Would You Rather Questions for ESL: 100+ Questions Organised by Level

The problem with most speaking warm-ups is that they require thought before they require speech. Students have to decide what they think, formulate an answer, and then produce language - all at once, cold, at the start of a lesson when their brains aren't warm yet.

Would you rather questions sidestep this entirely. There are only two options. Students choose one and justify it. The format removes the "what should I say?" problem and leaves only the language production itself. That's why it works so reliably as a warm-up across every level from A2 to C1.

YapYapGo is a classroom speaking practice tool for ESL and EFL teachers. Its this-or-that generator produces random binary choice prompts instantly - perfect for a daily warm-up you don't have to think about. But the 100+ questions below are ready to use right now.

How to run would you rather in class

Pair format (best for warm-ups): Project or read one question. Students have 15 seconds to decide silently, then discuss with their partner for two minutes - choice, reason, response to partner's reason. Quick, simple, gets everyone speaking simultaneously. Debate format (more energy, B1+): Assign students a side regardless of their actual preference. "All students on the left of the room argue for option A. All students on the right argue for option B." Then pair one from each side. The assigned position removes the awkwardness of revealing a genuine preference. Class spectrum: Students physically position themselves in the room - one corner for strongly preferring A, the opposite for strongly preferring B. Then discuss with the person nearest them. The physical movement adds energy and gives you an instant visual of class opinion.

A2 Elementary questions

Keep these concrete and personal. Students should be able to answer from direct experience or imagination without complex vocabulary.

1. Would you rather live in the city or the countryside?
2. Would you rather have a dog or a cat?
3. Would you rather eat only sweet food or only savoury food forever?
4. Would you rather be too hot or too cold?
5. Would you rather work early in the morning or late at night?
6. Would you rather be very tall or very short?
7. Would you rather have a lot of friends or one best friend?
8. Would you rather travel by plane or by train?
9. Would you rather cook your own food or always eat in restaurants?
10. Would you rather never watch TV again or never listen to music again?
11. Would you rather live near the sea or in the mountains?
12. Would you rather have a job that pays very well but is boring, or a job you love that pays less?
13. Would you rather be able to fly or be invisible?
14. Would you rather read a book or watch a film?
15. Would you rather live alone or always live with other people?
16. Would you rather have summer all year or winter all year?
17. Would you rather never use social media again or never use the internet again?
18. Would you rather speak many languages badly or one language perfectly?
19. Would you rather have more money or more free time?
20. Would you rather be famous or very rich?

Teaching tip: At A2, the "why" is more important than the choice. After students give their answer, ask "Why?" or "Can you give me one reason?" This pushes for extended output beyond the single-word response the format naturally produces.

B1 Intermediate questions

Add a layer of reasoning. These questions should require students to think about trade-offs and express preferences with justification.

1. Would you rather know your future or be able to change your past?
2. Would you rather have a job you hate that lets you travel the world, or a job you love that keeps you in one place?
3. Would you rather be the smartest person in the room or the most popular?
4. Would you rather always say what you think, or always know what other people think?
5. Would you rather give up your smartphone for a year or give up your car for a year?
6. Would you rather lose all your photos or all your contacts?
7. Would you rather have one hour more or one hour less in every day?
8. Would you rather be always right or always kind?
9. Would you rather live in the past or the future?
10. Would you rather be an expert in one thing or know a little about everything?
11. Would you rather have the power to stop time or travel through it?
12. Would you rather always be ten minutes early or always be ten minutes late?
13. Would you rather work for yourself or for a company?
14. Would you rather have a great memory or be great at maths?
15. Would you rather live somewhere safe and boring or exciting and dangerous?
16. Would you rather be able to speak any language fluently or play any musical instrument?
17. Would you rather have a job where you work alone or always with a team?
18. Would you rather have perfect health or endless wealth?
19. Would you rather always know when someone is lying, or always be believed?
20. Would you rather have a rewind button for conversations or a pause button for life?

Tool tip: YapYapGo's this-or-that generator produces these instantly for any class. For the post-discussion sharing phase, a random student picker keeps everyone on their toes.

B2 Upper-Intermediate questions

These should require more complex reasoning, reference to values, and ability to consider multiple perspectives.

1. Would you rather live in a world with complete equality but total conformity, or one with full individual freedom but significant inequality?
2. Would you rather be remembered for something you did or something you said?
3. Would you rather have the courage to always tell the truth, or the wisdom to know when not to?
4. Would you rather raise children who are happy but unambitious, or ambitious but often unhappy?
5. Would you rather know the date of your death or the cause?
6. Would you rather live in a world where everyone is equally talented, or one where talent is distributed randomly as it is now?
7. Would you rather eliminate hunger or loneliness from the world?
8. Would you rather have a job that makes the world better but pays you nothing, or one that harms the world but makes you very wealthy?
9. Would you rather be the last person on Earth or never be alone?
10. Would you rather trust people too easily or not enough?
11. Would you rather have absolute freedom with no structure, or complete security with no freedom?
12. Would you rather be talented with no recognition, or talentless with worldwide fame?
13. Would you rather always feel content or always feel curious?
14. Would you rather the world remembered your flaws or forgot your achievements?
15. Would you rather be loved for who you pretend to be, or unknown for who you really are?

C1 Advanced questions

Require abstract reasoning, consideration of systemic issues, and the ability to sustain a nuanced argument.

1. Would you rather live in a society that values justice above freedom, or freedom above justice?
2. Would you rather have been born at a time when the world's problems were simpler, or live now with the tools to solve complex ones?
3. Would you rather know the objective truth about a difficult historical or moral question, even if it destabilised your worldview, or remain comfortably uncertain?
4. Would you rather a technology existed that ended all physical suffering but removed all creative struggle, or the world remained as it is?
5. Would you rather be morally consistent but sometimes wrong, or morally flexible and usually right?

Building a daily practice

Would you rather questions work best as a consistent daily habit rather than an occasional activity. One question, two minutes of pair discussion, brief sharing - every lesson, before anything else. The repetition builds the habit of speaking immediately on arrival.

For more warm-up formats that need nothing to run, see our posts on 20 ESL warm-up activities and 5-minute speaking warm-ups that require no preparation.

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Sources:

• Krashen, S. (1982). Principles and Practice in Second Language Acquisition. - Low-anxiety, structured warm-ups reduce the affective filter.
• Nation, I.S.P. (1989). Improving Speaking Fluency. System. - Short, regular speaking practice builds fluency cumulatively.
• Foster, P. & Skehan, P. (1996). The Influence of Planning and Task Type. Studies in Second Language Acquisition. - Structured prompts with clear options produce better output than open questions.