Halloween charades.
60 Halloween words already loaded — monsters, costumes, trick or treat and spooky films. Nothing to print, no app. Two teams, 60 seconds, play free in your browser.
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Halloween charades — 60 words, ready to play
No printing, no cutting up slips, no sitting at the kitchen table on the 30th of October writing "werewolf" on forty pieces of paper. The deck above is already loaded: 60 Halloween words, a 60-second timer and team scoring, free in your browser.
How to run it at a party
Two teams. One player takes a word and acts it out in silence while their own team guesses; correct answers score and the actor takes another word until the timer runs out. Then the other team goes. Highest total after an agreed number of rounds wins.
The practical advice for a Halloween party specifically: do it early in the evening. This game needs people to stand up and be looked at, and the willingness to do that drops sharply as the night goes on. It also works better before the costumes come off, because half the deck is costumes.
The 60 words, grouped by theme
Pick a group to match the room rather than shuffling the whole deck. The monsters are the two-second warm-ups; the scenery and the films are where it gets funny. Tap the deck above to play them all, or read them here.
Monsters and ghouls (13)
Vampire, Werewolf, Zombie, Ghost, Witch, Skeleton, Mummy, Frankenstein, Dracula, Grim Reaper, Banshee, Poltergeist, Shapeshifter
Costumes and dressing up (8)
Evil clown, Mad scientist, Vampire cape, Plastic fangs, Face paint, Fake blood, Masquerade mask, Costume party
Trick or treat (10)
Trick or treat, Jack-o'-lantern, Carving a pumpkin, Candy corn, Bobbing for apples, Trick-or-treat bag, Doorbell, Pumpkin patch, Hayride, Bonfire
Spooky scenery (14)
Haunted house, Graveyard, Tombstone, Scarecrow, Black cat, Spider web, Full moon, Cauldron, Broomstick, Bats, Cobweb, Creaking door, Howling wolf, Haunted maze
Magic and fortune telling (5)
Magic potion, Casting a spell, Cursed, Crystal ball, Fortune teller
Films, songs and scares (10)
Scooby-Doo, Casper, Beetlejuice, Hocus Pocus, The Addams Family, Headless Horseman, Monster Mash, Thriller dance, Scary movie marathon, Jump scare
Which groups suit which room
- Children, age four and up — Monsters and Trick or treat. Both are mimeable without reading, and nothing in them will keep anyone awake.
- Mixed ages — add Spooky scenery. "Scarecrow" and "full moon" work for everyone; "poltergeist" does not.
- Adults only — the Films group. Hocus Pocus and Beetlejuice land instantly with the right generation and die completely with the wrong one, which is itself entertaining.
Three variants worth trying
Forehead version. Instead of miming, the guesser holds the phone to their forehead and the room shouts clues. Louder, faster, and better with a big group — the rules are here.
Reverse charades. The whole team mimes at once and one person guesses. Chaotic and the best version for a party, because nobody is standing alone being watched.
Costume round. House rule for Halloween: the actor may use whatever they are wearing as a prop, but may not point at anyone else's costume. This makes the game much easier and much funnier.
Frequently asked questions
What are good Halloween charades words?
The ones a room can mime in a few seconds and everybody recognises: vampire, zombie, witch, black cat, carving a pumpkin, trick or treat. Save the longer ones - Headless Horseman, bobbing for apples, the Thriller dance - for when the group has warmed up. All 60 words on this page are grouped by difficulty so you can pick for the room.
Is this suitable for children?
Yes. The deck is scary-themed rather than gory - monsters, costumes, pumpkins and films - with nothing graphic in it. For a young group use the Trick or treat and Monsters groups and skip the films, and let them mime rather than describe.
How do you play Halloween charades at a party?
Two teams, 60 seconds a turn, one player mimes in silence while their own team guesses. The phone deals the words and times the round so nobody has to write slips or watch a clock. With more than a dozen people make three or four teams rather than two big ones, so the wait between turns stays short.
Can I play it without printing anything?
Yes - that is what this page is. Open it on a phone, pick the Halloween deck and play. No app, no download, no sign-up, and nothing to cut up beforehand.
What else can I do with the same word list?
Three variants from the same deck: play it as the forehead game, where the guesser holds the phone to their head and the room shouts clues; play it as Who Am I? with yes/no questions only; or play reverse charades, where the whole team mimes and one person guesses. That last one is the best party version.
How long does a game take?
Allow about twenty minutes for six people at 60 seconds a turn, which gets through roughly half the deck. The deck holds enough for an hour if the group keeps going, and no word repeats in the same session.
More games for the party
Standard charades with 1,800+ words, Christmas charades for December, the forehead game, Who Am I?, party games for large groups, family game night and every word list on the site.