- Games, Toys, and Hobbies
Free Word Puzzle Games
Word Puzzle Games
Word and word puzzle games for me have always been so much fun. Remembering way back, when in school and the teacher would say we were going to play a word game, it would make me so happy. I'd grab my pencils and make sure that they were sharpened and ready to go.
I'm not talking about word games that you play on the computer or board word games; I'm talking about word games that do not cost anything except a writing utensil, a piece of paper, or simply a verbal game.
Why and When to Play
- Children and adults can pass the time having tons of fun along the way.
- These games are fun to play while traveling long distances in a car, on a plane, train, or even on a boat.
- Fun to play on a rainy or stormy day.
- Play while you're somewhere waiting to pass away the time quickly.
- Play in a group, with another person or by yourself.
- Playing in school classrooms is always a nice break from the everyday routine.
Lining up Words
One of my favorite word puzzle games to play is what I call "Lining up Words". This game can be played alone or with another person. All you need for this is a piece of paper, a pencil, pen or a crayon.
To start you will need to decide how many letters each word will have. For instance in the puzzle I have to the right, I've chosen 3 letter words.
Next pick a word you want to start with such as RAT. Write it across the top of the page.
From the word RAT, you have to write a three letter word down. So from rat, I chose the word REB.
ERA was my next word, and then BET.
The main object is to have all six words (in this particular puzzle) going across and down that are actual words.
Picture Example of how to Play Lining up WordsClick thumbnail to view full-size
Can you guess the answer?
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Hangman is a fun game that has been played and enjoyed since the Victorian days. It has had several names but the basic way of playing is the same.
The object of Hangman is to guess the word before the man or woman is drawn and hanged.
One player picks a word and draws dashes on a piece of paper to signify letters. Some people play the game by drawing the gallows first, while others use the gallows sticks as part of the game giving their opponent more chances for guessing more letters. When the player who is guessing the word, guesses a correct letter it is placed in its spot on the dashes. When he or she is wrong, a body part or part of the gallows is drawn.
The television show "Wheel of Fortune" is based on the game of Hangman.
Variations of Hangman
Hangman doesn't have to be one word. Make it a challenge and use sayings, rock bands, song titles, and quotes.
If your child has to remember all the US states this would be a fun way to get him or her to remember not only all the states but how to spell them as well.
Should your child be struggling with a foreign language that they're trying to learn you could incorporate the game of Hangman into study time.
Benefits to Playing Word and Word Puzzle Games
- Builds your vocabulary
- Improves spelling skills
- Great for thinking skills
- Improves brain function
- Helps to better concentration
- Improves language skills
- Wonderful for social skills
- Helps to stave off dementia
Do you like to play word games?
Farmer Brown's Cat - Verbal Word Game
This is an alphabet game that I would play with my children on long car rides.
The object of this game is to get through the entire alphabet using each letter as you go as well as repeating all the words that were previously used by each game player.
It would go something like this:
First Player: Farmer Brown's cat is an awesome cat.
Second Player: Farmer Brown's cat is an awesome brown cat.
Third Player: Farmer Brown's cat is an awesome, brown, courageous cat.
Fourth Player; Farmer Brown's cat is an awesome, brown, courageous, domesticated cat.
So on and so forth until you've gone through the entire alphabet.
There are many variations and ways to play this game. You can stay on the letter A until no one can come up with another A word and then continue on down through the alphabet.
Do you like to do crossword puzzles? I recently found a site where you can download for free a template to design your very own crossword puzzle. I was thinking that this would be a lot of fun and could be geared to say family events. All the clues could be about family members such as: Town where Grandma Smith was born or church where mom and dad got married. You could photocopy the main crossword puzzle and have a crossword family night. The first person to get all the words properly filled in would get a prize or maybe not have to do dishes for a week. To download the free crossword blank puzzles follow this link.