In every family there are special Christmas traditions – in our family playing games was a fixed part of the repertoire of Christmas activities. And one game could never be missing: the Christmas Charades. This proved not only in the circle of family, but also at Christmas parties with friends and colleagues as a mood maker.
Pantomime can (and should ;-)) of course be played at any time of the year, because it is definitely one of those games whose ability to excite enthusiasm is almost inexhaustible. By the way, on Greatime you can also find a description of Pantomime with 7 game variants.
However, the popular guessing game, which is also known as charades, is also particularly suitable for Christmas parties, whether in the closest circle of the family or even in a larger group. Here are a few good reasons why:
- Christmas Charades is independent of the size of the group and is fun for two as well as for fifteen.
- It’s easy to organise and saves you both time and money in the hectic (pre-)Christmas season.
- The game is completely freely adaptable and expandable. You can get creative and let your Christmas imagination run wild.
- You can also have Christmas Charades with flexible timing, you can play it for as long as it’s fun, or as it fits into a schedule.
- Not least, Christmas Charades is suitable for almost all ages!
I played Christmas Charades as a child with my parents and grandparents, later as a teenager with my mates and as an adult at various Christmas parties, including one time with colleagues where I suggested the game. It went down great!
But now to the point… 🙂
Christmas Charades – How to Play…
The basic rules of Christmas Charades are almost the same as generalcharades:
- In turn, one person represents a Christmas term only with gestures and facial expressions. Depending on the game variant, one, several or all other players must then guess the term.
- Talking is thereby expressly prohibited!
- Also, it is not allowed to make sounds that might give a clue (for example, whistling a tune, animal sounds, etc.).
- You may also not use any objects to represent and also not point to any. However, it is allowed to point to yourself or your own body parts.
- The mime or mimes may also not draw or show any letters with their fingers.
- But the guessers are allowed to give tips and ask questions at any time, which the mime is allowed to answer, i.e. by nodding, shaking his head, deliberately turning his hand at an answer that goes in the right direction, etc.
- There is a predetermined time limit in which the term must be guessed.
So much for the basics; in addition to these, there are other rules that you can design more freely and adapt to the requirements of the group.
Game Variants: In Teams or Everyone Against Everyone
This includes, for example, whether you play in teams or simply everyone collects points for themselves. The latter variant makes sense especially if the number of players is very small or if it is not possible to divide into teams of equal size. In the “everyone against everyone” variant, it is helpful to have a stock of terms in the form of cards from the outset, which are then simply drawn in turn.
If you play in two teams, it is also a popular way of playing that one team thinks up the terms for the other team. In each team, there is a rotation of who has to represent a term and who is allowed to write one down for the other team. All the other players on both teams are then allowed to guess, so that both teams have a chance to win a point for eachcharades representation.
However, in the team variant, you can of course still fall back on a supply of terms in the form of a pile of cards. In this case, only the person who prepared it is not allowed to play. This is also suitable if you are playing with more than 2 teams, e.g. with a larger number of players.
To add variety to the Christmas Charades, you can also assign a sub-theme in each round, e.g. “Christmas objects”, “Christmas traditions”, “Christmas food”, “Christmas carols” or “Christmas films”….
101 Terms for Christmas Charades
No matter how you play, some inspiration for good Christmas terms can’t hurt, so below we’ve gathered a whopping 101 Christmas terms to enact and guess.
- Christmas tree
- Christmas tree decorating
- Fir branches
- Strump star
- Christmas tree ball
- Tinsel
- Chocolate curls
- Father Christmas
- Christmas hat
- Nicolas
- House of St. Nicholas
- Put boots on the door
- Knecht Ruprecht
- Christ Child
- Angel
- Christmas Eve
- Gift wrapping
- Unwrap gifts
- Baking cookies
- Open Advent Calendar
- Advent wreath
- Singing Christmas carols
- Bells
- Egg punch
- Mulled wine
- Festive dinner
- Crib
- Peel oranges
- Chocolate
- Snow
- Snowflake
- Build a snowman
- Snowball fight
- Skating
- Tobogganing / Sledding
- Skiing
- freeze
- Cap
- Scarf
- Wool blanket
- Knit socks
- Light the candle
- blow out candle
- Recite a poem
- Crack nuts
- Nutcracker (figure)
- Smoking man
- Christmas pyramid
- Fireplace
- Read
- Christmas Story / Gospel
- Maria and Joseph
- Search hostel
- Place baby Jesus in the manger
- Ox and Donkey
- Star of Bethlehem
- Holy Three Kings
- Incense
- Christmas service
- Carriage ride
- Craft a star
- Christmas wish
- Wish List
- Peace
- Santa Claus
- North Pole
- Rentenois
- Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer
- Christmas sleigh
- Christmas elf
- Christmas gnome
- Santa Claus
- Light chain
- Oh You Merry
- Silent Night, Holy Night
- Little children come
- Silently trickles the snow
- Oh Christmas tree
- Every year again
- Kissing Under the Mistletoe
- White Christmas
- Christ’s birth
- Christmas Miracle
- Wonder candle
- Christian Stollen
- Gingerbread
- Christmas roast
- Christmas Goose
- Turkey
- Three Kings Singing
- Three Wishes for Cinderella
- Home Alone
- Little Lord Fauntleroy
- It’s a Wonderful Life
- The Last Unicorn
- Shooting star
- Christmas card
- Star singers
- Midnight Mass
- Carvings from the Erzgebirge
- Advent
Have fun performing and / or guessing these and other terms in the Christmas Charades!
While you’re here, stick around for a bit to browse our idea treasure trove. You’ll also find lots of other Christmas ideas, including for Christmas games for kids, Christmas games for adults, good Christmas games for Christmas parties and much more.
And there are also leisure tips and activities to discover all year round on Greatime, for friends, couples and families. If you like our website and want to stay up to date, feel free to follow us on Instagram, Facebook or Pinterest.
*In this article we have placed some so-called affiliate links / referral links. This means that if you buy a product through them, we may get a small commission without it being even a cent more expensive for you. This way you can support us indirectly when buying online and give us the opportunity to produce even more high quality content. 🙂
![[Uber En="The*best*ideas*for*Christmas*experience*gifts" De="Die*besten*Ideen*für*Erlebnisgeschenke*zu*Weihnachten"]](https://greatime.de/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/erlebnisgeschenke-zu-weihnachten-schenken.jpg "Uber En Quot Christmas Gifts Quot De Quot Weihnachtsgeschenke Quot")
![[Uber En="50*food*gift*ideas*for*epicures,*gourmets*and*foodies" De="50*kulinarische*Geschenke*für*Genießer,*Gourmets*und*Feinschmecker"]](https://greatime.de/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/geschenke-fuer-geniesser.jpg "Uber En Quot Wine Tasting Quot De Quot Weinprobe Quot")
![[Uber En="The*best*Christmas*cookie*recipes*Rank*10*to*6" De="Die*besten*Rezepte*für*Weihnachtsplätzchen*Platz*10*bis*6"]](https://greatime.de/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/weihnachtsplaetzchen-teller.jpg "Uber En Quot Christmas Biscuits Quot De Quot Weihnachtspl Tzchen Quot")