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I'm Thinking of a Word…

Posted by Rebecca Teti in Family on Tuesday, June 22, 2010 4:00 PM

I love road trips!

I know kids are not alike in their tolerance for being strapped down for long periods of time, but mine have always been great about it, even as infants and toddlers.

It’s uninterrupted family time.

You actually see the country.

You have wonderful conversations.

And, for the Teti family, there is “I’m Thinking of a Word.”

This is a game, which, so far as I know, was invented by my Great Aunts, the Ryskind sisters.

Whether they actually created it or we just always played it while visiting them, I don’t know, but I’ve never met anyone else who plays it or has heard of it, so I hereby plant the Ryskind flag.

If you like wordplay, I think you’ll enjoy it.

Any number can play, and the only qualification is you must understand the concept of rhyme.

One player thinks of a secret word and begins play by saying, “I’m thinking of a word that rhymes with…(whatever it rhymes with).”

Now other players begin trying to guess the secret word by offering definitions.

The first player has to try to correctly identify the rhyming word being identified and responds in this form:

Either, “No, it’s not [defined word]” or “Yes, it’s [defined word]”—and then control of the game passes to the person who correctly guessed the secret word.

The rhymes must be true rhymes and no proper nouns are permitted, but humorous definitions and slang words are fair game and part of the fun, especially for older kids and adults.

How about a sample round, you ask? Certainly!

Player 1: I’m thinking of a word that rhymes with “boss.”
Player 2: Are you wearing one around your neck?
Player 1: No, it’s not “cross.”
Player 3: Is it what my softball team suffered last night?
Player 1: No, it’s not “loss.”
Player 4: Is it good with pasta?
Player 1: No, it’s not “sauce.”
Player 2: Is it what a cowboy rides?
Player 1: No, it’s not a “hoss.”
Player 3: Does it grow on trees?
Player 1: Yes, it is moss.

Player 3 now chooses a word and begins.

The guessing goes in no particular order—it’s just the order in which people think of words to guess.

If you want to be really strict, the player with the secret word should lose his turn if he can’t come up with the rhyming word from your definition (excepting joke rhymes like “hoss” in the previous example). We hardly ever enforce that rule, though, as it’s too frustrating for younger players that way.

It’s a vocabulary builder, a pastime, and comic relief if you’re imaginative enough. I loved playing it with the grown-ups in my extended family when I was a kid, and now I love playing it with my own kidlets.
Over the years I’ve been surprised and impressed at the definitions my littlest guys come up with once they catch on.

Everyone plays the alphabet game and license plate bingo. Does your family have a somewhat unusual road trip past time or a game you think of as “yours”?

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This Little Piggy Has Coins In It