Christmas Charades Words and Ideas
Stuck chimneys, sleigh bells and holiday movie titles, acted out without a single word.
- Time
- 10–30 min
- Players
- Three or more players
- Best for
- Holiday parties, gift swaps and snowed-in evenings
- Deck
- 150 words in 6 categories
How to use these Christmas charades words
- Pick a category from the menu under the card, or keep “All categories”.
- The actor looks at the top card alone, then acts it out with no words or sounds while the others guess.
- When someone guesses it, or time runs out, swipe the card away or tap “Next word” for the next one.
- Tap the heart to save a word on this device, or tap “Make a 10-word list” for a list to write on slips of paper.
When to play Christmas charades
Charades needs one phone and a little floor space, so it fits the parts of December when the room is full and nobody wants to sit still. One person acts, everyone else shouts guesses, and even the quietest guest gets a laugh.
After the holiday dinner
Push the chairs back while dessert settles and start with Easy: wrapping a gift and frosting a cookie get the table guessing within seconds.
The office holiday party
Two teams of coworkers race through Santa and the North Pole, one minute per actor, so a full round fits into a long lunch.
A snowed-in evening
When the roads close and the guests stay put, Winter fun and Tricky ones keep the living room busy long after the movie ends.
Ways to play Christmas charades
Teams on either side of the tree
Split the room into two teams. One actor at a time takes the phone and has one minute to act as many cards as their team can guess, swiping after each right answer. Keep a tally on a napkin and pass the phone to the other team when the minute is up.
A title round with hand signals
Pick Movies, songs and stories from the menu. Before acting, the actor shows what kind of title it is: cranking an old film camera for a movie, opening a book for a story, pretending to sing for a song. Then hold up fingers for the number of words and act them one at a time.
Act before you unwrap
At a gift swap, each person draws a card and acts it before choosing a present from the pile. Once the room guesses, the actor picks a gift and hands the phone to the next person in the circle.
Tips for a good Christmas charades round
- Start with Easy and Santa and the North Pole while guests are still arriving, and save Tricky ones for when the whole room is warmed up.
- In a long title, act the easiest word first, like a chugging train for The Polar Express, then fill in the small words once the guesses get close.
- Let guests who would rather guess than act stay in their seats. The phone can skip to the next volunteer, and the round keeps moving.
All 150 christmas charades by category
The complete list, grouped by category. The cards above draw from the same list, so you can read ahead here and play there.
Easy
Quick holiday warm-ups anyone can act, like hanging a stocking or frosting a cookie.
- Wrapping a gift
- Hanging a stocking
- Licking a candy cane
- Blowing on hot cocoa
- Putting the star on top of the tree
- Shaking a wrapped present
- Pulling a Christmas cracker
- Putting on a Santa hat
Show all 25 in EasyShow fewer
- Tying a bow on a box
- Hanging an ornament
- Cutting out a paper snowflake
- Rolling out cookie dough
- Frosting a cookie
- Ringing sleigh bells
- Writing a wish list
- Peeking at a hidden present
- Pulling on an ugly sweater
- Posing for a photo by the tree
- Watering the tree
- Taping a gift shut
- Stringing popcorn on a thread
- Mailing a stack of holiday cards
- Sweeping up pine needles
- Dancing to holiday music
- Carving the holiday roast
Winter fun
Cold-weather moments outdoors, from sledding down a steep hill to riding a ski lift.
- Catching snowflakes on your tongue
- Sledding down a steep hill
- Throwing a snowball
- Building a snow fort
- Brushing snow off the car
- Shivering at the bus stop
- Ice fishing
- Snowboarding
Show all 25 in Winter funShow fewer
- Putting chains on car tires
- Breaking an icicle off the roof
- Warming your hands by a fire
- Wrapping a long scarf around your neck
- Getting snow down the back of your coat
- Walking in snowshoes
- Playing hockey on a frozen pond
- Riding a snowmobile
- Walking into a blizzard
- Stomping snow off your boots
- Taking off five layers of winter clothes
- Tugging open a frozen car door
- Curling
- Driving a dog sled
- Riding a ski lift
- Bobsledding
- Glasses fogging up as you come inside
Gifts and holiday things
Presents, toys and kitchen helpers to show by shape or by use, like a rocking horse or a gravy boat.
- Rocking horse
- Jack-in-the-box
- Toy soldier
- Music box
- New bike with a big bow
- Pie on a cooling rack
- Fuzzy slippers
- Reindeer antler headband
Show all 25 in Gifts and holiday thingsShow fewer
- Elf shoes with curly toes
- Light-up reindeer in the yard
- Roll of wrapping paper
- Stand mixer
- Oven mitts
- Cookie jar
- Roast turkey on a platter
- Gravy boat
- Bag of marshmallows
- Tall red candle
- Paper crown
- Tree stand
- Thermos
- Extension cord
- Stepladder
- Gift bag stuffed with tissue paper
- Big tin of popcorn
Santa and the North Pole
Life in the workshop and on the sleigh, from elves painting candy canes to a rooftop landing.
- Santa squeezing down a chimney
- Santa reading a very long list
- Reindeer taking off from a rooftop
- Elf hammering a wooden toy
- Elves wrapping gifts on a conveyor belt
- Santa eating cookies by the fireplace
- Harnessing the reindeer to the sleigh
- Santa loading the sleigh
Show all 25 in Santa and the North PoleShow fewer
- Mrs. Claus baking a giant batch of cookies
- Santa laughing with his belly shaking
- Santa steering the sleigh through thick fog
- Santa tiptoeing through a dark living room
- Sleigh landing on a snowy roof
- Elf painting stripes on candy canes
- Elf test-driving a toy car
- Santa polishing his black boots
- Santa brushing soot off his suit
- Santa waving from a parade float
- Santa filling the stockings
- Elf on a tall ladder trimming a giant tree
- Santa tying his sack shut
- Elves sorting a mountain of letters
- Santa wiping crumbs out of his beard
- Santa checking the weather before takeoff
- Santa sleeping all day on December 26
Movies, songs and stories
Titles of December films, books and old carols, acted one word at a time or as one big scene.
- A Christmas Carol
- The Nutcracker
- Home Alone
- Elf
- The Polar Express
- Miracle on 34th Street
- A Christmas Story
- White Christmas
Show all 25 in Movies, songs and storiesShow fewer
- The Santa Clause
- Jingle All the Way
- Klaus
- Arthur Christmas
- Fred Claus
- Christmas with the Kranks
- Scrooged
- The Night Before Christmas
- The Year Without a Santa Claus
- The Christmas Chronicles
- Jingle Bells
- Deck the Halls
- O Christmas Tree
- We Wish You a Merry Christmas
- The Twelve Days of Christmas
- Up on the Housetop
- Over the River and Through the Wood
Tricky ones
Funny scenes with several steps, like hunting for the end of the tape or a cat climbing the tree.
- Fitting all the decorations back into one box
- Dragging a tree through a narrow doorway
- Tying a tree to the roof of the car
- Wrapping a gift with too little paper
- Dozing off after the big holiday meal
- Pretending to love a strange gift
- Hunting for the end of the tape
- A cat climbing the Christmas tree
Show all 25 in Tricky onesShow fewer
- Last-minute shopping in a packed store
- Carrying too many shopping bags
- Hiding a gift when someone walks in
- Walking the runway at an ugly sweater contest
- Snow sliding off a branch onto your head
- Hanging lights on the roof from a wobbly ladder
- A gingerbread house caving in
- Squeezing one more dish into the fridge
- Opening the curtains to a yard full of snow
- Eating one more cookie when you are already full
- Signing cards with a pen that keeps running dry
- Getting a whipped cream mustache from cocoa
- Dragging the dry tree out in January
- Getting the tree to stand up straight
- Opening a gift that needs batteries you don’t have
- Setting the camera timer and running into the photo
- Forgetting where you hid the presents
Frequently asked questions
How many Christmas charades words are there?
There are 150 words and phrases, 25 in each of six categories: easy, winter fun, gifts and holiday things, Santa and the North Pole, movies, songs and stories, and tricky ones. The cards and the list on this page use the same set.
What are good Christmas charades for adults?
Tricky ones is full of grown-up holiday moments: last-minute shopping in a packed store, pretending to love a strange gift, a cat climbing the tree. Every card is clean, so the same deck works at a work party and at a holiday dinner.
Can you play Christmas charades over a video call?
Yes. The actor keeps the phone out of the camera’s view, reads the card and acts in front of the laptop while everyone else guesses from home. Stand back far enough that your whole upper body is in the picture, so arm movements show up clearly.
What should we play after Christmas charades?
Try Christmas jokes for a round of groans and laughs, or Christmas trivia for questions with answers. For words to act out the rest of the year, charades ideas has animals, jobs, sports and sayings.