Alexa Word Games From Classic to Creative

Heads Up!

Popularized by Ellen DeGeneres on her daytime talk show, Heads Up! challenges players to guess as many secret words as they can. Whereas players held cards or digital devices up to their foreheads in the original game, the Alexa version of Heads Up! is audio-based, hiding the secret word altogether. 

Choose between five “decks” of cards, including Superstars, Blockbuster Movies, Favorite Fictional Characters, On the Road and Animals Gone Wild. Alexa provides clues and you try to guess as many secret words as you can in 90 seconds. Say “pass” to skip a secret word and “hint” to get a new clue.

Twenty Questions

Twenty Questions is possibly the most well-known of the spoken word games Alexa can play. Whereas other Alexa games may test your guessing ability, Twenty Questions challenges Alexa herself to impress you with her super ability to guess your secret word. She’ll provide you with a category, like “animal,” and you think of a word she has to guess. 

Alexa will then ask a series of questions. Does it have feathers? Is it larger than a microwave? Can you find it in a zoo? You can answer with yes, no, unknown, irrelevant, sometimes, probably or doubtful. In addition to animals, Alexa can also guess vegetables, minerals and music-related secret words. 

Gram Slam

Love solving anagrams? That’s exactly what you’ll do in Gram Slam. While you can certainly play the audio-only version on an Amazon Echo or Echo Dot, this game is more easily enjoyed with a display. So, if you’ve got an Echo Show or a Fire tablet in Show Mode, you’re all set for this Alexa game.

For each anagram, the game will provide you with a category (like “fantasy world”), the word length, the letters you need to use and the number of remaining lives. Choose between singleplayer, two-player and daily bonus modes. The game increases in difficulty as you level up. Need some help? Fire up our anagram solver for when you get stumped. 

Mad Libs

Play the classic Mad Libs game on your Amazon Alexa-enabled device. The version linked here is published by Penguin Random House. They own the official rights to the Mad Libs brand, but you can find other similar Alexa word games if you search through the list of Alexa skills too.

Just like the pen-and-paper version, the Alexa version of Mad Libs will ask you for a series of words based on the part of speech. For example, if Alexa asks for an adjective, you might say “happy” or “purple.” A given story usually needs you to provide somewhere around 15 to 20 words. After you’ve provided all your answers, Alexa will read the resulting story out loud. It’s time to get creative!

World of Words

If you’re looking for some variety in your Alexa word games, World of Words could be a good option. Playing against a random opponent, you’ll progress through five games per round. 

For example, the word scramble game presents you with some letters. You must then unscramble them to form a word in the given category. The word memory game challenges you to remember three words. Then, you must name the word that matches an attribute, like containing two R’s. Unlock all the levels with a premium pack upgrade. 

Amazing Word Master Game

Lamb Chop’s Play-Along had “The Song That Doesn’t End.” The Amazing Word Master Game is the Alexa word game that doesn’t end. It’s not quite a multiplayer word game, but it can simulate the experience for you. Alexa starts by saying a word. You respond with a word that starts with the letter that Alexa’s word ended with. 

For example, Alexa might say, “Word.” You can then reply by saying, “Danger.” Alexa may then respond by saying, “Rodeo.” And on and on it goes. You get more points for longer words. The game only ends when you fail to respond or choose to exit. This is the game that never ends. Yes, it goes on and on, my friend... 

Categories Game

Do you like playing Scattergories? In the Categories Game, Alexa will “roll the dice” and choose a letter at random. Then, she’ll present a number of categories in succession, and you have to come up with a word that starts with that letter for that category. 

For example, Alexa might choose the letter B. If the category is animals, you may respond with “bobcat.” If the category is countries, you might choose “Bolivia.” Other categories include food, superhero, movie, TV show, actor and musician. Score points based on quickly and how accurately you respond. Play more to climb the online leaderboard and to unlock additional categories.

Alexa, What Word Games Should I Play?

Smart speakers and digital voice assistants have quickly become a part of everyday life. These are some of the best Alexa games and are sure to both entertain and educate any type of player.

Keep a good thing going with fun word games for seniors to boost brainpower. And while you’re at it, expand your vocabulary knowledge with WordFinder's Scrabble Word of the Day and Slang Word of the Day Alexa skills. Add them to your daily flash briefing! 

Michael Kwan is a professional writer and editor with over 14 years of experience. Fueled by caffeine and WiFi, he's no stranger to word games and dad jokes.