Charades generator: a random word in one tap
This free charades generator picks a random word for you to act out: 1,700+ charades words in 8 topics, from Act It Out and Animals to Movies and Superheroes. Choose a topic or mix them all, tap the button, and hide the screen from the guessers.
The Guessy app is this generator on your forehead: 27 topics and 3,900+ words, a built-in timer, tilt down for correct, tilt up to pass, and the score counted for you. Free on iPhone and Android, and it works offline.
What is a charades generator?
A charades generator is a random word picker for charades. It hands the actor a word that nobody else has chosen, so there are no slips of paper to write, no hat to pass around and no one stalling with "umm, let me think of one". The words on this page come from the free topics in the Guessy charades app, so every one of them has already been acted out at real parties.
It does not repeat itself, either. The generator remembers what it has shown and only starts over once a topic has run dry, which in the mixed deck means after more than 1,600 words.
How to use the charades word generator
- Pick a topic.Leave it on "All topics" for a mixed game, or lock it to Movies, Animals or Act It Out for a themed round.
- Give the screen to the actor only.One phone or laptop per team works best. The actor taps "New word" with the screen turned away from the guessers.
- Start a timer.60 seconds per turn is the classic. Use the clock app on another phone, or ask someone to count down the last ten seconds.
- Act it out.No talking, no mouthing, no pointing at objects that spell the answer. When the team gets it, tap for the next word and keep going until time runs out.
- Count the points.One point per correct word. Hand the device to the next team and repeat.
Random charades generator games to try
A random word is all most charades games need. Here are six ways to use this random charades generator, from the classic to a few twists that work well with a big group.
- Classic silent charades. The actor reads the word and performs it without a sound. Two teams, 60 seconds each, first to 20 points wins.
- Forehead mode, Heads Up style. The guesser holds the phone to their forehead with this page open, the rest of the group reads the word and gives clues. Someone else taps "New word" after each guess.
- Describing round. Talk all you want, but never say the word, a part of it or a rhyme. Great for Jobs and Video games.
- Drawing round. Sketch the word on paper with no letters or numbers. Animals and Act It Out are ideal.
- Reverse charades. The whole team acts and one person guesses. It is louder, faster and perfect for shy players. See our guide to reverse charades.
- Speed relay. Each player gets one word, then passes the device to the next teammate. The team that clears ten words fastest wins.
A funny charades generator: which topic to pick
For laughs, set the topic to Act It Out. It is the funniest deck by far because it is full of situations rather than objects: Changing a diaper, Being a mime trapped in a box, Getting stuck in an elevator, Closing an overfull suitcase, Defusing a bomb, Photobombing. Watching a grown adult act out "Giving an Oscar speech" with total commitment is the reason charades has survived for two hundred years.
Want it even sillier? Add one rule per round: act in slow motion, act with one hand behind your back, or have the actor’s neighbor provide the sound effects. More ideas are in our list of funny charades ideas.
Charades movie generator: Movies and Horror Movies
Switch the topic to Movies or Horror Movies and the page becomes a charades movie generator, with more than 300 titles, from The Godfather and Forrest Gump to Get Out, Scream and A Quiet Place. Movie titles are harder than single words, so use the classic signals: crank an old film camera to show it is a movie, hold up fingers for the number of words, then act out the easiest word first.
Give movie rounds 90 seconds instead of 60, and let the team ask yes-or-no questions with gestures. Our guide to movie charades has more signals and titles sorted by genre.
Which charades topic suits which group?
| Topic | Words | Best for | Difficulty |
|---|---|---|---|
| Act It Out | 574 | Any crowd, the funniest pick | Easy to medium |
| Animals | 185 | Kids, families, warm-up rounds | Easy |
| Jobs | 277 | Coworkers, classrooms | Medium |
| Superheroes | 88 | Comic and Marvel fans | Medium |
| Movies | 219 | Movie night, adults | Medium to hard |
| Horror Movies | 96 | Halloween, horror fans | Hard |
| Video games | 214 | Gamers, teens | Medium to hard |
| MMA Fighters | 84 | Fight fans | Hard |
Charades generator or charades app?
The browser generator is perfect when you just need a word. Once you play more than a couple of rounds, the app saves you the timer, the scorekeeping and the passing back and forth.
| This generator | Guessy app | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free, premium optional |
| Words | 1,700+ in 8 topics | 3,900+ in 27 topics |
| Timer | Use a separate clock | Built in, 45 s (up to 120 with premium) |
| Scoring | On paper | Automatic, with names and a scoreboard |
| Your own words | No | Yes, with premium |
| Internet | Needed to load the page | Works offline |
Liked the generator? The app adds a timer, tilt-to-score and 27 topics. Free on iPhone and Android.
Download freeCharades word list by topic
- Acting like a monkey
- Building a sandcastle
- DJing
- Driving a car
- Getting dressed
- Ironing a shirt
- Nodding off
- Playing table football
- Reading a map
- Shooting a bow and arrow
- Sweating
- Unclogging a toilet
- Aardvark
- Brown bear
- Chinchilla
- Dragonfly
- Giant panda
- Hyena
- Lynx
- Opossum
- Pony
- Salmon
- Squid
- Turkey
- 1917
- Bad Boys
- Casino
- Dune
- Gladiator
- Iron Man
- Little Women
- Once Upon a Time in Hollywood
- Scarface
- The Avengers
- The Hobbit
- The Terminal
- 1408
- Barbarian
- Dawn of the Dead
- Friday the 13th
- I Know What You Did Last Summer
- M3GAN
- Pearl
- Shaun of the Dead
- The Black Phone
- The Grudge
- The Purge
- The Visit
- Ant-Man
- Black Panther
- Cyborg
- Drax
- Green Arrow
- Hellboy
- Joker
- Mr. Freeze
- Red Skull
- Shazam
- Supergirl
- Ultron
- AI engineer
- Biologist
- Civil engineer
- Dentist
- Excavator operator
- Guitarist
- Lawyer
- Nanny
- Plastic surgeon
- Referee
- Sommelier
- Tour guide
- Alex Pereira
- B.J. Penn
- Charles Oliveira
- Diego Lopes
- Henry Cejudo
- Jailton Almeida
- Junior dos Santos
- Kimbo Slice
- Merab Dvalishvili
- Nick Diaz
- Royce Gracie
- Tom Aspinall
- Advance Wars
- Black Myth: Wukong
- Counter-Strike 2
- EarthBound
- Gran Turismo 3: A-Spec
- Inside
- Metroid Prime
- Panzer Dragoon Saga
- Resident Evil 2
- Space Invaders
- Super Mario Kart
- The Walking Dead
Charades generator: frequently asked questions
Is this charades generator free?
Yes. The charades generator is free, needs no sign-up and has no limit on how many words you draw. It uses the words from the 8 free topics of the Guessy app.
How does the random charades generator pick words?
It picks a random word from the topic you selected, or from all 8 topics mixed. It remembers what it has already shown, so you will not see a repeat until the whole topic has been used.
How many words are in the charades word generator?
1,737 words in 8 topics: Act It Out (574), Jobs (277), Movies (219), Video games (214), Animals (185), Horror Movies (96), Superheroes (88) and MMA Fighters (84).
Can I use it as a charades movie generator?
Yes. Set the topic to Movies or Horror Movies and every word will be a film title. For more titles sorted by genre, see our movie charades list.
Can I add my own words?
Not on the web page. In the Guessy app, premium lets you create your own words and categories, such as inside jokes or names, and they get shuffled in like the built-in ones.
Does it work for Heads Up style forehead games?
Yes. Open the page on a phone, hold it to the guesser’s forehead with the screen facing the group, and have someone tap "New word" after every guess. The Guessy app does this for you with tilt controls and a timer.
The next round is yours.
Free on iPhone and Android. All you need is one phone and at least two people.