Party Games
How to play Taboo
Describe a secret word without using its forbidden clues. Correct guesses score for your team; skipped and penalized cards score for the opposition.
What you need
Hasbro Taboo A4626 cards, sand timer, squeaker and score pad; four or more players in two teams
Set up the game
- Choose the card color to use and keep it consistent. Make a face-down stack; arrange seats so an opponent can watch the describer’s card.
- Choose a describer and an opposing monitor. Leave the game-changer die aside for classic play.
Playing Taboo
- Start the timer. The describer gives verbal clues while teammates guess, moving to another card after a correct answer.
- Do not use any part of a printed word, disguised plurals, abbreviations, gestures, sound effects or sounds-like clues. The monitor squeaks for a violation. Singing clues is permitted by this sheet, but the forbidden-word restrictions still apply.
- At time, count one point for each correct card for the active team. Each skipped or squeaked card gives one point to the other team. Alternate teams and rotate describers.
- Finish after all players have had equal turns describing. Highest total wins; keep playing to resolve a tie.
A pass is a decision
You have three correct cards, one skipped card and one squeaked card at time. Your team earns three; the other team earns two. Passing a difficult card can save time, but it is not free.
Keep three visible piles
Give correct, skipped and penalized cards separate spaces. When the timer ends, the two teams can verify the score without trying to reconstruct which answers were accepted. Return cards to a used pile so the next describer does not immediately repeat them.
Beginner decisions
- Read the forbidden words before starting the description. Try a setting, purpose or contrast that avoids the most obvious association.
Common rule mix-ups
- Stopping the whole timed turn after one squeaked card instead of moving to another card.
Questions about this game
Does passing cost anything?
Yes. In A4626, each passed card gives the other team a point.
Sources and edition notes
Hasbro A4626 English 2013 rules, classic play. The included die introduces optional variations; newer editions may use different components.
Sources and stated format checked October 14, 2026. This records a document check, not a claim of hands-on testing.
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