Word games have likely been around since language was developed. The word “game” itself emerged around 1200CE in Old English and it meant anything from joy, glee or fun. Originally thought to be “gamen” it lost the -en as it was often mistaken as a suffix. The word game was known as anything to do with athletic contests, backgammon, and chess including the hunting of wild animals, hence why we now know this as “game”.
Fast forward to the 1500s, people described it as a type of play or sport, thus people would “play games”. It was then developing into “gambling” and what we know it as today. Word games are known as puzzles and they’re main aim is to test us mentally whilst being fun. Despite the fact they can be slightly frustrating, word games have many benefits for the human brain. But what are those benefits?
They Improve Our Vocabulary
Enhancing our vocabulary is crucial to our professional and more importantly our personal development. Being able to explain ourselves properly and having intellectual, interesting conversations will allow you to converse with anyone you like. In the professional world, using high quality, complex words will impress and take your career to a higher level.
Playing word games is a brilliant way to expose yourself to new words and phrases that you might not have seen before. They’re also constantly updated which is brilliant for any profession that relies heavily on writing or wordplay. There are many ways to practice and learn whilst playing these games. Using a word decoder for help whilst practicing will open your eyes to new words you might not have come across before. Take the time to learn these and understand what they mean. Once you’ve stored them in your brain, you’ll forever be able to access them and use them in the right context.
They Improve Our Concentration
Word games are also known as puzzle games that require you to solve puzzles, identify brainteasers, and crack clues. The more time you spend on these games the higher chance you have of improving your concentration and attention span. They’re intense, stimulating, and challenging and the more you play, the better your focus will become.
Once you’ve got the hang of the game you’re playing the difficulty should then be increased as this will further improve and have a healthy effect on your concentration. If you’re looking to up this area of your life then even a few hours a week will have a profound effect.
They Improve Our Cognitive Ability
Cognitive ability is an essential ability of a human being’s brain. They’re the ways your brain remembers things, reasons, thinks, holds attention, reads and learns. These abilities help you process any new information by distributing it to other areas in your brain. When you later need that information, cognitive skill retrieves it ready to use.
Playing word games will help in all areas of cognitive ability, and by developing these skills your brain will be able to process and complete these processes much faster and more efficiently.
They Help Relieve Stress
There’s nothing worse than stressing over something and being unable to put it down or let it go. Most of us stress about things that are out of our control and it can have an effect not only on our mental health but also on our physical health.
Playing word games is a great way to reduce that stress and allow you to concentrate on something else. Solving word-related problems will help you wind down and relax. They’re known to relieve certain pressures and you’ll more than likely lose yourself in the game until you have completed it.
They Help With Happiness
The human brain has a few hormones and endorphins that are released when we are doing certain things. These hormones and endorphins are our forms of happiness. Dopamine is a hormone and neurotransmitter that is sent to deliver messages between nerve cells. Known as the chemical messenger it plays a large part in how we feel pleasure.
When playing word games, as long as we are enjoying them, our brain will send out dopamine. The feeling of satisfaction when you complete one of these puzzles, or even when you win a game, is dopamine flooding your brain.
There are many benefits to playing word games and everyone should try and take part for a few minutes every day. Your daily lives will become easier and more fulfilled if you exercise the mind as well as the body. Start small and don’t worry if you aren’t the best at completing them just yet, these things come with time. Work your way up to the harder levels and you’ll feel amazing.