Tic Tac Toe

Noughts and crosses with a twist: every square has a word or phrase on it. To win a square, a student has to use the word correctly, usually in a sentence. Two teams take turns, and three in a row wins. Show it on a shared screen in an online lesson or on a projector in class.

Make a tic tac toe game

Ready-made tic tac toe games

Try one

Say It Right: Numbers, Prices and Dates

A2 Play it

Ask the Question

A2–B1 Play it

Make or Do?

B1 Play it

Ideas for using it

  • Make a sentence. The classic: to win a square, a student makes a correct sentence with the word. Perfect for irregular verbs, comparatives or new vocabulary.
  • Grammar transformation. Put base forms on the board and ask for the past simple, the adverb or the comparative. Set the rule in the instructions so everyone can see it.
  • Collocations and patterns. Use verbs like "enjoy" or "decide" and have students finish them with the right form, or nouns that need the right verb ("make" or "do").
  • Talk for 30 seconds. Put discussion topics on the squares. A team wins the square if one of them can talk about it for 30 seconds without stopping.
  • Ask a question. Students make a question with the word, and someone from the other team answers it before the square is claimed.
  • Teams in group classes. Split the class into X and O. Teams choose a square together, which gets everyone discussing the answer.
  • Teacher against student. In one-to-one lessons, play against your student. You'll be surprised how competitive adults get.
  • Best of three. The score carries over from game to game, and "New words" deals a fresh board from a longer list, so you can play several rounds on one topic.

How to play

  1. Open the game and share your screen, or show it on a projector.
  2. The team whose turn it is picks a square and uses the word.
  3. If the answer is right, tap the square. It takes that team's colour and it's the other team's turn. Tap it again to undo.
  4. Three in a row wins the round and adds a point to the score. Then choose Play again (same words) or New words.

Tap a team's score to give them the turn. Bigger text and Full screen (or press F) help on projectors and shared screens.

Tips for good word lists

  • Add more than nine. With 15 to 30 words, every round gets a new board, so one game lasts a whole warm-up.
  • Keep squares short. Single words or short phrases are easiest to read from the back of the room.
  • Mix easy and hard. Then the middle square isn't the only one worth fighting for.
  • Say what counts as a correct answer in the instructions, for example "Use the past simple in a sentence about your weekend".
  • Short on time? Use Generate to get a list from a topic and level, then edit it.

Make your own

Type or paste up to 50 words or phrases, one per line, or use Generate to make a list from a topic and level. Add instructions, create the game and share the link.

Make a tic tac toe game

More in our collections

Our tic tac toe games also appear in these collections, alongside other activities on the same topic.

Past Simple · Present Perfect · Future Forms · Asking Questions · Adjectives and Adverbs · Gerunds and Infinitives · Prepositions · Quantifiers · Collocations and Binomials · Adjectives · Numbers, Time and Dates · Discussion and Speaking · All collections

Ready-made tic tac toe games

Grammar

Past Simple Irregular Verbs · Ask the Question · Adjectives and Adverbs · Verbs with Infinitive or Gerund · Word + Preposition · Irregular Plurals · All the Tenses (C1)

Vocabulary and pronunciation

Make or Do? · Opposites · Say It Right: Numbers, Prices and Dates

Speaking

Talk for 30 Seconds

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