You Can't Say That
Summary: You Can't Say That is a party game where the guests are given a word they cannot say during the whole event.
Ages: From 14 and up
Recommended Number of Players: 5 or more
Equipment:
One beaded necklace for each player
A large safety pin would also work in place of the beaded necklace
Set Up:
Give each player one beaded necklace to wear
How to Play:
Choose a word that your guests can not say during the whole party. If you are at a baby shower, the word could be "baby", or at a birthday party the word could be "birthday." The trick is to choose a word that is likely to come up in conversation often.
Give each guest a beaded necklace as they come to the party. Let them know what word they are banned from saying. If anyone at the party hears a player say this word, they turn to that person and say "You Can't Say That!" and then takes the beaded necklace from that player and puts it around their own neck.
If a player has more than one necklace and is heard saying the forbidden word, then the player gives ALL her necklaces to the player who caught her.
Winner:
The player with the most necklaces at the end of the party wins a prize.
Football Style Variation:
Instead of a necklace or safety pin, cut out football shapes from brown paper. Put some double-sided tape on one side and give one to each player. This variation is great at a Super Bowl Sunday party. Use the word "Football" as the "You Can't Say That" word. Place the paper footballs on the players during the half time show and the fun begins.
Comments, Variations and Stories
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Best Advice from Dana Palmer
Many people come to this site looking for a couple specific games. When they find them, great, the job is done. But there is one thing I want ALL my guests to know regardless of how many or how few pages they read. Therefore, if you see this box again on a few more pages, skip it and move on to finding more games for your event.
But for those reading this for the first time, here is the best advice I can pass on from my many years of experience planning and executing large and small events. Read on…
“Organizing is what you do before you do something, so that when you do it, it is not all mixed up.” These are great words from A.A. Milne, the creator of Winnie-the-Pooh. I couldn’t agree more. And a solid foundation of organizing and planning is needed for most events. But I am here to tell you even with the BEST organization, no event is going to proceed EXACTLY as planned. You may even have a Plan B, C or D as a back-up. That’s fabulous! But trust me on this one; something will happen that you had no way of anticipating. So what now? Here is the trick. Pay close attention to this because it is the single most important piece of wisdom I can share with my readers.
Are you ready?
Learn to mentally let go of your perfect plans
the minute the party, event, game
or special occasion starts.
That’s it. I could write an entire page on how to “be in the moment” and “have fun at your own party.” But neither of those will happen if you don’t have the mindset that it’s alright to have things turn out differently than you imagined. The good news is that usually what you planned in your head that didn’t come through was never even missed by most.
So if you are going along, playing a game, or any other group activity, and it leads you down a road you didn’t foresee… Enjoy the ride.
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