Hangman

Open this page and start guessing letters. The blanks show how long the word is, and the category gives you a clue. You can make six mistakes, the same as the classic paper game.

We wanted a cheerful game that anyone can play, including young kids, so the drawing is a basket of balloons. The rules are the classic ones, and the name stays because that is what people call the game.

Yes. Choose 2 players. One person types a secret word and an optional hint, then passes the phone. The score keeps running as you swap turns, so you can play as many rounds as you like.

Yes. The words are everyday things like animals, food and school, and every one is fine for all ages. For younger kids, pick a category they know well, such as Animals. In two-player mode, a grown-up can also type words at the right level.

Longer words often turn out to be easier, because they hold more letters to find. Short words with rare letters are the hard ones, so try one on your friends in two-player mode.

Start with common vowels such as E and A, then try common consonants such as T, N, S and R. Save rare letters like Q and Z until you have a real reason to try them.

Yes. On a computer you can just type letters, and pressing Enter moves on to the next word when a game ends. On a phone, tap the letter buttons.

No. A secret word stays in your browser, and it is gone when you move on or close the page.