The categories game goes by many names (Stop the Bus in much of the UK, Name Place Animal Thing in South Asia) but the rules barely change. Someone calls out a letter, everyone fills in a row of categories with words starting with it, and the first to finish shouts “Stop!”. All you need is paper and a pencil, and it quietly stretches everyone’s vocabulary.
Picking the letter is where games stall: someone recites the alphabet in their head, someone else says stop, and the same letters keep coming up. The wheel picks the letter for each round or the columns of your grid. Every result lists sample answers, handy for settling arguments when you check the scores.
How to use it
- Build the grid first: on the Categories variant, spin five to eight times and write one column per result.
- Switch to the Letters variant and spin at the start of each round; remove the letter that came up so it is not played twice.
- The first player to fill every box shouts “Stop!” and everyone puts their pencil down. You can also play against a two-minute timer.
- Read out the answers column by column and score them: an answer only you came up with is worth more than one you share.
All the options
- Letter B
- Examples: Bhutan, Boston, Ben, badger, broccoli, baker. An easy letter, so go for the rare answer (Bhutan rather than Brazil) to keep the points to yourself.
- Letter C
- Examples: Chile, Cardiff, Chloe, camel, cherry, carpenter. Soft and hard C (celery, cabbage) both count, so switch between the two sounds when you get stuck.
- Letter D
- Examples: Denmark, Dublin, Daniel, dolphin, date, dentist. Words starting with “dr” (dragonfly, drummer, driver) fill several boxes in seconds.
- Letter E
- Examples: Ecuador, Edinburgh, Emily, eagle, elderberry, electrician. For the food box, endive and edamame are two answers few players think of.
- Letter G
- Examples: Ghana, Glasgow, Grace, gorilla, grape, gardener. Silent letters still count: gnu goes under G even though it sounds like an N.
- Letter J
- Examples: Jordan, Jakarta, Jack, jaguar, journalist, jumper. The fruit box is the hard one here, and jackfruit is the safest answer.
- Letter K
- Examples: Kenya, Kyoto, Kate, koala, kiwi, kindergarten teacher. Silent-K words such as knife and knee rescue the object and body-part boxes.
- Letter M
- Examples: Mexico, Manchester, Mia, meerkat, mango, mechanic. A rich letter: try a one-minute timer to keep the round tense.
- Letter O
- Examples: Oman, Oslo, Oliver, octopus, onion, optician. Owl, otter and ostrich are three safe animal answers if nothing rarer comes to mind.
- Letter P
- Examples: Portugal, Perth, Poppy, pelican, parsnip, plumber. Duplicates are common with P, so dig for the rare answer (pangolin rather than panda).
- Letter Q
- Examples: Qatar, Quebec City, Quinn, quail, quince, quarry worker. Almost every Q word starts with “qu”; for the object box, think of a quilt.
- Letter R
- Examples: Romania, Rome, Ruby, rabbit, radish, receptionist. Words starting with “re” give a long list of jobs: reporter, referee, researcher.
- Letter S
- Examples: Sweden, Sydney, Sam, squirrel, spinach, surgeon. Too easy? Add a bonus rule: every answer must have at least six letters.
- Letter T
- Examples: Tunisia, Toronto, Tom, turtle, turnip, teacher. About a dozen countries start with T, from Togo to Tuvalu, so never leave that box empty.
- Letter U
- Examples: Uganda, Utrecht, Ursula, umbrellabird, umpire, umbrella. Seven countries start with U, including the United Kingdom, the United States and Uzbekistan.
- Letter W
- No sovereign country starts with W in English, so agree before the round whether Wales counts or the box stays empty. Elsewhere: Wellington, William, walrus, watermelon, waiter.
- Letter Z
- Examples: Zambia, Zurich, Zoe, zebra, zucchini, zookeeper. British players call that vegetable a courgette, so decide whether zucchini is allowed before you start.
Frequently asked questions
How do you score the categories game?
The most common rule: a valid answer nobody else wrote scores 2 points, a shared answer scores 1, and a blank or rejected box scores nothing. Some groups play 10 and 5 points instead; any system works as long as it is agreed before the first round.
Which letters should you leave out of the categories game?
Most groups take out X and Y, and many also drop K, Q, W and Z, which leave too many blank boxes. With children, start with common letters such as B, C, M, P and S, then bring in harder ones as they improve.
What are good categories for the game?
The classic set is country, city, first name, animal, fruit or vegetable and job. Add one or two harder columns (instrument, dish, colour) to separate strong players; five to eight columns fit comfortably in a two-minute round.
Can you play the categories game without paper?
Yes, out loud: spin a letter and a category, and the first person to give a valid answer wins the point. This version works well on car journeys or with children who cannot write yet.