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Do you want to know how to play Pictionary? It’s definitely the perfect game for family gatherings, friendly get-togethers and parties! This time-honored classic is sure to bring plenty of laughs and fun into your next gathering. If you’re interested in learning more about this amazing game, then look no further – we have compiled an easy step by step guide on how to play Pictionary. Keep reading if you’d like to learn all the rules so that everyone can join in on the fun!
Things to Know
- Pictionary is played with 4 or more players split into 2 different teams. Each team is given a drawing pad, pencil, and their pawn. (Depending on your version of the game board, it may allow up to 4 teams.)
- One player on a team (called the Picturist) will pick a card and looks at the word matching the color of the space their pawn is at on the game board. That player will then attempt to draw their word.
- The Picturist will have one minute to draw the word without using any words, letters, or numbers. If their team guesses the word in the time limit they will roll the die and move their pawn closer to the finish line.
- You will win if your team reaches the finish line first and correctly guesses the last word.
Objective
On your teams turn your Picturist has one minute to sketch out the word shown on your card. If you are the one drawing, try to draw as fast as you can to help your team correctly guess the word. The rest of the team watches the drawing and attempts to guess the word correctly in the one minute time limit. It doesn’t matter if you are a good artist or not, it just makes the game more fun to play!
How to Play Pictionary – Setup
- Shuffle all the cards and place them into the card holder all facing the same direction.
- Divide your players into two equal teams.
- Each team then receives a drawing pad and a pencil.
- Each team places their pawn on the start space on the board.
- Clarify before beginning how precise your answers need to be. For example, if your word is “Dental Floss” is only the word “floss” acceptable if it is said or do they need to say the phrase exactly. This rule is one of the most important rules to decide BEFORE starting the game.
Gameplay
Each team will choose a member to roll the dice. Whoever rolls the highest number is the team that plays first.
The first team will choose a someone to draw first (called the Picturist). The Picturist will choose a card and secretly look at the word. The starting space is yellow, so you will be drawing the yellow word. As soon as the Picturist starts drawing the one minute timer will start. The team will be able to guess as many times as they want until they guess correctly or the timer runs out.
- If the team guesses correctly they get to roll the dice and move to a new space on the board. You then get to continue your turn. A new Picturist is chosen (everyone must take turns drawing). The new Picturist chooses a card and must use the word with the same color as the space their pawn is on. Play continues like this until the team doesn’t correctly guess the word in the one minute time limit.
- If the team does not guess correctly before the one minute timer has ended then their turn ends and the dice is passed to the next team.
The die is ONLY rolled if a word has been guessed correctly.
Landing on an “All Play” Space
There are several spaces on the board that are called “All Play” spaces. These are normally noted by having a symbol on the game board space. When a team lands on All Play everyone gets to play that turn. Both teams Picturist look at the word clue for that color. When the timer starts both Picturists begin drawing. Everyone else can start guessing and the first team to guess correctly gets control of the die and gets to move their pawn. It is now the winner teams turn.
If no team guesses the word during an All Play, then the die get passed to the next team as normal. But remember, you do not roll the die at the beginning of your turn, only when you guess a word correctly!
Wild Space
The spaces on the board that has circles of every color category are Wild Spaces. When a team lands on these spaces the Picturist may look at his drawn card and choose any of the categories he wants to draw.
Ending the Game
Once a team has landed on the finish space on the board (exact roll numbers is not needed) an All Play round starts. To win, a team must have control of the die and correctly be the first to guess the word.
- If no team guesses the word correctly the die get passed to the next team and play continues as normal for them.
- If another team guesses the word correctly then the die is passed to them and play continues as normal.
- If both teams are on the finish line and the team that guesses correctly was not the die holder, they do not win. You MUST have control of the die at the START of your turn AND guess the word correctly during the All Play round.
How to Play Pictionary – Rules
You cannot…
- Use “ears” for “sounds like”
- Use dashs to show how many letters are in the word
- Use letters or numbers
- Speak to your teammates
- use sign language
You can…
- Draw anything relating to the word you want. You may even draw rhyming words or homophones (for example, drawing a piece of mail for the word “male”).
- Break down words into syllables. For example, on the word “rainbow” you could draw a raindrop and then draw a bow.
Conclusion
So there you have it, everything you need to know about how to play the classic game of Pictionary. Now that you know the rules, all that’s left to do is gather some friends or family members and start drawing! And don’t forget, the most important rule of all: board game smiles are mandatory!
Make sure and check out my other posts!
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