Chain word games
Chain word games are a type of word games, almost exclusively spoken, in which players must say words one after another, sequentially, with each word being related to the previous one in some way.
There are lots of word chain games out there, but we think this one offers the most fun and we’re about to show you why.
For example:
ORIGIN WORD = Dog
DESTINATION WORD = God
the sequence could be: DOG > Saint Bernard > Saint > GOD.
How to play ” Chain Words with ORIGIN and DESTINATION”.
Set up
Goal of the game
The goal is to use as few words as possible to go from each ORIGIN WORD to each DESTINATION WORD.
Players
2 to 8 players can play, divided into two teams.
How to form the teams
For two players, logically it is played 1 vs. 1. For three or more players, two balanced teams are created taking into account their age, experience and knowledge of the language.
What do you need to play
A clock or stopwatch to measure time and something to record points after each turn.
Number of tuns
Before starting to play, the number of turns for the game should be agreed upon. For practice, start with 6 turns per team. Once you’re familiar with the game, go for 10.
Choosing the origin and destination words
To select the ORIGIN and DESTINATION words for each turn, there are two options:
Option 1: Use a random word generation system or tool.
Option 2: Each team picks the words for the other team.
We recommend option 2 because it increases competitiveness, eliminates chance, and makes both teams feel involved in the game in each turn.
Allowed words
Before starting to play, it must be agreed upon which types of words are valid: nouns, verbs, proper nouns, adjectives, city names, etc.
Time limit
It is also necessary to agree on the maximum time that a team has to try to chain the words. We recommend 1 minute.
Who’s first?
The youngest player’s team goes first.
“Chain words with ORIGIN and DESTINATION” Rules: playing a game
Let’s get started!
This is a turn in the game.
Pick the words
The ORIGIN and DESTINATION words to be chained are selected, they are said aloud, and the timer is activated.
For example:
ORIGIN WORD = Swimming pool
DESTINATION WORD = Hell
Start connecting words!
Players must chain an ORIGIN WORD with a DESTINATION WORD with as few words as possible
The sequence could be: POOL > Water > Hose > Fireman > Fire > HELL.
Rules
Here are the rules everyone must follow:
RULE 1 – ALTERNATE PLAYERS
When playing 1 vs. 1, logically the only player on the team will say all the words. If there are two players, they must alternate their words If there are three or four players, anyone can say a word, but the same player cannot say two words in a row.
RULE 2 – CONCEPTUAL RELATIONSHIP
Logically, each word must be related to the previous one in some way: they can be part of a common set, be cause and effect, share something among them, etc. Rhymes or other phonetic games are not valid.
RULE 3 – DISPUTES
If a player says a word that the other team considers to have no relationship with the previous one, the timer stops, and the player who said the word must explain. If the word is accepted, the game continues, and the timer is restarted. If the word is not accepted, the team taking the turn will receive a penalty of 5 points.
RULE 4 – NO BACKTRACKING
When a player says a word the next word has to be related to it, you can’t skip or backtrack to a previous word.
End of the turn
The turn ends either when the minute of play ends without being able to link the word ORIGIN with the word DESTINATION, or when they have successfully linked them.
Update Scores
At the end of the turn, the scoreboard is updated as follows:
- If they managed to link the words, they add as many points as words used, excluding the words ORIGIN and DESTINATION.
- If they DID NOT manage to link the words ORIGIN and DESTINATION, or they said a word unrelated to the previous ones, they add 5 points.
Remember: here, the fewer points, the better!
Update Scores
Once the scoreboard is updated, it’s the other team’s turn.
Game over – And the winner is…
End of game
The game ends when the number of turns agreed upon before the start of the game has been completed.
And the winner is…
The team with the least points wins. What if there is a tie? One more turn will be played for each team, and so on until a tiebreaker is produced.
More word games
If you like word games we encourage you to visit our Word Games page.
