Pictionary whiteboard game: free word generator

How to play a Pictionary whiteboard game at the office

Ten minutes of setup at most. A flip chart works as well as a whiteboard, and you get to keep the drawings.

1. 1Set up the board. Use a whiteboard or a flip chart everyone can see, two markers that still work and this page open on one phone. No board? Tape printer paper to a wall.
2. 2Make two to four teams. Three to six people a team. Teams take turns, and one person draws per turn.
3. 3Draw a word in secret. The drawer picks a difficulty, taps New word and shows nobody. If the word is unfamiliar, tap again.
4. 4Start the 60-second timer. The drawer sketches in silence while only their own team shouts guesses.
5. 5Score the round. The first correct guess before the beep earns the points. If time runs out, the next team gets one guess to steal.
6. 6Pass the marker. The next team draws. Everyone draws once before anyone draws twice. Play to 15 points, or stop after 20 minutes.

Team rules and scoring

Read these out before the first turn. They settle nearly every argument in advance.

• No letters and no numbers anywhere on the board.
• The drawer does not talk, hum or make sound effects.
• No acting and no pointing at real objects in the room. That is charades.
• Arrows, circles, plus signs and equals signs are fine.
• Dashes to show the number of words are fine too.
• The drawer may nod, or point at part of the drawing, when a guess is close.
• A clear form of the word counts: lighthouses is a correct guess for lighthouse.

Scoring that matches the difficulty chips

Easy word guessed in time

1 point

Medium word guessed in time

2 points

Hard word guessed in time

3 points

Steal after the timer runs out

1 point

All-play round, both teams draw the same word

2 points to the first team to guess

Run an all-play round every fourth turn: one drawer from each team draws the same word at the same time, on two halves of the board.

How to play virtual Pictionary on Zoom or Teams

Online Pictionary needs a canvas everyone can see and a way to pass the word in secret. Most video calls already have both.

1. 1Open a shared whiteboard. Zoom and Microsoft Teams both have a built-in whiteboard that everyone on the call can see. Open it from the meeting toolbar or the share options before the first turn, and check that the drawer can draw on it.
2. 2Or share any drawing app. On other platforms, the drawer shares their screen with a drawing app or a blank slide and sketches there. A tablet or touchscreen makes it much easier.
3. 3Keep a low-tech backup. Draw on paper with a thick marker and hold it up to the camera, or point a laptop at a real whiteboard. It works on every platform.
4. 4Send the word privately. The host taps Copy on the word and pastes it to the drawer in a private chat message. Or each drawer opens this page on their own phone.
5. 5Guess in the chat. Out loud works for up to about ten people. For bigger groups, type guesses in the chat: the first correct message wins and nobody argues about who said it first.
6. 6Start with easy words. Drawing with a mouse is harder than it looks. Play the first round on Easy, then move up.

For more games that fit the same call, see our team meeting games, all 5 to 15 minutes long.

6 games like Pictionary

Same board, same markers, same word generator. Swap one in when the group has played the classic version before.

1. 1. Telephone drawing

   Everyone writes a phrase on a sheet and passes it on. The next person draws it, folds the phrase out of sight and passes it on. The next writes what they think the drawing shows, and so on around the table. Read the chains out at the end.

   Best for laughs, with 5 to 10 people.

2. 2. Blind drawing

   Pairs sit back to back. One describes a simple picture using only shapes and positions, never naming it, and the other draws what they hear. Compare the result with the original.

   Best for practicing clear instructions.

3. 3. Reverse drawing

   Flip the roles: one teammate turns away while everyone else on the team sees the word and draws it at the same time. The teammate turns around and guesses from all the sketches.

   Best for shy groups. Nobody draws alone.

4. 4. One-line drawing

   The marker may not leave the board. The drawer has 45 seconds and one continuous line. Use Easy words.

   Best as a quick tiebreaker.

5. 5. Relay drawing

   Two drawers share one word and swap the marker every ten seconds, mid-line if they have to, while the rest of the team guesses.

   Best for big teams with one board.

6. 6. Wrong-hand round

   Everyone draws with the hand they do not write with. It evens out the artists and the non-artists in one move.

   Best when one team keeps winning.

Would your team rather act than draw? Use the charades word generator. For more ideas, browse 35 guessing games for adults.

Pictionary is a trademark of Mattel. KraftyLab is not affiliated with Mattel; this page is an independent word generator and guide for drawing games.