116 Best Scattergories Lists & Categories

You found our collection of fun Scattergories lists for categories to play.

Scattergories is a game that challenges players to come up with answers that fit within  categories. All answers must begin with the letter chosen for the round, and players have a few minutes to respond.

Scattergories is an example of a vocabulary game and question game, as well as a team building board game.

This post includes:

• • how to play Scattergories
  • rules for Scattergories
  • Scattergories generator
  • Scattergories lists
  • Scattegories categories
  • tapple categories
  • Scattegories topics

Here we go!

How to play Scattergories

Here are basic instructions for the game Scattergories.

1. Give each player a list of categories.
2. Roll an alphabet die or use a generator to choose a letter for the round.
3. Set a timer for three minutes. (Note, if playing with twelve categories in a list, use three minutes. For five categories, do one minute.)
4. Have each player share their answers at the end of the round.
5. Players receive one point for each unique answer.
6. Participants who answered the same as other players must cross out that answer, and neither player receives points for that response.
7. The player with the most points at the end of the game or round is the winner.

You can play Scattergories on paper or on Zoom.

Rules for Scattergories

Here are basic rules of Scattergories

1. The first word of the answer must begin with the round’s letter.
2. Articles like “a” and “the” do not count.
3. The same answer cannot appear twice in one round. For instance, “Margarita” as both a girl’s name and a drink.
4. Only one answer per category per round.
5. Answers that appear on other players’ lists must be crossed out and do not earn any points.
6. Alliteration can earn players extra points. For instance, Mickey Mouse is two points, and Tic Tac Toe is three points.
7. For proper names, the answer can use the first name or last name. For example, Abraham Lincoln and Adams, John are both acceptable answers for presidents with “A.”
8. Players can challenge questionable answers.

These are the basic rules of the game, however feel free to tweak the rules or add your own conditions to make the game more interesting.

Scattergories generator

Traditionally, players roll an alphabet die to choose a letter for each round. We created a handy Scattergories letter generator to make it easy to play the game online.

Scattergories lists

Here are lists of Scattergories categories to use in each round. These topics are a mix of classic categories and brand new prompts.

1. A girl’s name
2. A boy’s name
3. Capital cities
4. Countries
5. Animals
6. Musical Instruments
7. Flowers
8. Gemstones
9. Cartoon Characters
10. Four letter words
11. Brands
12. Things on a beach
13. Websites
14. Cars
15. Things that are sticky
16. Things that you shout
17. Excuses for being late
18. Pet peeves
19. Ice cream flavors
20. Fried foods
21. Bodies of water
22. Halloween costumes
23. Places to go on a date
24. Nicknames
25. Job titles
26. College majors
27. Languages
28. Historical figures
29. Celebrities
30. Holidays
31. Items in a gift shop
32. Things on a map
33. Relatives
34. Things in an office
35. Software
36. Fears
37. Apps
38. Electronic devices
39. Movie titles
40. Book titles
41. Pets
42. Musical instruments
43. Types of music
44. Aquatic animals
45. Animals in a zoo
46. Things you get in the mail
47. Song title
48. Vacation destination
49. Famous animals
50. Drinks
51. Hobbies
52. Things in space
53. Types of candy
54. Ways to get from here to there
55. Furniture
56. Plants
57. Things in a museum
58. Sports teams
59. Extreme sports
60. Colors
61. Tools
62. Dangerous activities
63. Things you might go viral for
64. Item within eyesight
65. Things that are blue
66. Body parts
67. Expensive items
68. Snack foods
69. Healthy foods
70. Animals in a zoo
71. Something people hate doing
72. Something that surprises you
73. A common lie
74. Something to strive for
75. Awards/ceremonies
76. Fireable offenses
77. Random acts of kindness
78. Four letter word (in a foreign language)
79. TV shows
80. Crimes
81. Office supplies
82. Things on your work desk
83. Things associated with Xmas
84. Game shows
85. Board games
86. Video games
87. Superheroes
88. Pizza toppings
89. World cuisine
90. Things that make you laugh
91. Something you keep secret
92. Things you say at work
93. Mythical creatures
94. “Adulting” activities
95. Topics you like to talk about
96. Breakfast foods
97. Annoying movie tropes
98. Things you see on a road trip
99. Things you see in the news
100. Things you find in nature
101. Things in the sky
102. Things on people’s bucket lists
103. Things in an airport
104. Villains
105. Four syllable words
106. Words with two meanings
107. Good qualities for a friend
108. Guilty pleasures
109. Clothing
110. Words associated with self-care
111. Art projects
112. Weather
113. Things associated with summer
114. Musicals
115. Things you look forward to
116. Presidents

Final Thoughts

Scattergories is a quick and simple game that works great for team bonding. You can play in person or on Zoom, and the challenge makes a fun team building exercise or way to start a meeting. Feel free to add your own categories onto this list, too.

Next, check out more online team building games and online board games to play with friends.