Charades is the most played Christmas party game for a reason: everyone already knows the words, nobody needs to read, and a 5-year-old can beat an adult at it. What makes or breaks it is the list. Too easy and the round is over in ten seconds; too hard and the actor stands there for a minute. The lists on this page are graded so you can match the round to the room.
How to play
- Split into two teams of roughly equal size. Mix ages on each team.
- Put the words on slips in a bowl, or let one person read them from this page.
- The actor draws a word and has one minute to get their team to say it, without any sound and without pointing at real objects in the room.
- Every word guessed is a point; the actor takes a new word right away until the minute is up. A skip costs nothing but time.
- The other team plays. After every player has acted once, the team with more points wins.
The signs everyone uses
| Sign | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Fingers held up at the start | Number of words in the title |
| Fingers on the forearm | Which word you are acting now |
| Cupping your ear | “Sounds like” |
| Pinching finger and thumb | A short word, like “a” or “the” |
| Pulling your hands apart | Make the word longer (“snow” to “snowman”) |
| Rolling hands | Keep going, you are close |
Start with a warm-up
A first round of everyday words lets new players learn the signs before the Christmas words:
Everyday charades words for a warm-up
From the free charades deck in the app, for a first round before the Christmas words.
- Brushing teeth
- Eating spaghetti
- Blowing up a balloon
- Snake
- Duck
- Umbrella
- Hammer
- Fishing rod
- Baby
- Robot
- Bowling
- Gardening
Easy Christmas charades: things and actions
One clear action each. Good for kids from about 5 and for a first round with adults.
Things (15)
- Christmas tree
- Snowman
- Reindeer
- Candy cane
- Present
- Stocking
- Sled
- Bells
- Star on top of the tree
- Gingerbread man
- Snowball
- Mittens
- Fireplace
- Hot chocolate
- Elf
Actions (15)
- Wrapping a present
- Opening a present
- Decorating the tree
- Building a snowman
- Having a snowball fight
- Ice skating
- Hanging a stocking
- Baking cookies
- Writing a letter to Santa
- Shoveling snow
- Sledding down a hill
- Ringing a bell
- Putting on a scarf
- Eating a candy cane
- Making a snow angel
Medium Christmas charades: scenes and characters
Two-part ideas. The actor has to show who and what.
Scenes (15)
- Santa stuck in the chimney
- Reindeer pulling a sleigh
- Untangling the lights
- Kids waiting for Santa
- Sneaking a peek at presents
- A cat climbing the tree
- Caroling door to door
- Waking up on Christmas morning
- Burning the cookies
- Catching a snowflake on your tongue
- Hanging mistletoe
- Leaving milk and cookies
- Driving home in a snowstorm
- Wearing an ugly sweater
- Taking down the decorations
Characters (10)
- Santa Claus
- An elf making toys
- A nutcracker
- An angel on the tree
- A toy soldier
- A penguin on the ice
- A polar bear
- Mrs. Claus baking
- A shepherd
- A drummer boy
Christmas carols to act out
Act the title, not the tune. Show the number of words with your fingers first. All of these are traditional carols.
Carols (10)
- Jingle Bells
- Silent Night
- Deck the Halls
- Joy to the World
- O Christmas Tree
- We Wish You a Merry Christmas
- The Twelve Days of Christmas
- Away in a Manger
- Up on the Housetop
- Hark the Herald Angels Sing
Hard Christmas charades
Ideas, feelings and long phrases. Save them for the last round.
Hard (10)
- The night before Christmas
- Last-minute shopping
- A white Christmas
- Regifting a present
- Holiday traffic
- Batteries not included
- Assembling a toy at midnight
- The first snow of the year
- A gift that is too big for the box
- Season of giving
Ways to make it better
- Speed round. Each actor gets 30 seconds and the team must guess three words. Good once everyone knows the signs.
- Pairs. Two players act one word together: “reindeer pulling a sleigh” is much easier with two.
- Kids versus clock. No teams: the kids act, the adults guess, and everyone tries to beat their own score from the last round.
- Draw instead. Same words, but on paper. That is draw and guess, and it is kinder to the shy.
For big groups
With 15 or more people, make three or four teams and give each team its own bowl so nobody waits more than a few minutes. For more holiday games for a crowd, see our Christmas party games.