Absolutely. This is one of my favourites for an intermediate–advanced learner because it forces her to stop relying on the perfect vocabulary and develop the ability to circumlocute — explaining something when the exact word isn’t available.
It’s also extremely useful for real-life English. If she forgets a word during a conversation, she learns to keep talking rather than stopping and switching to her native language.
English Lesson: The Forbidden Word Game
Level: Intermediate–Advanced
Length: 45–60 minutes
Main skills: Speaking, vocabulary, paraphrasing, circumlocution, listening and spontaneous thinking
Part 1 — What is the game?
Explain:
“I’m going to give you a topic. You have to explain it to me, but there are certain words you are NOT allowed to use.”
For example:
Topic: A smartphone
Forbidden words:
- phone
- mobile
- technology
- screen
- internet
She has to explain it without using those words.
A possible answer:
“It’s a small electronic device that most people carry with them. You can use it to communicate with other people, take photographs, access information and use various applications.”
That’s exactly what you’re trying to develop.
The key rule
She isn’t allowed to stop and say: “What’s the word?”
Instead, she must find another way to describe it.
Part 2 — Warm-up: What Can You Say?
5 minutes
Start with something easy.
Topic: COFFEE
Forbidden words:
- coffee
- drink
- caffeine
- cup
- hot
Ask:
How would you explain it?
A possible answer:
“It’s a dark-coloured beverage that many people consume in the morning because it helps them feel more awake.”
Then ask:
Question
What techniques did you use to avoid the forbidden words?
Answer:
She probably:
- described its appearance
- described its purpose
- described its effect
- used a broader category: “beverage”
Explain that there are several strategies for getting around a missing word.
Part 3 — The Five Circumlocution Strategies
Teach her these five techniques.
1. Define it
Instead of:
“It’s a refrigerator.”
Say:
“It’s a large household appliance used to keep food cold.”
2. Describe its function
Instead of:
“It’s a key.”
Say:
“You use it to open a locked door.”
3. Describe its appearance
Instead of:
“It’s a giraffe.”
Say:
“It’s a very tall animal with a long neck and brown patches.”
4. Give an example
Instead of:
“It’s a fruit.”
Say:
“Bananas, apples and oranges are examples.”
5. Compare it with something else
Instead of:
“It’s a bicycle.”
Say:
“It’s similar to a motorbike, but it doesn’t have an engine and you have to use your legs to move it.”
Tell her:
If you don’t know a word, don’t panic. Describe the idea around the word.
Part 4 — Round One: Everyday Objects
10 minutes
Start relatively easily.
Challenge 1 — Umbrella
Forbidden words:
- umbrella
- rain
- wet
- weather
- water
Possible answer
“It’s something you carry outside when the sky is very dark and you think liquid might fall from above. You hold it over your head to protect yourself.”
Question
What makes this answer successful?
Answer:
She describes:
- what causes the problem
- what the object does
- how you use it
She doesn’t need the exact vocabulary.
Challenge 2 — Toothbrush
Forbidden words:
- toothbrush
- teeth
- brush
- toothpaste
- bathroom
Possible answer:
“It’s a small object with lots of short pieces at one end. You put some toothpaste on it and use it to clean the things inside your mouth.”
Challenge 3 — Passport
Forbidden words:
- passport
- travel
- country
- airport
- identity
Possible answer:
“It’s an official document that you need when you want to cross an international border. It contains information about you and is used by authorities to confirm who you are.”
Follow-up question
Ask:
What was the most difficult forbidden word to avoid?
This makes her consciously think about vocabulary.
Part 5 — Round Two: Abstract Ideas
Now make it much harder.
Objects are relatively easy to describe.
Abstract concepts are much more difficult.
Challenge 4 — SUCCESS
Forbidden words:
- success
- successful
- money
- career
- achievement
Ask:
“Explain the concept without using any of those words.”
Possible answer:
“It’s the feeling or situation of reaching something that you have been trying to accomplish. Different people have different ideas about what it means. For one person, it might involve professional recognition, while for another it might mean having a happy family life.”
Why is this a good answer?
She doesn’t simply replace “success” with another synonym.
She explains:
- what it means
- that it is subjective
- how different people understand it
That’s a much more sophisticated language skill.
Challenge 5 — FREEDOM
Forbidden words:
- freedom
- free
- government
- rights
- control
Possible answer:
“It’s the ability to make your own decisions and live your life without unnecessary restrictions being imposed on you.”
Follow-up
Ask:
Can you think of different types of this concept?
Possible answers:
- political
- personal
- economic
- religious
- social
Then ask:
“Can someone have a lot of personal independence but very little economic independence?”
Excellent opportunity for discussion.
Challenge 6 — LONELINESS
Forbidden words:
- loneliness
- lonely
- alone
- friends
- isolation
Possible answer:
“It’s a negative emotional state in which someone feels that they don’t have the meaningful human connections they need, even if other people are physically around them.”
That’s a particularly good advanced answer because it distinguishes being physically alone from feeling emotionally disconnected.
Part 6 — Round Three: Difficult Concepts
10 minutes
Now introduce words where there isn’t one obvious definition.
Challenge 7 — DEMOCRACY
Forbidden words:
- democracy
- government
- election
- vote
- politician
- power
Possible answer:
“It’s a system in which ordinary citizens have a role in deciding who represents them and how their society is run.”
Then challenge her:
“That’s still quite close to the dictionary definition. Can you explain it as if you were talking to a ten-year-old?”
Possible answer:
“It’s a way of organising a country where the people have a say in who makes important decisions.”
Excellent practice in changing the level of language.
Challenge 8 — TRUST
Forbidden words:
- trust
- believe
- reliable
- honest
- confidence
Possible answer:
“It’s the feeling you have when you think another person will do what they say they’re going to do and won’t deliberately harm or deceive you.”
Then ask:
Can you have this feeling towards someone without liking them?
Answer: Yes.
Explain:
You can respect someone’s reliability or integrity without necessarily enjoying their company.
This gives you a natural discussion opportunity.
Challenge 9 — PRIVACY
Forbidden words:
- privacy
- private
- secret
- personal
- information
- internet
Possible answer:
“It’s the ability to decide which aspects of your life other people are allowed to know about or have access to.”
Then ask:
Does modern technology make this easier or more difficult? Why?
Part 7 — The Forbidden Synonym Trap
This is where it gets interesting.
Tell her:
“You aren’t allowed to simply replace the forbidden word with an obvious synonym.”
For example:
Forbidden:
ANGRY
She cannot say:
furious
annoyed
irritated
mad
Instead, she has to explain the concept.
Possible answer:
“It’s a strong negative emotional reaction that can happen when someone feels they’ve been treated unfairly or something hasn’t gone the way they wanted.”
This forces her to think conceptually rather than search for synonyms.
Part 8 — Can You Guess the Word?
Now reverse the game.
You describe something without saying the key word.
She has to guess it.
Example 1
“It’s a situation where someone has two or more possible choices, but each choice has advantages and disadvantages.”
Answer:
Dilemma
Example 2
“It’s the ability to understand how another person feels, even if you haven’t experienced exactly the same situation.”
Answer:
Empathy
Example 3
“It’s a situation where something appears to be true but actually isn’t.”
Answer:
Misconception / illusion, depending on context.
Then ask:
What clues helped you identify the word?
This reverses the cognitive process and improves listening comprehension.
Part 9 — The 30-Second Challenge
Now introduce pressure.
Give her 30 seconds to explain each concept.
She cannot use the forbidden words.
Topic: SOCIAL MEDIA
Forbidden:
- social
- media
- internet
- website
Possible answer:
“It’s a collection of online platforms where people can communicate, share photographs and videos, express opinions and interact with large numbers of other people.”
Topic: ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE
Forbidden:
- artificial
- intelligence
- AI
- computer
- robot
- machine
Possible answer:
“It’s technology that allows computer systems to perform tasks that normally require human mental abilities, such as understanding language, recognising patterns and generating content.”
Topic: CLIMATE CHANGE
Forbidden:
- climate
- change
- global
- warming
- temperature
- environment
Possible answer:
“It’s the long-term alteration of weather patterns across the planet, largely associated with human activities that increase certain gases in the atmosphere.”
Part 10 — The Really Difficult Round
Now give her three forbidden words that she would normally rely on.
Topic: FRIENDSHIP
Forbidden:
- friend
- relationship
- people
- trust
- social
Ask:
“You have 45 seconds.”
A strong answer might be:
“It’s a connection between individuals who enjoy spending time together and usually provide each other with emotional support. It tends to involve loyalty, affection and a willingness to help each other.”
Then challenge her:
“Now explain it without using the words ‘connection’, ‘individuals’, ‘support’ or ‘together’.”
This forces her to find completely different linguistic routes.
Part 11 — Don’t Panic!
I’d make this a mini speaking lesson in itself.
Tell her:
“Imagine you’re speaking to an English speaker and suddenly you forget a word. What can you say?”
Teach her these useful phrases:
Buying time
“What’s the word I’m looking for?”
“How can I put this?”
“I can’t remember the exact word, but…”
Describing
“It’s something you use to…”
“It’s a person who…”
“It’s a place where…”
“It’s a situation in which…”
“It’s similar to…”
“It’s the opposite of…”
“It’s a kind of…”
Correcting yourself
“That’s not exactly the word I mean.”
“What I mean is…”
“Let me put it another way.”
“It’s more like…”
These phrases are extremely valuable for an intermediate–advanced learner.
Part 12 — Final Challenge: Explain Something Difficult
Finish with one or two of these.
1. Explain “justice”
Forbidden:
- justice
- fair
- law
- crime
- punishment
2. Explain “love”
Forbidden:
- love
- romantic
- relationship
- feeling
- heart
3. Explain “intelligence”
Forbidden:
- intelligence
- intelligent
- clever
- smart
- knowledge
4. Explain “happiness”
Forbidden:
- happiness
- happy
- joy
- pleasure
- positive
5. Explain “success”
Forbidden:
- success
- successful
- achievement
- money
- career
The student will probably find these much harder because there isn’t necessarily one universally accepted definition.
That’s actually a feature, not a problem.
Ask:
“Is your definition the only possible definition?”
Then:
“Can you think of another way of explaining the concept?”
This turns the vocabulary exercise into a sophisticated discussion.
Part 13 — Scoring
You could score each round out of 5:
| Skill | Points |
|---|---|
| Avoided forbidden words | 1 |
| Explained the concept clearly | 1 |
| Used appropriate vocabulary | 1 |
| Kept speaking without excessive hesitation | 1 |
| Successfully communicated the meaning | 1 |
But I would emphasise that communication is more important than grammatical perfection.
If she says:
“It’s something people use for cleaning their teeth…”
That’s successful, even if the sentence isn’t grammatically perfect.
The goal is:
“Can you communicate the idea despite not knowing or being allowed to use the obvious word?”
Suggested 45–60 Minute Lesson
5 minutes
Explain the game + easy object
10 minutes
Everyday objects
Umbrella → toothbrush → passport
10 minutes
Abstract concepts
Success → freedom → loneliness
10 minutes
Difficult concepts
Democracy → trust → privacy
5 minutes
Reverse game: “Can you guess the word?”
10 minutes
30-second challenges
Social media → AI → climate change
5–10 minutes
Final philosophical concept + discussion
Justice / happiness / love / success
One final twist I’d definitely use
At the end, tell her:
“Now I’m going to give you a forbidden word, but I’m not going to give you a topic. You have to start speaking immediately and make the other person guess what you’re talking about.”
For example, secretly give her:
“JEALOUSY”
She might start:
“It’s a negative emotion that can happen when you feel that another person has something you want, particularly when you think you’re losing someone’s attention…”
You then have to guess the word.
This is harder because she has to construct the entire explanation herself.
And once she’s good at that, introduce the ultimate version:
“You have forgotten a word during a normal conversation. You have to explain what you mean without telling me that you’ve forgotten the word.”
That’s probably the most realistic version of the exercise — and one that directly addresses a very common problem for non-native English speakers: knowing what they want to say but freezing because they can’t find one particular word.