Magic Charades
Spells, creatures and enchanted objects to act out — a whole wizard-school night of charades
Magic charades takes the classic guessing game and drops it inside a school of magic and wizardry. Instead of films and animals, players act out spells, potions, magical creatures and the everyday chaos of learning to use a wand — which turns out to be much funnier to mime than it sounds.
It works for a themed birthday, a rainy afternoon or any party where the group already loves a good magic story. Everything below is free: word packs to read out, mime challenges, a random prompt generator and the rules if your group has never played charades before.
Want charades ideas beyond the magical ones? Browse all our charades ideas
Random magic mime
Tap the button, act out whatever appears, and let the other team guess. No preparation, no writing anything down.
A wizard casting a spell that goes badly wrong
Magic charades word packs
Read a pack out loud and let each player pick, or write the words on slips and drop them in a hat. Nothing here belongs to any one story — these are the building blocks of magic that everyone recognises.
Spells and wand work
Levitation spell, disappearing act, freezing charm, shrinking spell, summoning charm, protective shield, memory wipe, shape-shifting, lightning bolt, silence spell
Magical creatures
Dragon, unicorn, phoenix, griffin, troll, giant spider, talking owl, mermaid, werewolf, garden gnome, three-headed dog, ghost
Potions and ingredients
Bubbling cauldron, love potion, sleeping draught, truth serum, frog spawn, dried herbs, crushed beetles, glowing liquid, antidote, exploding brew
Enchanted objects
Magic wand, flying broomstick, crystal ball, spellbook, invisibility cloak, magic mirror, enchanted map, potion bottle, hourglass, floating candle, magic carpet, locked chest
Wizard school lessons
Potion class, spell practice, star gazing, plant care in the greenhouse, creature handling, flying lesson, fortune telling, ancient runes, duelling club, detention
Magic folk
Wise old wizard, apprentice, witch on a broom, fortune teller, alchemist, court jester magician, potion master, dark sorcerer, castle caretaker, librarian guarding forbidden books
Funny magic mime challenges
These are harder than they look — and much funnier to watch. Give the actor 60 seconds and no words at all.
- Cast a spell using only your eyebrows
- Mime a wand duel where you are losing badly
- Act out a potion exploding in slow motion
- Be a broomstick that has decided not to fly today
- Show a spell backfiring on the person who cast it
- Mime carrying an invisible but very heavy magical creature
- Act out reading a spell you clearly cannot pronounce
- Be a ghost trying and failing to pick something up
Wizard jokes to break the ice
Read one out between rounds. They are deliberately terrible.
- Why did the wizard fail his flying exam? He kept getting swept away.
- What do you call a wizard who has lost his wand? Stick-less and stuck.
- Why was the cauldron always invited to parties? It really knew how to stir things up.
- How does a dragon send letters? By flame mail.
- Why did the spellbook go to the nurse? It had a nasty paper curse.
- What is a ghost's favourite part of charades? Passing straight through the answer.
How to play magic charades
The rules are ordinary charades — only the words are enchanted. Four players is enough, and it scales happily to a full room.
- 1
Split into two teams
Any size works as long as the teams are roughly even. One player acts while their own team guesses; the other team keeps time.
- 2
Pick a word from a pack
Use the packs above, the random prompt generator, or slips of paper in a hat. The actor reads it silently and never says a word after that.
- 3
Act it out in 60 seconds
No speaking, no pointing at objects in the room, no spelling letters in the air. One point per word guessed; most points after an agreed number of rounds wins.
Magic charades FAQ
What is magic charades?
It is ordinary charades played with a magical word list: spells, potions, creatures and enchanted objects instead of films and animals. The rules do not change — only the words do.
What age is magic charades good for?
It works well from about six upwards. Younger players do best with creatures and objects, which are easy to mime; spells and lessons suit older children and adults who enjoy a harder challenge.
How many words do we need?
Roughly 5 to 10 words per player. For a group of eight that means 40 to 80 words — the packs on this page cover that comfortably, and the generator will produce more.
Can we play magic charades without printing anything?
Yes. Use the random prompt generator above on one phone and pass it around the group, or read a word pack aloud. Nothing needs printing, writing or cutting up.
What makes a good magic charades word?
Something with a physical action attached. "Riding a broomstick" and "stirring a cauldron" mime themselves; abstract ideas like "enchantment" leave the actor stranded. Choose words you can start acting within two seconds.
Is this based on a particular book or film?
No. Every word here comes from the shared furniture of magic stories — wands, cauldrons, dragons, spellbooks — so the game works whichever magic stories your group grew up with.
Ready to play?
Grab your group, pick a word pack and start acting. The rules take a minute to read and the game runs on one phone.
See how to play
