The Fishbowl Gameis a fun-filled memory game that combinesCharades, Password, and Taboo. It is easy to learn and perfect for large groups, which means children and adults can play it together during family get-togethers, school classroom activities, andteam-building exercises.
To set up the game, players split into two teams, take three strips of paper each, write a random word on each of them (cheeseburger, Shakespeare, blanket, etc), and place them into the fishbowl. Once all the papers are in, teams take turns trying to guess the words.
There are four possible ways to play the game – each way changing how descriptive participants can be when trying to get their team to guess their word.
Today, we will learn how to play the Fishbowl Game, focusing on its rules, regulations, and instructions. We will also insert some tips throughout this guideline.
How Many People do You Need to Play the Fishbowl Game?
The Fishbowl Game is a party game for large groups. It works well for a wide bunch of friends spending an afternoon together, as anewlywed after-party game with a host of guests, abridal shower game, a crowd game for kids and teens at camp, and so on.
In other words, you can play the game with 6 people minimum, but the more the merrier! We think the sweet spot is ten to twenty participants.
How to Play the Fishbowl Game
You will need a few objects to play The Fishbowl Game, so start by gathering them in one place.
Gather the following materials:
- 3-4 Pens
- Paper
- Scissors
- A container to hold the paper (a fishbowl is ideal! Check the price here.)
- A timer
Cut the paper into small strips that are big enough for players to write a couple of words on. Each player will require three strips of paper.
Step 1: Populate the fishbowl
Start by separating everyone into two equal teams. Now that you have Team A and Team B, each player in each team will take three strips of paper and write a word or familiar phrase on each piece. Players will have to guess the words or phrases later on, so they shouldn’t be too obscure.
Each player then folds their pieces of paper in half and places them into the fishbowl. After all of the pieces of paper are in the fishbowl, someone has to shake the bowl to mix them up. For this reason, you might find the game also called “Salad Bowl.”
Choosing the words may be a little challenging – don’t forget you will have to say everything about those objects/concepts except their name. Also, at some point during the Fishbowl Game, you might end up acting the words out, so go beyond kid’s animal charadesand give your friends (or yourself) a good run for their money. In between words like adictator,propeller,psychedelic, ortourniquet, you can throw in some nicer, easier words, like: giggle,fishbowl, orspoon.
Step 2: Play the “Taboo” round
The taboo round is up first. The goal of this round is to guess as many words or phrases as possible within 1 minute.
The round progresses like this:
- The starting team selects a player to go first.
- That player will grab a piece of paper from the fishbowl and read it. The 1-minute timer will start as soon as they pick a piece of paper from the fishbowl.
- The player will then use words to get their teammates to guess the word or phrase that is on the paper. They cannot use any hand gestures — only words. They can’t say any of the words that are on the paper, as they are “taboo”. For example, if the word is “Cheeseburger”, they might say “You eat this at McDonald’s”
- If the player thinks the word or phrase is too hard, they can “pass” and put the paper back into the fishbowl. However, players can only do this once per round.
- If the team successfully guesses the word, they get to keep the piece of paper.
- The player grabs a new piece of paper and continues until their timer runs out.
- After 1 minute has elapsed, the other team gets their turn. They also have 1-minute to guess as many words as possible.
Each team continues to take 1-minute turns until all of the pieces of paper have been removed from the fishbowl. When the fishbowl is empty, each team counts the pieces of paper they have gathered. Each piece contributes 1 point to their score. After tallying each team’s score, put the pieces of paper back into the fishbowl and move onto the next round!
Step 3: Play the “Password” round
The next round in the Fishbowl Game is played in a similar fashion, with each team having 1 minute to guess as many words or phrases as possible. The team that went second last time will get to go first for this round.
The main difference is in the number of words a player is allowed to use to describe their word from the fishbowl. Unlike the taboo round where you can speak as much as you’d like, the password round limits you to only one descriptive word.
So, if the word is “Cheeseburger”, this time they may use only a single word like “McDonalds” to describe it. The team needs to remember the words that were mentioned in the first round and use the “password” as a hint.
The teams continue to alternate with 1-minute rounds each, then the pieces of paper are tallied and placed back into the fishbowl.
Step 4: Play the “Charades” round
The next round plays out in the same way, with each team taking their one-minute turns. The main difference here is that player with the paper cannot speak. They must use physical gestures to communicate the word on the paper. For “Cheeseburger”, they might pretend to be holding and eating a cheeseburger.
At the end of the round, the scores are tallied up once more. The team that has the most points from all three rounds is declared the winner!
Step 5: Bonus round
Why let the fun end there? If you want to take The Fishbowl Game to the next level, play the spooky version!
Get a bedsheet from the cupboard and drape it over the player who is reading the pieces of paper. The team will then have to guess the word while the player makes movements beneath the sheet! It is very challenging and a ton of fun.
The spooky vibe is an especially great option when you’re playing the Fishbowl Game around the campfire.
Fishbowl Game Question Ideas
To spice things up, you can use questions instead of phrases during the first guessing round. It’s a far more challenging endeavor than merely explaining a word.
Think of it the same way you’d think about Jeopardy, except in reverse. Here are some ideas to get you started:
- In what country are April Fool’s jokes climaxed with the saying “Doroughe sizdah”?
- The concept of promoting and measuring an entire locality’s happiness level is known as what?
- Which element, previously used in the production of felt, lead to the expression “mad as a hatter”?
- Donuts are traditionally sold in boxes containing how many pieces?
- Why did the production team decide to fine anyone who showed up late in the movie “The Shawshank Redemption”?
- Which Country won the 2015 Davis Cup?
- What U.S. state is known as the “Land of Enchantment”?
- Which labor standard were the striking workers out to achieve which eventually led to the Haymarket Affair?
- After his crucifixion, who takes down the body of Jesus Christ off the cross of Calvary?
- The Dingo is a free range dog found mainly in which country?
- Who trains Luke Skywalker to fight against the Galactic Empire?
- The vernal equinox signifies the advent of which season in the Northern Hemisphere?
- What substance is Han Solo frozen in during “the Empire Strikes Back”?
- The first male African-American tennis player to win the U.S Open and the Wimbledon tournaments was?
- What ingredient in bread causes it to rise?
- “Life is Beautiful” has been named one of the top-five favorite films of which prominent figure?
- In 2007, a major-motion picture based on which television show was released?
- Screenwriter Luc Besson and actor Jean Reno worked on another assassin movie before “Leon”. What is its name?
- What cartoon character is popular in Sweden during Christmas?
Play the Fishbowl Game: Bottom Line
The Fishbowl game is easy to set up and enjoy with a large number of people. The more participants you have, the more and better the words will be. This game taps into peoples’ imagination (and vocabulary), leading to some hilarious moments.
The fact that this game mixes two of the best and most popular party games of all times – Taboo and Charades – means that you can come up with plenty of Fishbowl Game ideas of your own. Play as many bonus rounds you can concoct, keep the score, invent new challenges, and have tons of fun.
You don’t have to wait for a rainy day to play this game inside the house, either. If you have a backyard, the world is your oyster! Or fishbowl!
We hope you enjoyed reading this guide onHow to Play the Fishbowl Game. For more fun games, subscribe to the blog or follow us on social media!
Featured Image viaFlickr
