Hangman words
Book Title Hangman Words
Classic children and young adult book titles for hangman, from treasure island to the secret garden. Play online or print an answer key.
Read the phrase list
Book titles bring a different kind of challenge: a player who has read the book can solve the title in a few guesses, and one who has not has to use letter logic. That creates a nice spread of difficulty in a group. This list favors classic books that have been in print for generations, many in the public domain, plus a selection of well-loved modern children's titles.
Because the titles are short phrases, they use plenty of small words that give players handholds, the and of especially. One-word titles like heidi, hatchet and pollyanna are a different matter, with only a few letters to work with. Anyone setting up a reading-themed class or a library event will find a ready mix here, from picture book favorites to novels for older students.
55 entries. Our solver needed 2.5 wrong guesses on average: 3 easy, 2 medium and 1 hard. The toughest is emma (5 misses), the quickest persuasion (1).
- heidi
- pollyanna
- emma Hard · 5
- persuasion Easy · 1
- kidnapped Easy · 1
- hatchet
- holes Medium · 3
- wonder Medium · 4
- matilda Easy · 1
- treasure island
- little women
- black beauty
- the secret garden
- alice in wonderland
- peter pan
- anne of green gables
- the wind in the willows
- the jungle book
- a little princess
- pride and prejudice
- jane eyre
- great expectations
- oliver twist
- a christmas carol
- huckleberry finn
- moby dick
- robinson crusoe
- gulliver's travels
- the call of the wild
- white fang
- the wonderful wizard of oz
- the little prince
- the time machine
- around the world in eighty days
- twenty thousand leagues under the sea
- the three musketeers
- the hobbit
- charlotte's web
- the outsiders
- number the stars
- where the red fern grows
- island of the blue dolphins
- the lion the witch and the wardrobe
- a wrinkle in time
- the phantom tollbooth
- the borrowers
- winnie the pooh
- the cat in the hat
- green eggs and ham
- where the wild things are
- goodnight moon
- the very hungry caterpillar
- curious george
- madeline
- the giver
Words worth a closer look
- treasure islandAn adventure novel by Robert Louis Stevenson, first published in book form in 1883. Both words share the s, r and a, making this an easy start.
- little womenLouisa May Alcott's novel about the four March sisters. The double t and double l in little give a quick hit.
- black beautyAnna Sewell's story, told by a horse. Two words of five and six letters with a repeated b and a.
- the secret gardenBy Frances Hodgson Burnett. Two e's in secret and a double e in garden make e a strong first guess.
- heidiJohanna Spyri's story of a girl in the Swiss Alps. Five letters with two i's and little else, so it can be tough.
- pollyannaBy Eleanor H. Porter. The double l and double n give a pattern that players spot once two letters are in place.
- hatchetA modern survival novel by Gary Paulsen. Seven letters, only one repeated.
How to use this list
For a library or reading week, play a title round and ask the group to name the author or main character before moving on. If nobody knows, that is a natural moment to add the book to a reading list.
For a classroom, print the sheet and turn it into a book bingo: each player marks the titles they have read, then plays a round with one they have not. Younger children can work on the picture book titles such as goodnight moon, while older readers take on jane eyre and great expectations.
Print a Book Title Hangman worksheet
Eight puzzles on one US Letter page, with a clue, letter blanks, an empty frame to draw in, an alphabet strip to cross off and circles to count misses. Page two is the answer key.
Need another sheet?
Draw eight different words from this list, right here. Same layout, new answer key.
Keep going
- Books Hangman WordsBooks hangman words for reading class and library visits: story elements, parts of a book, genres and figurative language, free to play or print.
- Movie Hangman WordsTitles of well-known family films for hangman, from toy story to the sound of music. Play online or print a sheet with an answer key.
- Song Hangman WordsWell-known song titles for hangman: nursery rhymes, carols, folk tunes and famous classics. Play online or print a sheet with an answer key.
- Fairy Tales Hangman WordsFairy tale hangman words from classic Grimm, Andersen, Perrault and English folk tales: characters, places and objects, free to play or print.
- School Hangman WordsSchool hangman words from the classroom, hallway and playground: supplies, places, people and routines, for kindergarten through middle school.
- Hardest Hangman WordsThe hardest hangman words in everyday English, ranked by how many wrong guesses a sensible player makes. Play the list online or print it.