Custom Word Lists for Drawing Games: 12 Themes
A themed word list turns an ordinary drawing game into a party: a Christmas game for the holidays, a movie night list, a sports list for the big match. Here are twelve ready-made themes, each separated by commas so you can paste them straight into the custom words box of a private room.
In You Draw, press Create room, open custom words and paste a list. Custom words mix with the built-in ones, or, with 10 or more of your own, you can turn on Use only my words to play only your theme. You can add up to 200 words, so feel free to combine two or three lists.
1. Movies and TV
Draw the scene everyone remembers, not the poster.
alien, cowboy, detective, dinosaur, dragon, ghost, haunted house, jungle, king, knight, lightsaber, magic wand, mermaid, monster, ninja, pirate ship, popcorn, robot, shark, space ship, spy, superhero, time machine, treasure map, vampire, werewolf, wizard, zombie
2. Food and cooking
avocado, bacon, barbecue, birthday cake, burrito, chef, chocolate, croissant, cupcake, donut, frying pan, hamburger, hot dog, ice cream, lasagna, lemonade, milkshake, noodles, omelette, pancakes, pizza, popcorn, salad, sandwich, smoothie, spaghetti, sushi, taco, toast, waffle
3. Animals
bat, beaver, camel, chameleon, cheetah, crocodile, dolphin, eagle, elephant, flamingo, giraffe, gorilla, hedgehog, hippo, jellyfish, kangaroo, koala, lobster, octopus, ostrich, owl, panda, peacock, penguin, polar bear, rhino, seahorse, sloth, squirrel, tortoise
4. Sports and games
archery, badminton, baseball, basketball, bowling, boxing, chess, cycling, darts, diving, fishing, football, golf, gymnastics, hockey, karate, marathon, medal, rugby, sailing, skateboard, skiing, snowboard, surfing, swimming, table tennis, tennis, trophy, volleyball, weightlifting
5. Christmas and winter
angel, bells, candle, candy cane, chimney, Christmas tree, cookies, elf, fireplace, gift, gingerbread man, hot chocolate, ice skating, mittens, mistletoe, ornament, reindeer, scarf, sledge, sleigh, snow angel, snowball, snowflake, snowman, socks, star, stocking, wreath
6. Halloween
bat, black cat, broom, candy, cauldron, cobweb, costume, coffin, full moon, ghost, gravestone, haunted house, jack-o'-lantern, monster, mummy, owl, potion, pumpkin, scarecrow, skeleton, skull, spider, trick or treat, vampire, werewolf, witch, zombie
7. Summer and holidays
beach ball, bucket and spade, campfire, camping, crab, deckchair, flip-flops, hammock, ice lolly, island, lighthouse, palm tree, passport, picnic, sandcastle, seagull, shell, snorkel, sunburn, sunglasses, sunscreen, surfboard, suitcase, swimming pool, tent, waves, watermelon
8. Jobs
artist, astronaut, baker, builder, chef, dentist, detective, doctor, farmer, firefighter, gardener, hairdresser, judge, lifeguard, magician, mechanic, musician, nurse, photographer, pilot, plumber, police officer, postman, scientist, singer, teacher, vet, waiter
9. At the office
A favourite for team-building calls. Add your company's products and in-jokes to make it yours.
calculator, calendar, chair, coffee, coffee machine, computer, deadline, desk, elevator, email, filing cabinet, handshake, headset, keyboard, laptop, lunch break, meeting, mouse, paperclip, pie chart, presentation, printer, promotion, stapler, sticky note, tie, video call, whiteboard
10. Around the world
Famous places and symbols. Draw the shape people know from photos.
Big Ben, camel, castle, Eiffel Tower, gondola, Great Wall, igloo, kangaroo, koala, lighthouse, map, palm tree, panda, passport, pyramid, Statue of Liberty, suitcase, sushi, taxi, temple, tulip, volcano, windmill
11. Music
accordion, band, choir, concert, conductor, dance, drum, DJ, flute, guitar, harp, headphones, karaoke, microphone, music note, orchestra, piano, radio, rock star, saxophone, singer, speaker, stage, trumpet, violin
12. Fantasy and fairy tales
castle, crystal ball, dragon, dwarf, enchanted forest, fairy, frog prince, genie, giant, glass slipper, gold coins, knight, magic carpet, magic mirror, mermaid, ogre, phoenix, potion, princess, queen, spell book, sword in the stone, tower, treasure chest, troll, unicorn, wizard
Tips for writing your own list
- Aim for 20 to 60 words. Fewer than 20 and words repeat; over 60 and many never come up in one game.
- Choose drawable words. Ask yourself: could I draw this in a minute without letters? Concrete things (objects, animals, places, actions) work best.
- Keep words short. One or two words are easier to guess and type than long phrases.
- Mix easy and hard. A list of only hard words frustrates new players.
- Add your group's own words. Friends' nicknames, the office dog, the place you went on holiday: these are the words people remember.
- Check for doubles. “Sofa” and “couch” in the same list causes arguments.
How custom words work in You Draw
Only the host sees the full list; other players just see how many custom words there are, so nobody gets a sneak peek. When you mix custom and built-in words, your words come up in about half of the word choices.
Want more? The 300 words to draw guide has big general lists sorted by difficulty, and words for kids has easy lists for families.