Components
- 220 Cards/1,320 Puns
- Scorepad
- Pencil
- 1-Minute Sand Timer
- Rules - No Punny Business!
Object of the Game
Teams have 1 minute to guess puns from the 6 clues on each card.
Teams score points by guessing the puns correctly or stealing puns that aren't answered by the other team.
The first team to 30 points wins.
Setup
Divide into two teams, choose "punny" team names, and write them on the scorepad.
Things to Know
All puns on a card start with the letter at the top of the card.
When reading the cards, the Pun-Giver says "BLANK" in place of the pun answer. For example: The pinata at the party was a huge BLANK. [HIT]
If the Pun-Giver inadvertently says the answer, a point is given to the opposing team.
Game Play (Teams)
The team with the shortest player goes first and chooses a player to be the first Pun-Giver. The first Pun-Giver selects a card, announces which letter the pun answers will start with, and begins reading the first pun. The other team starts the timer when the first word is read.
The Pun-Giver's teammates guess until somebody shouts the correct answer. There are no penalties for wrong guesses, so shout out everything that comes to mind!
The Pun-Giver continues to repeat the pun until it is guessed or passed. If a team is stumped, they may move on to the next pun by saying "pass".
If a team passes on a pun, the Pun-Giver quickly moves on to the next pun on the card. The team doesn't get another chance to answer puns that were passed.
When time is up, the Pun-Giver must read each unanswered pun (only the puns that were passed or read and not answered) one time to the opposing team, who may steal points by guessing the correct pun answers.
A pun answer doesn't have to be exact if it's deemed "close enough" by the group.
At the end of each round, total up the number of puns that were answered correctly or stolen and mark each team's score on the scorepad (see scoring).
The next round starts with the other team selecting a Pun-Giver.
The opposing team should pay attention to which puns were passed, watch the timer, and make a loud noise when time is up. You may also use a 1-minute timer on a smartphone to help keep time.
Scoring
Teams score one point for each pun they answer correctly or steal. The last pun on each card is the most difficult and is worth two points.
End of the Game
The first team to score 30 points wins the game!
Game Variations
Playing the Game (Individuals)
Choose how many rounds to play based on the size of the group. Ideally, each player will be the Pun-Giver the same number of rounds.
Select a player to be the first Pun-Giver. The Pun-Giver selects a card, announces which letter the answers will start with, and begins reading the first pun.
All other players immediately shout out answers, trying to be the first person to say the correct pun answer.
The first player to correctly answer the pun scores 1 point. If 2 players say the correct answer at the same time, the Pun-Giver may award points to both players.
The last pun on the card is the most difficult and is worth 2 points when answered correctly.
The Pun-Giver continues reading the puns on the card until all the puns have been read.
If the group is stumped on any of the puns, the pun is "passed" and no points are awarded.
After all the puns on the card have been read, the round is over. Tally each player's score on the scorepad. The player to the Pun-Giver's left becomes the next Pun-Giver.
The player with the most points at the end of the game wins!
No-pass Rule
Some of the puns require more thinking than others. Play as teams with a "no-pass" rule. The game plays the same except teams can't move on to the next pun until a pun has been answered correctly.
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