30 different cards. Your 30 cards are ready to print or download now.
Pro ($19 one-time) opens soon: up to 1,000 different cards per set and 2 or 4 cards on a PDF page. No payment is taken now.
Edit words (40)
Cards update as you type. Long entries shrink to fit their square; a very long single word is split over two lines with a hyphen (up to 40 characters each). The PDF uses a built-in font: emoji and non-Latin scripts print best with Print cards.
Caller sheet
Every call in a shuffled order. Tick each one as you read it out; the same share link always gives the same order.
Updated
About ESL Classroom Language bingo
ESL Classroom Language Bingo collects the instructions teachers give and the phrases students need to answer, from “Raise your hand” and “Work in pairs” to “How do you spell it?”, “Speak more slowly” and “I don't understand”. It suits the first weeks with a new class, when learners must follow directions like “Fill in the blanks” before they know much else.
This ESL Classroom Language list is 40 entries long and a 5x5 card with a free center takes 24, which leaves 16 off each card. That is why one entry (Sit down, say) appears on about 18 of 30 cards: card 1, for instance, has no Open your books or Sit down.
Play it like classic bingo: one person reads the 40 entries in the shuffled order of the caller sheet, everyone marks matching squares, and a full row, column or diagonal wins.
All 40 ESL Classroom Language bingo words
Every entry from Be quiet, please to Write your name, grouped by first letter. Edit them in the generator above: drop Share with a partner if it does not suit your group, or add your own.
- B: Be quiet, please
- C: Can I borrow a pen?, Can you repeat that?, Check your answers, Circle the answer, Clean up, Close your books, Copy this down
- F: Fill in the blanks
- H: Hand in your homework, How do you spell it?
- I: I don't know, I don't understand, I have a question, I'm finished
- L: Line up, Listen carefully, Look at the board
- M: Match the pictures
- O: Open your books
- P: Pay attention
- R: Raise your hand, Read aloud, Repeat after me
- S: Share with a partner, Sit down, Sorry I'm late, Speak more slowly, Stand up
- T: Take out a pencil, Take turns, Time's up, Try again, Turn to page ten
- U: Underline the word
- W: Well done, What does it mean?, Work in groups, Work in pairs, Write your name
ESL Classroom Language bingo at a glance
| Entries | 40 words and phrases |
|---|---|
| Card | 5x5 card with a free center: 24 of the 40 |
| How it is played | A caller reads the shuffled caller sheet |
| Different cards possible | about 3.90 × 10³⁴ (order matters) |
| Different selections | 62,852,101,650 sets of 24 entries |
| Shortest entry | Line up (7 characters) |
| Longest entry | Hand in your homework (21 characters) |
| Multi-word entries | 40 of 40, such as Open your books and Close your books |
| Good for | ESL lessons, classrooms, kids and teens |
| Occasion | Back to school |
| Category | Language arts & ESL (61 themes) |
How long ESL Classroom Language bingo lasts
This list was simulated 150 times in random call orders on its first 60 cards. A room of 30 usually has a line by call 12, which is about 2 minutes at 10 seconds a call, and a full card by call 37 of 40.
| Players | First line | Line, 80% range | Blackout | Blackout, 80% range |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10 players | 14 calls | 10-18 | 38 calls | 36-39 |
| 30 players | 12 calls | 9-16 | 37 calls | 35-38 |
| 60 players | 10 calls | 7-13 | 36 calls | 35-37 |
| 1 card (exact average) | - | - | 39.4 calls | of 40 |
How to host ESL Classroom Language bingo
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Print the ESL Classroom Language cards
Give each player one card; a free set prints up to 30, no two alike. Card 1 above starts with Repeat after me, I don't know, What does it mean?, Stand up and Share with a partner.
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Print the caller sheet
All 40 entries appear on it in shuffled order, opening with Hand in your homework, Stand up, How do you spell it?, Sit down and Look at the board; tick each one as you read it out.
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Give the instruction for real as you call it: say “Stand up” and wait until everyone stands, so players learn the phrase by doing it.
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Split your caller sheet into teacher phrases and student phrases, and ask learners which person in the room would normally say “Can I borrow a pen?”
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Leave the card on the wall after the game and point to “Can you repeat that?” or “What does it mean?” whenever a student needs it.
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Call until someone shouts bingo
With 30 cards, expect the first line near call 12 (Take turns in this set's order) and a blackout near call 37; check the winner's squares against your ticked list.
ESL Classroom Language bingo variations
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ESL Classroom Language variation
Situation bingo: the caller describes a moment, such as “You came in after the bell” or “You didn't hear the page number”, and players mark the phrase a student should say, like “Sorry I'm late”.
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Blackout round
Card 1 needs all 24 squares, Repeat after me to Take out a pencil; on average one card fills after 39.4 of the 40 calls (98% of the deck).
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Quick 4x4 round
A 4x4 card needs 16 of the 40 entries and no free space; one card is full after about 38.6 calls instead of 39.4.
First 15 calls of this ESL Classroom Language set
Seed "esl-classroom-language" gives this order, the same one the caller sheet prints. With these calls, card 6 of the first 30 completes the B column (Clean up, Sit down, Look at the board, Work in groups and Try again) on call 13, and card 1 is the first full card on call 38.
| Call | Entry | Cards marked (of 30) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hand in your homework | 19 of 30 |
| 2 | Stand up | 18 of 30 |
| 3 | How do you spell it? | 22 of 30 |
| 4 | Sit down | 21 of 30 |
| 5 | Look at the board | 19 of 30 |
| 6 | Raise your hand | 16 of 30 |
| 7 | Try again | 16 of 30 |
| 8 | Repeat after me | 23 of 30 |
| 9 | Pay attention | 20 of 30 |
| 10 | Work in groups | 21 of 30 |
| 11 | Line up | 19 of 30 |
| 12 | Take turns | 16 of 30 |
| 13 | Clean up | 19 of 30 |
| 14 | Match the pictures | 15 of 30 |
| 15 | Check your answers | 16 of 30 |
Themes like ESL Classroom Language bingo
Ranked by category, occasion and audience; none of them repeats an entry from this list, so pasting two into the Edit words box gives a longer game.
Frequently asked questions
How many words are on the ESL Classroom Language bingo list?
40, from Be quiet, please to Write your name. A 5x5 card with a free center uses 24 of them, so each card leaves out 16. The shortest entry is Line up (7 characters) and the longest is Hand in your homework (21).
Are all ESL Classroom Language bingo cards the same?
No. Card 1 and card 2 of this set share 15 of their 24 squares, and every card is checked so none of the 30 in a free set repeats. About 3.90 × 10³⁴ different arrangements are possible from the 40 entries (62,852,101,650 different selections of 24).
How many ESL Classroom Language bingo cards per person?
Usually one. Extra cards speed the game up only a little: on this list a first line took a median 12 calls with 30 cards in play, 10 with 60 (30 players on two cards each) and 14 with just 10. Two cards suit adults who want a faster game; young children do best with one. A free set of 30 covers 15 players on two cards each.
How long does ESL Classroom Language bingo take?
An ESL Classroom Language game with 30 players usually reaches its first line after 12 calls (9-16 in 80% of simulated games), about 2 minutes at one call every 10 seconds. A blackout takes about 37; with 10 players the first line needs about 14.
Can I print ESL Classroom Language bingo cards for free?
Yes. The generator above makes up to 30 cards (5x5 cards with a free center) from the 40 entries; Print cards sends them to your printer and Download PDF saves one card per page, so 30 cards take 30 pages plus the caller sheet. It all runs in your browser with no sign-up.
How do I make my own ESL Classroom Language bingo cards?
Open Edit words in the generator above: it already holds the 40 entries, one per line. Replace Listen carefully with something from your own group, add inside jokes or names, and the sample card redraws at once. 5x5 cards need 24 entries or more.
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