Word round card game

WordARound™

Race to Unravel the Word!

Featured in Good Housekeeping
Recommended by American Mensa, 2013
Major Fun Award – Puzzles, 2013

Who knew that positioning a word in one continuous ring would make it so tricky to read? The challenge in WordARound is to quickly figure out where the word starts and be the first to shout it out before your friends do. It might sound simple, but you’ll find yourself baffled. This quick-action family game gets better with the more players that play. Go ahead play a round at your next party or family game night!

Type: Card Games Family Games Travel Games
Skill: Word and Language Skills
Age: 8 and Up
Players: 2 or More Players
Instructions: View PDF
Features:

• 100 WordARound Cards with 300 Words

MSRP: $13.99

• 

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Word Round by Ginger Fox Ltd. (2015) Player Count 2 Player Ages 12+ Categories Card Game Word Game Educational Family Ginger Fox Matchbox Games series Player Count: Two Player Only Games Rating: 0/10 from 0 users 10 stars 9 stars 8 stars 7 stars 6 stars 5 stars 4 stars 3 stars 2 stars 1 star Description Discussions Marketplace Description In each timed round, from the 8 letters on the face up cards, find the most words of 3 or more letters that no one else thinks of. Score the most points after each the agreed number of rounds. Game Discussions Add Comment You need to be logged in to comment. x Insert Bullet List Please enter at least one item. Item: Item: Item: Item: Item: x Insert Numeric List Please enter at least one item. Item: Item: Item: Item: Item: x Insert Link Please enter the link of the website Optionally you can add display text x Insert Email Please enter the email address Optionally add any display text x Insert Image Please enter the link of the image x Insert YouTube Video Please enter the link of the video Comments (0) No comments yet. Be the first! Marketplace No listings at the moment. Do you own this game? Click here to list it for sale. Similar Games Ratz Fatz Zahlen Kennst Du Österreich? Het eerste tellen Iwoká: La Tierra sin Mal McDonald’s McNugget Buddies Masquerade Ball Game Yamie Chess Police Pursuit Geopol 24 Game: Primer Factors/Multiples Tell the Time Snap

Best Sellers Board Games

If you’re a wordsmith, a word-wiz, or just enjoy a little wordplay, these word board games are right up your vocabulary alley. Word board games can be used as an educational tool, as a hilarious party game, or simply as a way to keep your wordy wits about you. If you’re not into word games, don’t fret, word unscrambling tools can give you an assist in any word game while improving your vocabulary.

So on-words and up-words, here are our top 20 best word board games!

Like Word Games? Why not also check out our list of Puzzle Games and Trivia Games that keep you mentally active, while still having fun?

🏆 Our Top Picks for Best Word Board Games

In a hurry? Take a quick peek before you go.

04/11/2023 05:30 pm GMT

When I Dream

Players: 4-10
Playing time: 20-40 min

Put on your sleep masks and try to decipher your dreams!

When we fall asleep and enter a dream world, the imagination and imagery can be truly magical. When I Dream turns players into dreamers. Be careful when entering the magical world of dreams because the Dream Spirits want to have fun!

When I Dream is an innovative game that puts a focus on creativity and player imagination. Put on your sleep mask and try to interpret the Dream Spirits messages. With fairies, naughty spirits, and even the Boogeyman, the game has an array of characters that make it challenging and that give the game depth. 

This is an excellent fast-paced party game that’ll have you storytelling before the Boogeyman wreaks havoc!

What we liked

When I Dream offers some new unique mechanics that give the word game genre something to think about. Combine that with the gorgeous artwork and you get a really pretty and fun game. 

What could be better

With the timer included, it can rapidly descend into chaos.

Werewords

Players: 4-10
Playing time: 10 min

Guess the magic word!

In Werewords, players must guess a secret word by asking ‘yes’ or ‘no’ questions. Be careful, time catches up to you! Like in most games, there’s always a villain looming and trying to interrupt play. In Werewords, one player is secretly a werewolf.

Not only is this player working against you, but they also know the Magic Word. Even if you don’t guess the word in time, you still have the chance of exposing the werewolf and winning the game!

What’s cool about this word game is that it comes with an iOS/Android app that’ll provide thousands of words in hundreds of categories giving the game-high replayability. 

What we liked

It’s like One Night Ultimate Werewolf but combined with a word game. It’s a weird combination that seems to work very well. 

What could be better

Like the original Werewolf, Werewords suffers from similar role management. There are only a handful of roles that are really fun to play, but most players end up as villagers.

Will you figure out the word or will the werewolf get you? Better get your top wordsmith on the case.

Trapwords

Players: 4-8
Playing time: 30-45 min

You know the secret word your teammates must guess. You’ll give clues to help but the other team has other plans in mind. They’ve set a list of ‘trapwords’. You can’t say them or you’ll end up trapped in dungeons with terrifying monsters. Easy enough? Oh, there’s also a time limit. 

Trap words is a fast-paced party game that seems like a simple task of giving clues but gets more challenging by not knowing which words can be said. 

If you’re looking for a word game with a fantasy theme, Trapwords takes you into the fantasy world of dungeons and monsters.

What we liked

Trapwords is a fun fantasy variation of Taboo. The rules are changed enough to make it more interesting to play than Taboo.

What could be better

The timer can be tricky, especially for younger players.

Decrypto

Players: 3-8
Playing time: 15-45 min

Decrypto has a fun vintage aesthetic, surely making it a favorite among the hipster community. But really, this word game blends decoding and player interaction through interesting mechanics.

In this game, teammates try to transmit secret codes without letting the opposing team intercept them. Using clever graphic anaglyph components, players slide cards into the screens to decode the words.

The communication limits make Decrypto a fun and challenging word game to play, plus you’ll feel like a code breaker sending secret messages.

What we liked

The option to guess the other team’s words and clues adds another level to a fun word game. 

What could be better

I’m not sure why, but I had trouble with Decrypto’s rules. It took me far longer than it should have to understand everything and teach it to my gaming group. It could have just been me, but it did give me trouble.

Letter Jam

Players: 2–6
Playing time: 45 min

Your friend gives the clue. Can you guess your secret letter? 

Letter Jam is a cooperative word game where players work together to compose meaningful words from letters around the table. But the twist is only the other players can see your letter cards, not you. 

Letter Jam combines team-based play and players’ deduction skills. Pull together as a team, find the clues, and reap the fruits of cooperation!

Jam out at the next game night and decipher the codes!

What we liked

Under its simple exterior, Letter Jam offers a cerebral word game that delivers more gameplay the longer you play. 

What could be better

It’s played best with more players and is all but obsolete at 2-players.

Bananagrams

Players: 1-8
Playing time: 15 mins

A fun game for everyone that’ll drive you bananas.

Gather your friends and family and race against each other to build crossword grids. Bananagrams is an educational and entertaining game with which you can teach kids how to spell words all while having fun at the same time. 

In Bananagrams, players have to build their words with letters as fast as they possibly can. A race to finish, speed, and a great vocabulary make the game super exciting. 

What we liked

The game is in a case that’s shaped like an actual banana, making it a great travel game. It can fit in any bag and it comes in a cute package. What’s not to like?

What could be better

If you have trouble with words then the real-time movements and actions can be tricky to deal with.

Blank Slate

Players: 3-8
Playing time: 20-35 min

The game where great minds think alike. 

Blank Slate is a game of predictions. “The game where great _ _ _ _ _ think alike!” Easy to learn and quick to play makes Blank Slate a fun game for all levels.

By picking a word cue card, you’ll write which word you think best completes a phrase. To take this a step further, you’ll have to try to match it to another player’s words. 

In this clever party game, prediction skills are key to matching words. If you get good enough you’ll soon be winning the _ _ _ _!

What we liked

Blank Slate is a simple and very fast-playing word game. It works very well as an icebreaker and introduction for people who just met. 

What could be better

Your enjoyment of Blank Slate is going to highly depend on who you are playing with.

Codenames

Players: 2-8
Playing time: 15 min

‘The top-secret word game. Win or lose, it’s fun to figure out the clues!’

There are good reasons why Codenames has become a staple on board gamers’ shelves. Codenames is a deceptively awesome game that’s easy to learn and perfect for parties. 

Codenames is a social word game in which two rival spymasters know 25 secret agents. Their teams only know agents by codenames. Make contact with all your agents first and win. Although this game can be challenging, the social component keeps everyone entertained as they race to finish first.

This is a fun game when you’re winning, but even better when you’re losing. 

What we liked

Codenames is quick, easy to learn, and a blast. There’s a reason it’s become a go-to game in so many households. 

What could be better

There’s a lot of hype surrounding Codenames. There are numerous games out there that do the same thing, Codenames just does it really well. If you’re looking for something innovative and unique, you’ll be disappointed.

More versions of Codenames

Poetry for Neanderthals

Players: 2-12
Playing time: 15 min

A word game where you must ‘speak good’ or get hit with a stick.

Poetry for Neandertals is a competitive word-guessing game. Players are only allowed to use single-syllable words to give clues to their team to guess the phrase.

For example, the word is broccoli, you’ll have to say something like, ‘green food, live long’. Use a big word, you’ll get hit on the head with a 2-foot-long inflatable club.

From the geniuses that brought us Exploding Kittens, Poetry for Neandertals is another fun addition to a game night. With only 15 minutes to play, this hilarious, challenging, cutthroat game tests the patience of logophiles the world over.

What we liked

If you’re a fan of The Oatmeal webcomic, you’re going to love the artwork and irreverent humor. It’s just as ridiculous and fun as it looks. 

What could be better

The humor is a bit low-brow. If you’re not comfortable speaking oddly and smacking friends over the head, then this is probably going to be a miss.

Just One

Players: 3-7
Playing time: 20 min

A cooperative party game where you’ll have to work together to discover the mystery words!

Just One starts with one player drawing a card and choosing a number from it. Each player gets one clue word and together you’ll try to solve the mystery word. Just One is a brilliant word game as it combines cooperative skills with deduction, memory, and creative thinking.

What we liked

I really like the mechanic that discards identical clues. This forces you to be strategic and creative with your clues. Easy-to-learn and easy to play make Just One a relaxed game for everyone.

What could be better

Just One is great, but it can feel as if turns take forever and that’s not good for a party game.

Punderdome

Players: 3- 99
Playing time: 30-90 min

A card game for the pun lovers among us. 

Punderdome will have you laughing out loud with its punny cards and creative style of play. 

Once a pun a time, the creators of Punderdome saw a space in the word game market for a pun game for family and friends. With pun jokes on the back of each card, you can entertain the crowds while waiting to come up with a pun. Some can take longer than others but you can play with no time limits. 

If you’re a pun lover, this is a punderful card game that you won’t regret purchasing.

What we liked

Unlike many of the other games on this list, Punderdome offers quite a lot of opportunities for creativity. It lets you create something instead of just showing off your knowledge of vocabulary. 

What could be better

It’s a game about puns. You’re going to be groaning and laughing, but if you’re not well-versed in puns and dad jokes, it may be a little dry.

Quiddler

Players: 1-8
Playing time: 30 min

Quiddler: Simply for the fun of words. 

Quiddler is a short word game that’s a great pick for word lovers as well as non-word-game players. With this card game, the goal is to arrange your cards in your hand to create one or more words.

If you deal more cards, you’ll have more opportunities to create words. At the end of the game, the highest score wins. 

Quiddler is a sort of Uno-style word game as some cards can double letters and add bonuses to your points. Sharpening your word skills and a bit of luck will have you winning Quiddler!

What we liked

Quiddler makes for a great travel game. It’s simple enough that anyone can play and it’s so easy to pull it out and play wherever you are. 

What could be better

Quiddler relies on luck of the draw to get letters. If you have an extensive vocabulary you can overcome bad draws, but it’s still luck-based.

Hot Words

Players: 4-16
Playing time: 20-30 min

Hot Words is a party game where you can’t say that. 

In Hot Words, you’ll describe words while your team tries to guess what the word is. In each of the 4 rounds, your team will pick a spicy jalapeño card that has a ‘Hot Word’ on it that you can’t say. 

As each round goes by, it’ll get hotter and harder but also more hilarious trying to avoid all the ‘Hot Words’ your team has accumulated.

What we liked

Hot Words provides a simple concept and puts it together in a nice little package. It’s a wordplay game that has a ton of replayability. 

With fun added elements like a ghost pepper round, a 90-second sand timer, a dinner bell, and little hot sauce bottles, Hot Words is a fun and exciting party game!

What could be better

If you’re looking for a smaller group game, Hot Words is best played as a party game with more players.

Can you handle the heat?

Dabble

Players: 2-4
Playing time: 30-60 min

The game where if you can spell, you can play!

Dabble is a fast word game that’s both educational and fun. To start the game you say ‘GO!’ and players race to spell 5 words using 20 tiles. The first person to spell their word wins!

What we liked

The added difficulty of making multiple words of varying sizes seems like a simple concept but definitely makes Dabble stand out. 

What could be better

Like a lot of word games, if you have someone who memorizes vocabulary words in their free time, they’ll absolutely destroy everyone. It’s best to play with people of the same skill and vocabulary level.

Word a Round

Players: 2
Playing time: 20 min

Race to unravel the word! 

Word a Round is a challenging word game where you’ll have to quickly figure out where the word starts and then read it aloud before your opponent. As you answer on the spot, the game becomes a little more difficult as you race to answer. Mistakes are made under pressure so players have to have their wits about them. 

Word a Round is an award-winning card game that’s a great educational tool in classrooms or at home. It helps develop critical thinking skills, making it a favorite among speech therapists. If you are looking for a fun game that’ll also help with learning, this is a great choice. 

What we liked

Word a Round can be learned in seconds and it’s one of the most unique word games on this list. 

What could be better

Since this requires you to guess at words around a circular card, it can be difficult for people with visual impairments.

Word on the Street

Players: 2-10
Playing time: 20 min

A hilarious tug of words.

Word on the Street is a card game in which players take turns flipping category cards, racing the clock to come up with the answer. With each correct answer, you move closer to the sidewalk… and to safety. 

With 432 different categories, there is huge variation and replayability. This game is particularly focused on being educational. It helps players improve their vocabulary, practice spelling, and develop social skills. 

What we liked

Word on the Street is a simple enough word game but combines wordplay with enough strategy to make it unique. 

What could be better

You’ll need to have quick recall of your vocabulary, so if you’re looking for a slow burn game then this is not what you’re looking for.

Wordplay: Family Edition

Players: 2

If your family loves word games, WordPlay is a fast-paced challenge in which everyone plays every round. 

A fun spinner determines the letters and the category for each round. For example, ‘Food and Drinks’ means you can only use words that begin with the letter ‘E’. The difference with this family edition is even if you think of things that don’t start with the correct letter, you still score some points.

This game is a friendly and inclusive way to help kids learn and be introduced to the wonderful world of word board games. 

What we liked

Wordplay is a simple word game that appeals to everyone. It’s simple enough that anyone can pick it up and have some fun right out of the box. 

What could be better

Wordplay’s universal appeal means that there’s no real innovation or new mechanics. It’s fun, but you’ve seen it before and will see it again in other word games.

Upwords

Players: 1-4
Playing time: 90 min

Upwords a game of quick stacking and word hacking. 

In this word-building game, the higher you stack, the higher your score. With each player starting out with 7 words that you can play up or down, the game almost feels like Scrabble.

But here, you can stack letters on top of others. When you stack letters higher on each other, you earn more points. This makes Upwords more intense and strategic. 

Upwords is very versatile and can be played solo to challenge yourself, with kids, or with your friends. Experience this high-stakes, high-stacking word game, and grow your vocabulary as you go!

What we liked

I honestly prefer Upwords over Scrabble. The tile stacking adds a whole new dimension to the classic wordplay formula. 

What could be better

It’s a minor issue, but I’m not a fan of the components on the deluxe board. They work fine, but the color scheme makes it difficult to see for me.

Wordical

Players: 2-8

The radical, dice-rolling, word-building race!

Wordical is another educational word game in which players roll a vowel die and combine consonants to make a word. It’s a fun way for kids to develop their spelling skills and build vocabulary. It’s easy to learn and moves quickly so there are no long pauses.

This is a wonderful game for the classroom or for students who are struggling with their phonics.

What we liked

The dice add an interesting twist to this word game. Randomness is usually added through other means, but it’s a refreshing take on the word game genre. 

What could be better

It’s a simple travel game, so the rules and gameplay are very simple. You won’t find in-depth strategy here, but that’s ok for a word game.

Wordsmithery

Players: 2- 99
Playing time: 20 min

The game for every wordsmith, young and old.

Wordsmithery is a fun, fast-paced game in which you can test your wordsmith skills. Draw a word, read it to your opponent, and see if they can guess the meaning from the three options.

With some difficult words like ‘egregious’ or ‘phalanx’, it could seem difficult for children but included are 50 easier cards for kids. The different levels of difficulty make this a family-friendly word board game. 

What we liked

The concept is extremely easy to understand and the word choices are genuinely fun to play with. 

What could be better

Eventually, you’re going to memorize all of the words available in the box. There are only so many times you can be surprised by a word before we simply learn it.

Wrap-Up

What are your favorite word games to play? We hope you enjoyed our top picks for the best word board games out there! Let us know in the comments if you’ve tried any of these or if we missed any that you think should be on the list. We’d love to hear from you!

Happy Wordsmithing!

Fun word games for kids are a great way to fight boredom while also helping kids improve vocabulary, spelling, and communication skills. Kids will retain more vocabulary, remember grammar rules, and learn spelling tricks if they have fun while learning and these word games are a great place to start.

What are the benefits of word games?

I have sorted the games into the following three categories below:

• Thinking word games that require no-prep, some are pen and paper games
• Word board games (Actually none of them use a board, ha ha ha)
• Sight word games, particularly good for the classroom

So, what are you waiting for, start playing! (Note: This post contains Amazon affiliate links. Purchases made through these links may earn commission.)

Word Games and Vocabulary Games

What I love about all the word game ideas in this section is that they are free word games!They are travel friendly, and even older kids will enjoy them. Play them on the go! Play them when you are stuck in traffic! Play them while you wait in line at the DMV! Improve your kids vocabulary whenever and wherever you want.

Words within A Word

Words within a word is probably my favorite on the list, and it’s great for teachers in the classroom. Write out a long word on a piece of paper or a white board, if you have one. Set a timer for 3-5 minutes and challenge kids to come up with as many smaller words as they can using only the letters in the designated word.

For example, if the word is «onomatopoeia»: poem, name, top, pot, ate, etc.

Unscramble

You will need a pen and paper for this word puzzle.  Write a list of 10 words, but instead of spelling them correctly, mix up the letters and challenge your child to unscramble them. To make it a little more fun, select all words from a single category. For example: kcae, kieooc, epi, ssertde, eci mreac becomes cake, cookie, pie, dessert, ice cream.

TIP: for younger kids choose only 3-5 letter words. I also have a frozen version of this game to play in the bathtub! For older kids, try taking 2 word phrases and scrambling them together as if they are one word.

The Minister’s Cat

You can play this game with 2 or more players and it’s great for learning new words! The first person starts off by describing the minister’s cat with an adjective that begins with the letter «A.» For example, «The minister’s cat is an angry cat.» The next player uses an adjective with the first letter «B,» and so on through the alphabet. «The minister’s cat is a bulbous cat.» «The minister’s cat is a cantankerous cat.»

VARIATION: The Minister’s Cat is also a memory game. Players must remember all the adjectives in order as they are added to the game. Using the above example, the second player would say, «The minister’s cat is an angry, bulbous cat.»  The third, «The minister’s cat is an angry, bulbous, cantankerous cat.»

MORE: Memory Games for Kids

Hink Pink

Hink Pinks are rhyming word puzzles. One person thinks of a two word rhyme and gives a two word description. The other player then must guess the «Hink Pink.» For example, if one person says, «angry boy», the other player responds, «mad lad.» Or, «wet canine» becomes «soggy doggy.»

Hink Pink examples: shy fly, funny bunny, slow crow, big wig.

TIP: If players are having trouble coming up with hink pinks, write down a bunch of hink pinks on individual slips of paper and place in a jar for players to draw out on their turn.

Human Thesaurus

Choose a simple word like «beautiful.» Think of as many synonyms as you can. If playing with others, you can set a timer and trade off with different words, or write words down and see who can come up with the most.

Storytelling Word by Word

Start a story with a single word. The next player says that word and builds the story with another word. The next player says the first two words, adds a third, and so on. Alternatively, you can build sentence by sentence. TIP: keep sentences short.

Hangman

This classic word game probably needs no introduction! One person thinks of a word and draws dashes along a paper to represent each letter in the word. Above the dashes he draws platform and stand. The other person guesses one letter at a time. If the letter is in the word, the first person fills in the blank(s). If not, the incorrect letter is written below and the first person draws one body part at a time.  If the person guesses the word before the body is completed (head, torso, 2 arms, 2 legs), he wins, if not — well, he loses.

Word Board Games

You can find some really wonderful word «board» games to play with kids, either for family game night or in the classroom. I put «board» in quotation marks because none of these games use an actual board!

Boggle

Boggle is such a classic game and the shaking sound when mixing up all the letter cubes brings back great memories of playing the game way back when I was a kid.

Find it: Boggle | Boggle Jr.

Word-A-Round

Word-a-round is a relatively new game but great for kids who already know how to spell fairly fluently. It’s also an excellent travel game. Each round card contains words spelled in a circle. Players race to decipher the words before anyone else!

Find it: Word-A-Round

Bananagrams

This classic game is very similar to Scrabble, but without the board. Plus, it comes in a cute banana-shaped pouch! When the kids were younger and had few spelling skills, we played as teams, with each adult paired with a child. Now there is a version for developing spellers.

Find it: Bananagrams classic | My First Bananagrams (ages 4 and up)

MORE: Best Tile Games for Family Game Night

Quiddler

Quiddler is a lesser known card game that we’ve had great fun playing. Read more about Quiddler in my game of the month feature.

Find it: Quiddler | Quiddler Jr.

Sight Word Games

If you are working specifically on sight words with your kids and students, try using these diy sight words games and sight word board games to make learning more fun.

DIY and Printable Sight Word Games

The Measured Mom has a ton of free printable sight word games. Start with this one right here!

Sight Words Dominoes from No Time for Flashcards

Sight Words Pancakes from Playdough to Plato.

Sight Words BINGO with Dolch Words from The Activity Mom

Zingo!

Zingo, Sight Words Edition. The original Zingo is an excellent classic game for pre-readers and early readers and this sight word edition is a must-have addition to the family of games. The Zingo games definitely take the pain out of memorizing sight words and give kids the confidence they need to improve their reading skills.

Other fun literacy ideas: 

• Indoor and outdoor literacy games
• ABC books for kids that parents will enjoy, too!
• Picture books about words that share a love of language