Skip to Content

Log in / Sign up

wikiHow is where trusted research and expert knowledge come together. Learn why people trust wikiHow

150+ Entertaining Charades Ideas For All Ages

Download Article

Get your party giggling with these creative charades ideas

Co-authored by Sophie Burkholder, BA Reviewed by Ashton Wu

Last Updated: December 18, 2023 Fact Checked

Download Article

Is it a bird? Is it a plane? Is it... Superman!?!? A game of charades might go just like that, with wild guesses thrown out until one sticks. But to play charades and keep the pantomime party going all night long (as we're sure you want to), you need a long list of clues and ideas for players to act out. We've compiled an exhaustive list of charades words and ideas for every difficulty level and every tricky topic you want to test yourself with. Just one last thing…no talking!

1

Quick Charades Ideas for Adults

Download Article

Give adults a range of places, people, and abstract ideas. Use options from different categories, e.g. films, actions, sports, songs, etc. More challenging options keep the game interesting when you're playing with a (mostly) mature crew. ^{[1]
X
Research source}
- Titanic
- Doctor Who
- The Great Gatsby
- "Umbrella" by Rihanna
- Cardi B
- Hiccups
- Putting on eyeliner
- Stubbing your toe
- Mermaid
- "You're gonna need a bigger boat." - Jaws

Advertisement

2

Quick Charades Ideas for Kids

Download Article

Stick with concrete objects and familiar topics when playing with kids. Start with animals and simple actions, then add your mini-mime's favorite Disney movies or songs! ^{[2]
X
Research source}
- Cat
- Pizza
- Skiing
- Guitar
- Doctor
- Tying a shoe
- Statue of Liberty
- Finding Nemo
- Frozen
- "Baby Shark"

3

Quick Charades Ideas for Teens

Download Article

Use funny and relatable clues for teenage players. Make a teen's charade words a little easier than an adult's. If you're using pop culture or celebrity references, ensure your teenager is familiar with that person or thing! ^{[3]
X
Research source}
- Shark
- Gymnastics
- Bubblegum
- Cello
- Pro wrestler
- Playing hacky sack
- Leaning Tower of Pisa
- The Lord of the Rings
- High School Musical
- "Shake It Off" by Taylor Swift

Advertisement

4

Hard Words for Charades

Download Article

Level up with more abstract and obscure clues. If you're looking for a more difficult game, add idioms like "When life gives you lemons, make lemonade". Try clues that don't necessarily have a visual or action attached to them, like brain freeze. ^{[4]
X
Research source}
- A rock
- Jell-O
- Jet lag
- Spilling the tea
- Road trip
- Deja-Vu
- Elon Musk
- "Best thing since sliced bread"
- Marty McFly from Back to the Future
- Pretend to be any of your fellow players

5

Funny Charades Ideas

Download Article

Choose over-the-top clues that will have your players looking silly. Try actions that will make your guests over-exaggerate their emotions or movements, like changing a diaper or (trying to) do the splits. Add fun dance moves like the worm or the moonwalk. ^{[5]
X
Research source}
- Frog
- Clown
- Twerking
- Riding a bull
- Britney Spears
- Constipation
- Typing an angry email
- Walking in giant shoes
- Slipping on a banana peel
- "It's alive! It's alive!" - Frankenstein

Advertisement

6

Food Charades Ideas

Download Article

Choose a range of food clues from easy to hard. Start with something simple, like a banana or soup, then up the difficulty level with honey or sushi. ^{[6]
X
Research source}
- Lollipop
- Spaghetti
- Eggs
- Orange
- Milk and cookies
- Taco
- Apple pie
- Strawberries
- Garlic
- Pancakes

7

Animal Charades Ideas

Download Article

Start off with simple animals before switching to more difficult ones. A dog might be a good one to start with, but we'll see how you do with guessing a sea lion! Before playing this list, decide whether animal noises are allowed with your guests.
- Bird
- Rabbit
- Cheetah
- Kangaroo
- Rattlesnake
- Bat
- Lion
- Horse
- Polar bear
- Flying squirrel

Advertisement

8

Emotions Charades Ideas

Download Article

Include a list of all possible types of emotions. Whether positive to negative feelings, these clues can make for some pretty funny faces when acted out. Since you can't speak, use your body language and change your facial expressions to show more emotion. ^{[7]
X
Research source}
- Happy
- Sad
- Scared
- Angry
- Excited
- Disgusted
- Peaceful
- Stressed
- Surprised
- Frustrated

9

Actions Charades Ideas

Download Article

Use clues that have both an action and a place or object. For example, instead of climbing, try climbing a tree. Or, instead of running, try running on a treadmill. ^{[8]
X
Research source}
- Shopping at the mall
- Building a campfire
- Throwing a strike
- Visiting the zoo
- Sewing on a button
- Raking leaves
- Mowing a lawn
- Riding a motorcycle
- Playing hopscotch
- Milking a cow

Advertisement

10

Sports Charades Ideas

Download Article

Mix in some less well-known sports with the popular ones. Feel free to add baseball, football, and soccer to your list, but also add sports like water polo, rugby, and netball. ^{[9]
X
Research source}
- Basketball
- Golf
- Tennis
- Dancing
- Hockey
- Volleyball
- Kayaking
- Archery
- Long jump
- Ultimate frisbee

11

Songs Charades Ideas

Download Article

Use songs that everyone will most likely know. Choose tunes with descriptive titles or well-known dances, like "Party in the U.S.A." or "Single Ladies." Share that you're trying to get your team to guess a clue by holding a pretend microphone. Just no actual humming or singing! ^{[10]
X
Research source}
- "Over the Rainbow" by Judy Garland
- "Hound Dog" by Elvis Presley
- "Dancing Queen" by ABBA
- "Imagine" by John Lennon
- "YMCA" by Village People
- "Ice Ice Baby" by Vanilla Ice
- "Sk8r Boy” by Avril Lavigne
- "Uptown Funk" by Bruno Mars
- "Despacito" by Daddy Yankee
- "Hello" by Adele

Advertisement

12

Movies Charades Ideas

Download Article

Choose popular movies that your players are familiar with. If you have kids in your game, choose The Little Mermaid over Steel Magnolias . Remember to indicate your clue is a movie by miming that you're using an old-fashioned film camera. ^{[11]
X
Research source}
- Coco
- Despicable Me
- Home Alone
- The Wizard of Oz
- The Princess Bride
- Mamma Mia!
- Zoolander
- Sherlock Holmes
- Rocky
- Braveheart

13

TV Show Charades Ideas

Download Article

Choose different types of TV shows that your players enjoy. Try a clue with easily separated words. For example, act out The Walking Dead by walking first and then playing dead. But first, draw a rectangle with your fingers to clue your team in on the TV show category. ^{[12]
X
Research source}
- Friends
- Euphoria
- American Idol
- Squid Game
- The Simpsons
- Downton Abbey
- Game of Thrones
- Umbrella Academy
- Buffy the Vampire Slayer
- The Great British Baking Show

Advertisement

14

Books Charades Ideas

Download Article

Pick an iconic book your team will know from the title alone. Ensure your players know it's a book by opening your hands like you're reading. You don't actually have to have read the book to give clues. Just use the words in the title – like pretending to write in a notebook for The Notebook . ^{[13]
X
Research source}
- Alice in Wonderland
- Harry Potter
- Dracula
- Fifty Shades of Grey
- The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
- Pride and Prejudice
- Gone Girl
- Fahrenheit 451
- It
- The Bible

15

Famous People Charades Ideas

Download Article

Choose a mix of real and fictional famous folk. Indicate that your clue is a person by posing with your hands on your hips. Act out that person's mannerisms, like widening your eyes for Mr. Bean or moving your hips a lot for Shakira. ^{[14]
X
Research source}
- Paris Hilton
- Ariana Grande
- Justin Bieber
- Bill Gates
- Albert Einstein
- Wonder Woman
- Nancy Drew
- Superman
- Catwoman
- Darth Vader

Advertisement

16

Job Charades Ideas

Download Article

Start off with occupations that have actions attached to them. For example, a taxi driver can pretend to drive a car, and a fisherman can pretend to reel one in. Once you've mastered those, challenge yourself with a more abstract occupation like a realtor or psychologist. ^{[15]
X
Research source}
- Dentist
- Baker
- Plumber
- Teacher
- Seamstress
- Flight Attendant
- Firefighter
- Influencer
- Journalist
- President of the United States

Expert Q&A

Search

Add New Question

Ask a Question

200 characters left

Include your email address to get a message when this question is answered.

Advertisement

Tips

Submit a Tip

All tip submissions are carefully reviewed before being published

Name

Please provide your name and last initial

Thanks for submitting a tip for review!

You Might Also Like

Advertisement

References

More References (6)

About This Article

Reviewed by:

Game Expert

This article was reviewed by Ashton Wu and by wikiHow staff writer, Sophie Burkholder, BA . Ashton Wu is a Game Expert at Shelfside. After delving into the Yugioh tournament community while growing up, Ashton launched himself into the board gaming community in 2014 and went into reviewing board games as a career full-time in 2019. His YouTube channel Shelfside has over 35K subscribers and over 4 million views, assisted by written reviews on the Shelfside website and BoardGameGeek.com. He also consults with gaming companies to build high-quality gaming products. Ashton is a tournament commentator, board game playthrough director, and host of the Shelfside Podcast, where he talks about board games with his business partner, Daniel. He received a Bachelor of Arts in Economics at the University of California, Santa Barbara, in addition to the Technology Management Certificate. This article has been viewed 26,529 times.

How helpful is this?

Co-authors: 4

Updated: December 18, 2023

Views: 26,529

Categories: Party Games

Thanks to all authors for creating a page that has been read 26,529 times.

Did this article help you?

Advertisement

wikiHow Tech Help Pro:

Level up your tech skills and stay ahead of the curve

X

-

-

729

.mwimg a.image{display:none}#header_logo{display:none}#cse-search-box{display:none}#cse-search-box-noscript{display:block !important}#cse-search-box-noscript .cse_q{color:#FFF;background-color:#B3CE9C}.wh_search .cse_q{width:88%}#mw-mf-main-menu-button{display:none;visibility:hidden}.header .search{display:none}#search_footer .cse_sa{background-image:url(/extensions/wikihow/mobile/images/white_mag.png);background-size:22px}.related_box{display:block;background:#EEE;border:5px solid #FFF;vertical-align:bottom;width:127px;background-size:180px;float:left;height:120px;position:relative}.related_box p{line-height:15px !important;font-size:13px;background-color:rgba(67,95,44,.4);color:#FFF;font-weight:bold;padding:8px;margin:0 !important;position:absolute;bottom:0}#noscript_header_logo{display:table-cell;vertical-align:middle;background-position:50% 77%;background-repeat:no-repeat;background-image:url(/extensions/wikihow/mobile/images/wikihow_logo_230.png);background-size:105px;width:auto;height:51px;padding:0 14px}.articleinfo{display:none}#iorg_free_data{z-index:50;width:100%;position:fixed}#ara_recommendations{display:none}

Design a Mobile Website

View Site in Mobile | Classic

Share by: