Charades is a fun, family-friendly game in which players act out words or phrases without speaking while the rest of the group tries to guess what’s being performed. It’s perfect for getting everyone involved in the spooky Halloween festivities!
In this article, I’ve put together around 60+ words for kid-friendly Halloween-themed charades. Plus, you’ll find free printables (cards) to make the game night even easier and more exciting. Let’s make your next Halloween party spooktacular with these fun, easy-to-use ideas!
Here’s what you will find in this article:
- How to Play Charades
- Halloween Charades Supplies You’d Need
- Halloween-themed Words for Charades
- Halloween Charades Free Printable
- Book-themed Halloween Words for Charades
- Movie-themed Halloween Words for Charades
- Song-themed Halloween Words for Charades
How to Play Charades
Here are the steps on how to play:
- First, split into teams. You can divide players into two teams or play individually depending on the group size.
- Prepare the words or phrases. You can write down Halloween-themed words or phrases on paper slips, or use a pre-made list like the one in this article. Use words like spooky characters (like “witch”) to actions (like “carving a pumpkin”).
- Set a time limit. Each player gets a set amount of time (e.g., 60 seconds) to act out their word or phrase.
- The player acting out the word can’t speak or make any noise. They must rely on gestures, body movements, and facial expressions to get their team to guess.
- Act it out. The player pulls a word or phrase from the pile and silently acts it out for their team.
- The team tries to guess the word or phrase based on the actor’s movements. If they guess correctly within the time limit, they earn a point.
- Keep track of how many words or phrases each team guesses correctly. The team with the most points at the end of the game wins!
- If you want to make the game more challenging, impose specific categories or require players to only use certain types of movements.
Halloween Charades Supplies You’d Need
To play Halloween-themed charades, you’ll need just a few simple supplies to get started:
- Words or Phrases List: Write down a list of Halloween-themed words or phrases on slips of paper. These can include costume ideas, spooky characters, or Halloween traditions. Alternatively, print out a list ahead of time.
- Timer: Use a phone, stopwatch, or hourglass to keep track of time. Players typically have around 60 seconds to act out each word or phrase.
- Paper and Pen
- A Bowl or Hat: Place all the written words or phrases in a bowl or hat for players to randomly draw from.
- Scoreboard (Optional): To make the game competitive, you can keep track of points on a chalkboard, whiteboard, or even just a piece of paper.
- Costumes (Optional): Depending on when and who is playing the game, the team can wear costumes or accessories that match the spooky theme!
Halloween-themed Words for Charades
Here are Halloween-themed words perfect for your charades game:
- Witch
- Ghost
- Vampire
- Skeleton
- Werewolf
- Zombie
- Mummy
- Frankenstein
- Pumpkin
- Black Cat
- Cauldron
- Haunted House
- Bat
- Spider
- Scarecrow
- Jack-o’-Lantern
- Trick-or-Treat
- Candy Corn
- Devil
- Grim Reaper
- Goblin
- Tombstone
- Full Moon
- Potion
- Broomstick
- Watching a scary movie
- Carving a pumpkin
- Dressing up as a witch
- Flying on a broomstick
- Knocking on doors for candy
- Making a potion in a cauldron
- Walking through a haunted house
- Seeing a ghost
- Jumping into a pile of leaves
- Bobbing for apples
- Chasing after a black cat
- Turning into a werewolf
- Lighting a jack-o’-lantern
- Spooky dance party
- Decorating the house with spider webs
Related:
Halloween Would You Rather Questions + Free Printables
Would You Rather Games for Kids
Here’s your printable Halloween charades, as promised.
Book-themed Halloween Words for Charades
For a book-inspired Halloween charades game, here are some spooky titles and characters:
- Harry Potter (Character or books)
- The Wicked Witch of the West (from The Wizard of Oz)
- Coraline (from Coraline)
- Dracula (from Dracula by Bram Stoker)
- The Headless Horseman (from The Legend of Sleepy Hollow)
- Frankenstein’s Monster (from Frankenstein by Mary Shelley)
- Count Olaf (from A Series of Unfortunate Events)
- The BFG (from The BFG by Roald Dahl)
- The White Witch (from The Chronicles of Narnia)
- The Graveyard Book (by Neil Gaiman)
- Nancy Drew (from The Hidden Staircase)
- Goosebumps (Books by R.L. Stine)
- The Phantom of the Opera (from The Phantom of the Opera)
- Hogwarts Castle (from Harry Potter)
- The Three Witches (from Macbeth)
- The Monster Book of Monsters (from Harry Potter)
- Bellatrix Lestrange (from Harry Potter)
- The Mad Hatter (from Alice in Wonderland)
- Jekyll and Hyde (from Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde)
- The Invisible Man (from The Invisible Man)
These ideas will add a literary twist to your Halloween charades game!
Halloween Charades: Movie Ideas
Here are some good movie titles you can use if you want to include Movie-themed (kid-friendly) Halloween Charades:
- Hocus Pocus
- The Nightmare Before Christmas
- Casper
- Hotel Transylvania
- Coraline
- Ghostbusters
- Beetlejuice
- Monster House
- Frankenweenie
- The Addams Family (My kid’s personal favorite)
Halloween Charades: Song Ideas
For Song-themed Halloween Charades, here are some spooky and fun options:
- Thriller by Michael Jackson
- Ghostbusters Theme Song
- Monster Mash by Bobby “Boris” Pickett
- Somebody’s Watching Me by Rockwell
- Disturbia by Rihanna
- This is Halloween from The Nightmare Before Christmas
- Spooky, Scary Skeletons by Andrew Gold
- Highway to Hell by AC/DC
- Superstition by Stevie Wonder
- Time Warp from The Rocky Horror Picture Show
These ideas would add variety to your Halloween charades and can be a hit with kids of all ages! You can also use them during themed game nights or parties.