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RULES FOR 4+ ADULT PLAYERS
Place the cards in the card-
holder as shown, with the
blue side facing down.
Green and
orange side
of cards.
Figure 2
Figure 1
Contents: 270 TABOO Cards • Cardholder • Card Tray
• Buzzer • Game-changer Die • Sand Timer • Score Pad
Object: Score the most points by guessing the most words.
The fi rst time you play, remove the wrappings from the game
parts. Discard or recycle all waste materials. Then insert 2 AAA
size batteries into the buzzer (see Battery Information on back).
Setting Up Your Game
1. Place the cards together in one deck,
and stand them up in the tray with all
cards of the same color facing the
same way. See Figure 1.
2. Take a handful of the cards out of the
tray and place them in the cardholder
with the blue side facing down.
See Figure 2.
3. Place the timer, buzzer, die, and a
score sheet and pencil (not provided)
near the tray.
4. Divide into two teams (Team A and
Team B). It doesn’t matter if one team
has one more player than the other.
5. Slide the ON/OFF switch on
the underside of the buzzer to
the ON position.
Taking Turns
1. Team A chooses a player to be their fi rst Clue-giver. That player
sits facing the cardholder and tray with the die and buzzer nearby.
2. Team B’s players sit beside or behind Team A’s Clue-giver so
they can see the cards as the Clue-giver plays them. Team B
controls the buzzer.
3. The Clue-giver’s teammates are not allowed to see the cards.
They should sit opposite their Clue-giver, waiting to shout out
their answers.
4. After Team A’s Clue-giver has completed a turn, a member of
Team B is chosen to be the next Clue-giver for their team. Seats
are exchanged so that the new Clue-giver’s teammates cannot
see the cards and the opposing team can see the cards. The buzzer
is passed to Team A.
5. Teams take turns appointing Clue-givers and guessing words
until all players have had one turn as Clue-giver. Note: If one team
has fewer players than the other, one player from that team is the
Clue-giver twice.
6. When you’ve fi nished playing with the blue side of the cards,
set up the cardholder with another color of your choice.
Playing the Game
1. On your turn as the Clue-giver, roll the die to see if you’ll
need to do something different on this turn. See The Game-
changer Die. Note: If you prefer to play by the classic TABOO
rules, just skip to Step 2 and ignore any die rules in the
following sections.
2. Take the top card in the cardholder and fl ip it up onto
the easel (see Figure 3). The word at the top is the Guess
Word you’ll be trying to get your teammates to say. The fi ve
words below the Guess Word are the
TABOO words you can’t say when
giving clues.
3. Turn over the timer, then quickly
start giving clues to make your team-
mates say the Guess Word. The clues
may be sentences, phrases or single
words (see the example below). The
clues cannot break any of the Rules
for Clues, unless your die roll says so!
Rules for Clues
Follow the rules below for giving clues, unless your die roll
allows you to break any of them.
• You can’t use any form or part of any word on the card as
a clue. For example, if the Guess Word is “foot,” you can’t
say “feet”; if the Guess Word is “spaceship,” you can’t say
“space” or “ship.”
• You can’t make gestures. For example, you can’t point to
your nose as a clue for “beak.”
• You can’t make sound effects or noises, such as explosions
or engine noises; however, feel free to break into song!
• You can’t say the Guess Word “sounds like” or “rhymes
with” another word.
• You can’t use initials or abbreviations. For example, you
can’t say MD if “medical” or “doctor” is the Guess Word or a
TABOO word; you can’t say TV if “television” is the Guess
Word or a TABOO word.
As you give clues, your teammates shout out words trying to
say the Guess Word. There’s no penalty for wrong guesses.
Scoring Points
Each time a correct Guess Word is shouted out, your team
scores a point. Place the guessed card in the tray, then
quickly fl ip the next card onto the easel and start giving
clues for the next Guess Word!
The game of
unspeakable fun!
Clue-Giving Example
When giving clues
for the Guess Word
“Needle,” you could
say, “It’s long, thin
and pointy . . . it’s
not a pin but a . . .
you look for one in
a haystack . . . ”
NEEDLE
SEW
THREAD
EYE
SHARP
PINE
ALOE
SKIN
CREAM
BURN
PLANT
VERA
Guess word
TABOO words
Figure 3
Blue and
yellow side
of cards.
306580000 10 IF Taboo.indd 1 12/1/10 9:33 AM