Thanksgiving is the one day a year when three generations sit in the same house for six hours with a long gap between the parade and the meal and another one after the pie. Games fill those gaps. The trick is to pick games that nobody can lose badly, that a small kid can join on a team with an adult, and that stop cleanly when the food is ready.
At a glance
| Game | Players | Time | You need | Best moment |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thanksgiving charades | 4 to 20, two teams | 15 to 30 min | The list below or a phone | Before dinner |
| Imposter, food edition | 4 to 10 | 5 min a round | One phone or slips of paper | Before dinner |
| Two truths and a lie | 3 to 15 | 10 to 20 min | Nothing | Before dinner |
| Paper turkey hunt | Kids, any number | 15 min | Paper turkeys | Before dinner |
| Gratitude alphabet | 3 to 20 | 5 to 10 min | Nothing | At the table |
| Table questions | 3 to 12 | 10 to 20 min | A phone or the questions below | At the table |
| Guess the weight | Any number | 2 min | Paper and a pen | At the table |
| Forbidden word | 4 to 12, two teams | 20 to 40 min | Cards or a phone | After pie |
| Draw and guess | 3 to 12 | 15 to 30 min | Paper or a phone | After pie |
| Four in a row tournament | 2 at a time | 5 to 10 min a game | A phone or a board | After pie |
| Dots and boxes on a napkin | 2 | 5 to 15 min | A napkin and a pen | Waiting for dessert |
| Pass the pie | 6 or more | 10 min | A pie tin and music | After pie |
| Halftime flag football | 6 or more | 20 min | A ball and a yard | During the game on TV |
| Leftover pitch | 3 or more | 10 min | Leftovers | The next day |
Before dinner
This is the long wait. People arrive at different times, the kitchen is full, and the youngest guests are hungry. Pick games that new arrivals can join halfway.
1. Thanksgiving charades
Split into two teams, mixing ages on each side. One player acts out a word from the list below without speaking while their team guesses; one minute per turn, one point per word guessed, then the other team goes. Read the word to the actor quietly or show it on a phone. For kids under 8, let them act the easy words with a parent whispering ideas.
Why it works on Thanksgiving: everyone already knows the words, so a grandparent who has never played charades gets “carving the turkey” in seconds. The full rules are in our charades guide, and our charades word list has many more ideas sorted from easy to hard.
2. Imposter, food edition
Everyone but one player sees the same secret word, say “Pumpkin pie”. The imposter sees only the category, “Food”. Going around the circle, each player says one word that fits the secret word without giving it away (“orange”, “slice”, “whipped”). The imposter bluffs along. After two rounds, everyone points at the player they suspect. If the group catches the imposter, the imposter gets one guess at the word to steal the win.
It needs 4 players at the very least and is best with 5 to 8. One round takes about five minutes, so it fits between guests arriving. Here are real words from the food category of our free deck:
Food words from the imposter deck
From the free deck in the app. The imposter sees only the category and, if you play with hints, the one-word hint.
- Pizza
- Taco
- Popcorn
- Soup
- Watermelon
- Donut
- Egg
- Cupcake
How to set it up and the variants are on the imposter page.
3. Two truths and a lie
Each player says three things about themselves; two are true and one is invented. Everyone else votes on the lie. At a family gathering the twist is that people think they know each other: ask the grandparents for stories from before anyone else was born, and watch the room get the lie wrong. Our two truths and a lie guide has rules and ideas for every age.
4. Paper turkey hunt
Cut 20 small turkeys from paper, write a number from 1 to 3 on the back of each, and hide them around one room before guests arrive. Kids hunt; the highest total wins first pick of the pie. It keeps the youngest busy for 15 minutes while the table is set.
At the table
Table games must be quiet, sit-down and stoppable at any moment.
5. Gratitude alphabet
Go around the table; the first person names something they are thankful for that starts with A, the next with B, and so on. “Apple pie”, “Brother”, “Cousins who drove six hours”. Skip Q, X and Z, or keep them for the person who complains the most. It is a gentler way to do the “say what you are thankful for” round, because the letter gives shy people something to hold on to.
6. Table questions
Pass a phone or a stack of cards and answer one question each. Use only the mild truth questions here; save dares for later. These are real questions from the mild part of our free truth or dare deck:
Mild questions for the table
From the mild truths in the free truth or dare deck, written for ages 12 and up.
- What is the silliest thing you were afraid of as a kid?
- Who in this room would survive longest on a desert island?
- Which animal would be the rudest if it could talk?
- What is the most childish thing you still do?
- What is something you are really bad at?
- Have you ever waved back at someone who was waving at someone else?
- Have you ever walked into something while looking at your phone?
- Who here would win a talent show, and with what talent?
A rule that keeps it friendly: anyone can pass, and nobody asks why.
7. Guess the weight
Before the turkey is carved, everyone writes down how much they think it weighs, or how many rolls are in the basket. Closest guess picks the first slice. It takes two minutes and gets even the quietest uncle to commit to a number.
After pie
The slow hour. People are full, the dishwasher is running, and some want to sit while others want to move. Offer one team game for the couch and one duel for the side table.
8. Forbidden word
Teams of two or more. One player describes the word at the top of a card without saying it or any of the five words listed under it; their team has one minute to guess as many cards as possible. It is the best after-dinner game for teenagers and adults who like words. A few cards from our free deck:
Easy forbidden word cards
From the free deck. Say the top word without any of the five words under it.
- Pizza Do not say: cheese · slice · Italian · pepperoni · delivery
- Road trip Do not say: car · drive · travel · snacks · highway
- Emoji Do not say: smile · face · text · phone · icon
- School Do not say: class · teacher · student · learn · bus
- Beard Do not say: hair · face · chin · shave · man
- Halloween Do not say: costume · candy · October · pumpkin · trick-or-treat
Rules and scoring are on the forbidden word page, and every free card is on the forbidden word card list.
9. Draw and guess
One player draws a word, everyone else shouts guesses until the timer runs out. No letters, no numbers. It suits mixed ages because a 7-year-old’s drawing of “turkey” is just as guessable as an adult’s. Ideas: things to draw.
10. Four in a row tournament
Write names on a sheet, pair people up, winners play winners. A game takes 5 to 10 minutes, so a tournament of 8 players runs about half an hour with nobody waiting long. Tips for winning: start in the middle column, and never drop a disc right under a line your rival is about to finish. Read the four in a row strategy guide or play a round in your browser first.
11. Dots and boxes on a napkin
Draw a grid of dots, 4 by 4 is enough. Players take turns drawing one line between two dots; whoever closes a box writes their initial in it and goes again. Most boxes wins. The whole game fits on a paper napkin and takes 5 to 15 minutes. The dots and boxes guide explains the chain rule that decides most games.
12. Pass the pie
Hot potato with an empty pie tin. Play music, pass the tin around the circle, and whoever holds it when the music stops answers a question or does a mild dare. Good for 6 or more, and for getting people off the couch for ten minutes.
Outside and the next day
13. Halftime flag football
If the football game is on, use halftime. Tuck a cloth in everyone’s back pocket; pulling it counts as a tackle. Teams of three or more, 20 minutes, and the cold air wakes everyone up. Keep it touch-only if grandparents or small kids play.
14. Leftover pitch
The day after: each player builds the strangest sandwich they can from leftovers and has 30 seconds to sell it to the others, like a TV cooking show. Everyone tastes, everyone votes, nobody may vote for their own.
A running order for the day
| Time | What to play | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Arrivals | Paper turkey hunt, two truths and a lie | Kids are busy, adults can join at any point |
| An hour before dinner | Thanksgiving charades, imposter | Everyone is in one room and has energy |
| At the table | Gratitude alphabet, guess the weight | Quiet, seated, stops when the food arrives |
| After pie | Forbidden word on the couch, four in a row at the side table | One game for talkers, one for thinkers |
| Halftime | Flag football | Moves people outside for twenty minutes |
40 Thanksgiving charades ideas
Written for this guide. Easy ones work for kids from about 6; hard ones need a team that has played before. Act them out without a sound and without pointing at real objects in the room.
Easy (15)
- Eating turkey
- Mashing potatoes
- Carving the turkey
- Setting the table
- Taking a nap on the couch
- Watching a parade
- Throwing a football
- Raking leaves
- Pouring gravy
- Hugging a grandparent
- Washing dishes
- Wearing a pilgrim hat
- Blowing on hot soup
- A turkey running away
- Picking apples
Medium (15)
- Breaking the wishbone
- Getting stuck in traffic
- Waiting for the oven timer
- Unbuttoning your pants after dinner
- Dropping the pie
- Saying grace
- Building a fire
- Taking a family photo
- A balloon in the parade
- Sneaking a bite before dinner
- Stuffing the turkey
- Leftover sandwich at midnight
- Kids' table
- Opening the oven door
- Passing the cranberry sauce
Hard (10)
- Black Friday shopping
- The first harvest
- Cooking for twenty people
- A tablecloth trick gone wrong
- Arguing about the thermostat
- Gratitude
- Jet lag after a long flight
- A food coma
- The last slice of pie
- Writing a thank-you card
Tips for mixed ages
- Make teams of mixed ages, never kids against adults. A kid acting and a grandparent guessing is the best pairing in charades.
- Keep turns short. One minute per turn means nobody waits more than five minutes.
- Let anyone pass a card or a question without explaining.
- Stop while people still want one more round. That is the one you play next year.