Dataset
English game vocabulary by CEFR level
Most CEFR word lists tell you which English words are common in general. This one tells you which words are common in games — because it is built from the words real players actually looked up and saved while playing real games in English.
The two orders disagree, and the disagreement is useful. Everyday coursebook words barely earn their place on a game screen, while words the CEFR rates as advanced — combat, legendary, defeat, even pause — are on every gamer's screen from day one.
Last updated · 423 words across A1–C2 · regenerated from the live dataset, not hand-written
Games don't follow the coursebook order
Scroll to the C2 table at the bottom of this page. It contains combat, legendary, warrior, revive and pause — words the CEFR associates with near-native proficiency. In our data they earned their place the same way every other word did: real players met them on real screens, in multiple games, and reached for the dictionary.
A learner working through a coursebook meets combat after years, if at all. A learner who plays meets it in the first session, sees it hundreds of times, and knows it cold long before C2 would suggest. If games are your input, a list built from games tells you where the payoff actually is: the B1 table below is the vocabulary of menus and buttons, and the C1–C2 tables are the "advanced" words you will master first.
The same experiment run on Japanese games produced the same shape — the JLPT version is at Japanese game vocabulary by JLPT level.
Guess the level
Twelve words sampled live from the tables below — you guess which CEFR band each one belongs to. If this page's thesis is right, you'll nail the C2 words and stumble somewhere much lower.
Which CEFR band is this word?
Score
How this dataset is made
Playto is a screen-translation overlay for playing games in another language. When a player looks a word up, saves it to their wordbook, or reviews it later, that interaction — with opt-in anonymous statistics enabled — becomes a signal that the word mattered on a real game screen.
Before anything is published here, the data passes through aggregation rules: a word must have been met in at least two different games and on at least two different user-days; only dictionary-verified words are counted, so names and misreads are excluded; and our own development playtime is removed entirely. The result is a cross-game aggregate — no individual player's word list, and no individual game's vocabulary, can be read out of it. The "games" column shows how many different games each word was met in. Details are in our privacy policy.
A1 — the everyday core
The words every beginner course starts with are also the backbone of game dialogue. Nothing here will surprise you — what's notable is that this layer alone carries a large share of what characters actually say.
100 words in the current snapshot
| Word | Games |
|---|---|
| game | 18 |
| time | 18 |
| like | 18 |
| good | 16 |
| find | 15 |
| right | 14 |
| feel | 13 |
| make | 13 |
| over | 13 |
| about | 13 |
| name | 13 |
| need | 12 |
| take | 12 |
| leave | 11 |
| think | 11 |
| change | 11 |
| much | 11 |
| go | 11 |
| other | 11 |
| please | 11 |
| well | 11 |
| know | 10 |
| look | 10 |
| first | 10 |
| sure | 9 |
| come | 9 |
| help | 9 |
| late | 9 |
| still | 9 |
| until | 9 |
| want | 9 |
| chance | 9 |
| face | 9 |
| choose | 9 |
| only | 9 |
| give | 8 |
| home | 8 |
| something | 8 |
| tell | 8 |
| even | 8 |
| sorry | 8 |
| little | 8 |
| work | 8 |
| save | 7 |
| head | 7 |
| end | 7 |
| year | 7 |
| always | 7 |
| through | 7 |
| use | 7 |
| free | 7 |
| happen | 7 |
| long | 7 |
| open | 7 |
| people | 7 |
| room | 7 |
| talk | 7 |
| wait | 7 |
| story | 6 |
| again | 6 |
| live | 6 |
| since | 6 |
| another | 6 |
| break | 6 |
| collect | 6 |
| hard | 6 |
| life | 6 |
| maybe | 6 |
| around | 6 |
| call | 6 |
| city | 6 |
| do | 6 |
| heart | 6 |
| place | 6 |
| play | 6 |
| point | 6 |
| send | 6 |
| type | 6 |
| while | 6 |
| after | 5 |
| before | 5 |
| fine | 5 |
| really | 5 |
| get | 5 |
| great | 5 |
| number | 5 |
| seem | 5 |
| though | 5 |
| watch | 5 |
| anything | 5 |
| currently | 5 |
| english | 5 |
| enough | 5 |
| hello | 5 |
| hold | 5 |
| light | 5 |
| line | 5 |
| lose | 5 |
| once | 5 |
| player | 5 |
A2 — where games find their voice
Damage, fight, death, energy, health: this is the level where the list stops looking like a phrasebook and starts looking like a game. Most of the words on a status screen live here.
100 words in the current snapshot
| Word | Games |
|---|---|
| world | 15 |
| build | 11 |
| power | 10 |
| damage | 9 |
| human | 8 |
| enter | 8 |
| warn | 7 |
| fight | 6 |
| area | 6 |
| begin | 6 |
| character | 6 |
| complete | 6 |
| during | 6 |
| master | 6 |
| ship | 6 |
| speed | 6 |
| star | 5 |
| follow | 5 |
| become | 5 |
| rate | 5 |
| reach | 5 |
| fast | 5 |
| team | 5 |
| wonder | 5 |
| fire | 4 |
| general | 4 |
| message | 4 |
| store | 4 |
| train | 4 |
| death | 4 |
| energy | 4 |
| health | 4 |
| hide | 4 |
| list | 4 |
| network | 4 |
| plan | 4 |
| press | 4 |
| shape | 4 |
| share | 4 |
| spirit | 4 |
| suit | 4 |
| total | 4 |
| touch | 4 |
| trust | 4 |
| voice | 4 |
| wake | 4 |
| ignore | 3 |
| objective | 3 |
| account | 3 |
| button | 3 |
| drop | 3 |
| journey | 3 |
| kill | 3 |
| memory | 3 |
| order | 3 |
| pack | 3 |
| spot | 3 |
| track | 3 |
| travel | 3 |
| village | 3 |
| wind | 3 |
| ability | 3 |
| association | 3 |
| blood | 3 |
| case | 3 |
| chapter | 3 |
| claim | 3 |
| course | 3 |
| critical | 3 |
| cycle | 3 |
| deep | 3 |
| dream | 3 |
| earn | 3 |
| frame | 3 |
| hall | 3 |
| history | 3 |
| hurt | 3 |
| main | 3 |
| moon | 3 |
| present | 3 |
| speech | 3 |
| strike | 3 |
| survive | 3 |
| tree | 3 |
| view | 3 |
| wood | 3 |
| ancient | 3 |
| screen | 3 |
| count | 2 |
| decision | 2 |
| stick | 2 |
| visit | 2 |
| admit | 2 |
| customer | 2 |
| investigate | 2 |
| origin | 2 |
| plant | 2 |
| rule | 2 |
| score | 2 |
| act | 2 |
B1 — the interface layer
Select, attack, item, skill, mode, update. This is the vocabulary of menus and buttons — words you click hundreds of times per playthrough, graded intermediate by the CEFR.
100 words in the current snapshot
| Word | Games |
|---|---|
| select | 10 |
| attack | 9 |
| click | 8 |
| item | 7 |
| base | 7 |
| skill | 7 |
| access | 6 |
| mode | 6 |
| acquire | 6 |
| rise | 6 |
| available | 5 |
| chat | 5 |
| event | 5 |
| remain | 5 |
| battle | 5 |
| search | 5 |
| level | 4 |
| okay | 4 |
| effect | 4 |
| guess | 4 |
| guide | 4 |
| increase | 4 |
| load | 4 |
| movement | 4 |
| require | 4 |
| seed | 4 |
| soldier | 4 |
| supply | 4 |
| update | 4 |
| welcome | 4 |
| mission | 3 |
| appear | 3 |
| capture | 3 |
| current | 3 |
| disaster | 3 |
| edition | 3 |
| enemy | 3 |
| force | 3 |
| planet | 3 |
| server | 3 |
| tower | 3 |
| code | 3 |
| detail | 3 |
| forest | 3 |
| gain | 3 |
| gold | 3 |
| lead | 3 |
| link | 3 |
| luck | 3 |
| receive | 3 |
| reward | 3 |
| shift | 3 |
| soul | 3 |
| support | 3 |
| trade | 3 |
| transfer | 3 |
| weapon | 3 |
| limit | 3 |
| taste | 2 |
| nasty | 2 |
| proceed | 2 |
| achieve | 2 |
| adjust | 2 |
| advance | 2 |
| daily | 2 |
| defend | 2 |
| program | 2 |
| recent | 2 |
| region | 2 |
| review | 2 |
| sample | 2 |
| satisfy | 2 |
| strength | 2 |
| string | 2 |
| struggle | 2 |
| target | 2 |
| trial | 2 |
| weird | 2 |
| accessible | 2 |
| active | 2 |
| approach | 2 |
| bind | 2 |
| birth | 2 |
| century | 2 |
| collection | 2 |
| command | 2 |
| condition | 2 |
| create | 2 |
| danger | 2 |
| delivery | 2 |
| disease | 2 |
| enhance | 2 |
| environment | 2 |
| excuse | 2 |
| familiar | 2 |
| fear | 2 |
| female | 2 |
| future | 2 |
| gender | 2 |
| grant | 2 |
B2 — texture and flavour
Encounter, spell, creature, boost, equip: the words that give game writing its texture. Upper-intermediate on paper, met constantly in play.
52 words in the current snapshot
| Word | Games |
|---|---|
| bonus | 5 |
| drag | 4 |
| guard | 4 |
| info | 4 |
| rank | 4 |
| breathe | 3 |
| encounter | 3 |
| rat | 3 |
| shadow | 3 |
| spell | 3 |
| unite | 3 |
| visible | 3 |
| discovery | 2 |
| stake | 2 |
| beginner | 2 |
| beneath | 2 |
| boost | 2 |
| crazy | 2 |
| creature | 2 |
| cute | 2 |
| dear | 2 |
| destination | 2 |
| destruction | 2 |
| duration | 2 |
| empire | 2 |
| equip | 2 |
| evolution | 2 |
| injure | 2 |
| interactive | 2 |
| interface | 2 |
| keyboard | 2 |
| nearby | 2 |
| newly | 2 |
| official | 2 |
| owner | 2 |
| physical | 2 |
| port | 2 |
| prince | 2 |
| protein | 2 |
| react | 2 |
| selection | 2 |
| silver | 2 |
| slot | 2 |
| storm | 2 |
| tear | 2 |
| trainer | 2 |
| tremendous | 2 |
| unexpected | 2 |
| wander | 2 |
| ward | 2 |
| wise | 2 |
| yeah | 2 |
C1 — the words games teach first
Defeat, heal, monster, magic, sword, tutorial. The CEFR files these as advanced — the vocabulary of proficient readers. Any gamer knows most of this table within their first week of play.
28 words in the current snapshot
| Word | Games |
|---|---|
| skip | 9 |
| defeat | 6 |
| heal | 4 |
| hunt | 4 |
| monster | 3 |
| badge | 3 |
| beast | 3 |
| cave | 3 |
| magic | 3 |
| upgrade | 3 |
| seal | 3 |
| regret | 2 |
| folder | 2 |
| tile | 2 |
| attribute | 2 |
| bug | 2 |
| chamber | 2 |
| embark | 2 |
| essence | 2 |
| flame | 2 |
| import | 2 |
| legend | 2 |
| license | 2 |
| neutral | 2 |
| optional | 2 |
| super | 2 |
| sword | 2 |
| tutorial | 2 |
C2 — "near-native" words on every screen
Combat, legendary, warrior, revive, pause. The highest CEFR band, nominally the territory of near-native speakers — and simultaneously some of the most common words in games. Pause is rated C2. Every player on earth knows pause.
43 words in the current snapshot
| Word | Games |
|---|---|
| combat | 6 |
| activate | 4 |
| legendary | 3 |
| warrior | 3 |
| assault | 3 |
| fist | 3 |
| lord | 3 |
| radius | 3 |
| shield | 3 |
| bizarre | 2 |
| sweat | 2 |
| class | 2 |
| cult | 2 |
| destiny | 2 |
| loser | 2 |
| precision | 2 |
| rage | 2 |
| ritual | 2 |
| scar | 2 |
| trash | 2 |
| alliance | 2 |
| barrel | 2 |
| creator | 2 |
| curse | 2 |
| different | 2 |
| escort | 2 |
| expedition | 2 |
| explosion | 2 |
| hunter | 2 |
| infinite | 2 |
| leap | 2 |
| mechanic | 2 |
| messy | 2 |
| offensive | 2 |
| pause | 2 |
| preview | 2 |
| realm | 2 |
| revive | 2 |
| setup | 2 |
| throne | 2 |
| tire | 2 |
| versus | 2 |
| wrist | 2 |
What to do with this list
A frequency list is a map, not a method. The method — why games work as language input at all, and how to turn playtime into vocabulary that stays — is in can you learn a language by playing games?
And if you want your own version of this list — the words you personally met, in the games you personally play — that is what Playto's wordbook is. Every word on this page got here because someone looked it up mid-game and decided it was worth keeping.
Frequently asked questions
Where does this word list come from?
From real play. Playto is a screen-translation overlay for games, and players can look words up, save them, and review them later. With opt-in anonymous statistics enabled, each interaction counts toward this dataset. We publish a word only when it was met in at least two different games by at least two different user-days, so no single player's word list is exposed and no single game's vocabulary is reconstructed.
Why are common game words like combat and pause rated C1 or C2?
Because the CEFR bands reflect frequency in general English — news, conversation, academic text — not in games. Combat is rare in a newspaper and constant on a game screen. That mismatch is the point of this page: if games are your input, your effective vocabulary order differs from the coursebook order, and some 'advanced' words will be among the first you master.
Is this list useful for learning English?
As a map, yes: it shows which words actually pay off on a game screen, level by level, so you can see what you already cover and what the next band looks like. It is not a course — pair it with real play, where each of these words arrives with a scene attached.
How often is this page updated?
The tables are generated directly from the dataset, not written by hand. We refresh the export periodically and the last-updated date at the top of the page reflects the current data snapshot.
Build your own list from the games you play
Playto puts a reading aid over any Windows game, lets you look up and save words as you play, and reviews them with you afterwards. The free version is enough to see whether it fits how you learn.