Fishbowl / Greatest Game in the World Rules: How to Play the Best Group Party Game
🎉 The Greatest Group Game for the Holidays (AKA Fishbowl!)
If you’re hosting Thanksgiving, Christmas, or a cozy night with friends and family, you need this game in your lineup. It’s called Fishbowl (some people lovingly call it “The Greatest Game in the World”), and once you play it, it becomes a yearly tradition. It’s hysterical, fast-paced, and perfect for big holiday groups who want something fun but not overly complicated. Read on for the rules or click here for a downloadable version!
🎄 What Is Fishbowl?
Fishbowl is a three-round guessing game that blends Catch Phrase, Charades, and One-Word Clues. Everyone puts nouns into a “fishbowl,” and the same words get used for all three rounds. By the end, everyone is laughing because clues build on each other round after round. It’s simple — but chaotic in the best way.
👯♀️ How Many People Do You Need?
This game really shines with 8 or more players. It’s perfect for families, great for friend groups, and fun for adults + older kids. It technically works with fewer, but the magic happens when the room is full.
📝 What You Need
• Slips of paper
• Pens
• A bowl
That’s it!
✂️ How to Prepare
Each player writes 3–5 nouns on separate slips of paper. These can be everyday objects, pop culture people, inside jokes, funny characters (Jake from State Farm shows up for us every year 😂), holiday nouns, or anything that will make your group laugh.
There is no need to fold the slips — leaving them flat makes them faster to grab and keeps the game moving. All the slips go straight into the bowl.
🪑 How to Set Up Teams
Have everyone sit in a circle. Then go around and count off alternating numbers: 1…2…1…2…1…2. See kindergarten-esque drawing below, haha!
• All 1s are on Team 1
• All 2s are on Team 2
This keeps teammates spaced evenly and makes it easy to say “Okay, 1s are up!” or “2s, get ready!”
⏱️ Pick a Timer
Choose one designated timer for the whole game. We use the stopwatch on the iPhone. At the end of each turn, reset the timer. The bowl always passes to the next person in the circle, which naturally alternates teams. It’s normal if a round circles all the way around — just keep going until the words run out.
Timing options:
• 30 seconds per person for fast, intense rounds (our family favorite)
• 60 seconds per person for calmer groups or guests who don’t know each other well
• The time per person stays the same for each round
🔥 Round 1: Catch Phrase
The goal is to get as many words correct as possible during your time slot. Start anywhere in the circle. After each turn, pass the bowl to the person next to you and continue to pass in the same direction for the rest of the game.
Describe the noun without saying the actual word. When your team gets it right, set the slip aside and immediately grab another one. No skipping unless your group chooses to allow it.
If the bowl empties during someone’s turn, pause and save the leftover time — that player will start Round 2 with those remaining seconds.
➡️ When Round 1 ends, total the score (count all slips set aside). Then put all slips back into the bowl for Round 2.
🎭 Round 2: Charades
Same words, but now you can only act them out.
No talking, no sounds, no mouthing — just pure charades chaos.
If the bowl empties during someone’s turn, pause and carry their leftover time into Round 3.
➡️ When Round 2 ends, total the score for Round 2. Then return all slips to the bowl for Round 3.
🗣️ Round 3: One Word
You may say ONE single word to get your team to guess the noun.
Important rules:
• Saying “um” counts as your one word
• Saying more than one word (even “oh my gosh”) forfeits your turn immediately
This round is fast and hilarious because everyone remembers clues from earlier rounds.
➡️ When Round 3 ends, the game is officially over. Do not reset the bowl — this is the finale.
🏆 How to Score
You score as teams only, not individually.
Each person keeps the slips they personally guessed correctly, but they all contribute to their team total.
At the end of Round 3:
• Combine all slips for Team 1
• Combine all slips for Team 2
Whichever team has the most total slips wins the game!
Extra Round Ideas
If you want to keep the fun going and add extra rounds, here are some ideas:
• Sound effects
• Statue (you strike and hold a pose as people guess)
• Ghost (like the charades round, but under a sheet)
• Pictionary
🍗 Holiday-Themed Word Ideas
Christmas nouns:
Wrapping paper
Stockings
Elf
Ornament
Frosty
Reindeer
Candy cane
Fireplace
Jingle bells
Nutcracker
Thanksgiving nouns:
Turkey
Parade
Pumpkin pie
Football
Cornbread
Stuffing
Family photo
Leftovers
Mashed potatoes
Kids table
🎉 Why It’s the Perfect Holiday Game
Low prep, high laughs, ideal for large groups, great for mixed ages, becomes a tradition instantly, and fun for families and friends. If you want a game your whole crew will actually play (and love), this is the one.
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