Christmas charades: 200+ holiday words for the whole family

The holidays are when families have the most time together and the least idea what to do with it. Once dinner is over, someone suggests a board game, half the table groans, and the kids drift back to their screens. Charades is different: no setup, no rulebook, and a nine-year-old can beat their uncle.

Bookmark this now. It is the end of October, which means holiday parties, office get-togethers and family visits are coming fast, and it is easier to have your word lists ready than to scramble on Christmas Eve.

How to play Christmas charades with the family

1. 01Mix the generations.Put a grandparent, a parent and a kid on each team. Every team gets someone who knows the old movies and someone who knows the new ones.
2. 02Give more time.90 seconds per round works for mixed ages. Drop to 60 once everyone is warmed up.
3. 03Allow every mode.Acting, describing and humming are all allowed. Humming is especially good for carols.
4. 04Go easy on penalties.No minus points for passing when little kids are playing. Keep the competition friendly.
5. 05Rotate the categories.Start with objects and characters, then move to movies and songs, and end with the trickier traditions round.

Christmas movies for charades

The most popular holiday category. Most families have watched these together, so even the shy players have a shot. Break long titles into words and act out the easiest one first.

Christmas songs to hum or act out

Songs are where humming earns its place. Decide before the round whether humming is allowed, because with carols it makes things very easy. For a challenge, make it an acting-only round.

Christmas characters

Characters are the easiest category to act out because each one has a signature move: Santa’s belly laugh, Rudolph’s glowing nose, the Grinch’s scowl.

Holiday traditions and activities

This is the hardest Christmas charades category, and often the funniest. Watching someone act out "untangling the lights" is a family memory in the making.

Christmas objects

Easy Christmas charades for kids

For the youngest players, stick to words they can see and show with their whole body. Have an adult whisper the word if they cannot read yet. Our full guide to charades for kids has more age-by-age tips.

Christmas charades at the office party

Holiday office parties need a game that works for everyone, from the intern to the CEO. Christmas charades fits perfectly: family-friendly words, quick rounds and no awkward questions. Use teams of 4-5, mix departments, and keep it to three rounds. For more ideas, see our team building games guide.

• Stick to movies and songs. These are the categories everyone knows, whatever their background.
• Add office in-jokes. The holiday party, the broken printer, the Secret Santa. Write them in before the game.
• Keep the timer short. 60 seconds, three rounds per team, and you are done in half an hour.

Playing Christmas charades with the Guessy app

Writing out 200 slips of paper on Christmas Eve is nobody’s idea of fun. The Guessy app lets you add your own words, so you can type in your favorite holiday words from these lists once and play them with a built-in timer, tilt-to-score and no slips to collect. Mix them with the regular topics like Movies, Animation movies and Act it out for variety. It works offline too, which helps at grandma’s house.

Want more general word lists for the rest of the year? Start with our charades ideas collection.

Add your favorite Christmas words as custom words and play with a built-in timer. Free download, works offline.

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Frequently asked questions