One word story
A hilarious storytelling game where each player only adds one word at a time. The story takes unexpected twists, flexes your creative muscles, and guarantees lots of laughter.
I help parents turn chaos into connection and laughter through play.
One Word Story is a quick, no-prep word game that calls for cooperation and collaboration in working together to make up a silly story. Each person takes turns saying just one word, building a story one word at a time. It usually starts simple (“Once… upon… a… time…”) but quickly heads in unpredictable directions as everyone adds their own twist.
Because the rules are so simple, this game is perfect for all ages and can be played anywhere - in the car, at the dinner table, or while waiting in line.
Beyond the laughter, it’s a playful way to practice listening, patience, and cooperation. No single person controls the story; the fun comes from co-creating something surprising together.
Play
Step 1:
The first player says one word (e.g. “Once”).
Step 2:
The next player immediately adds a single word (e.g. “upon”).
Step 3:
Continue taking turns, each person adding one word to build the story.
Step 4:
Keep going until the story naturally ends - or until the ridiculousness has gotten to the point of no return!
Tips:
- This game is deceptively challenging, even for adults! The best way is to start with a collaborative story where you switch off every few sentences. Then, work your way to every other sentence. Then even other phrase. This is the most helpful process, especially when playing with younger children.
- It is most helpful to have the guidelines be that the story will be in past tense and will have clear characters that are named (i.e. “a fish named Sally”) so that it’s easy to follow along.
- If a character is speaking in the story, give them a silly character voice or even use “air quotes” to indicate that someone is speaking.
Extend
One-word commercial, One word motivational speech... the possibilities are endless and hilarious!
Add Actions: Act out words (even with just a dramatic facial expression or silly character voice) as they’re said for extra silliness.
Record & Replay: Capture the story as a voice note and listen back later.
Meet the playmaker
I help parents turn chaos into connection and laughter through play.