Holidays and seasons · hangman category
Christmas Hangman Words
56 Christmas hangman words and 15 phrases, sorted by how hard they are to guess. Play online with this list or print a sheet with an answer key.
Read the word list
This list covers the whole season rather than just Santa: the tree and its decorations, winter weather, baking, carols and the nativity story. That mix matters in hangman, because a list made only of short, common words like tree, star and gift is solved in four or five guesses. Words like poinsettia, frankincense and nutcracker give older players something to work at, while the short words keep the youngest players in the game.
Every word is scored by our solver, which plays each one the way a sensible human would, guessing the most likely letters first. That is why myrrh lands near the top of the hard list even though it has only five letters: a player who starts with vowels will waste most of their guesses before finding the y. The phrases, such as deck the halls and gingerbread house, play well on a whiteboard because the spaces give away the shape of the answer.
71 entries. Our solver needed 2.1 wrong guesses on average: 33 easy, 28 medium and 10 hard. The toughest is gift (7 misses), the quickest mistletoe (0).
- reindeer Easy · 1
- sleigh Medium · 2
- ornament Easy · 1
- tinsel Medium · 3
- wreath Easy · 1
- mistletoe Easy · 0
- garland Medium · 3
- chimney Medium · 4
- stocking Medium · 3
- gingerbread Easy · 0
- nutcracker Easy · 1
- snowflake Medium · 2
- poinsettia Easy · 0
- holly Medium · 3
- carol Medium · 4
- manger Medium · 3
- angel Medium · 3
- star Easy · 1
- shepherd Easy · 0
- frankincense Easy · 0
- myrrh Hard · 5
- present Easy · 0
- ribbon Medium · 4
- elves Easy · 1
- workshop Medium · 3
- eggnog Easy · 1
- fruitcake Easy · 0
- cranberry Medium · 2
- chestnut Medium · 2
- yule Hard · 6
- yuletide Easy · 1
- advent Easy · 1
- nativity Easy · 1
- jingle Medium · 2
- toboggan Medium · 3
- mittens Easy · 1
- scarf Medium · 4
- icicle Easy · 0
- evergreen Easy · 0
- pinecone Medium · 2
- decorate Easy · 0
- celebrate Easy · 0
- december Easy · 1
- holiday Easy · 1
- festive Medium · 2
- cookies Medium · 3
- cocoa Easy · 1
- marshmallow Medium · 2
- snowman Medium · 2
- sledding Easy · 0
- lantern Easy · 1
- candle Medium · 3
- tree Easy · 1
- gift Hard · 7
- bells Hard · 7
- fireplace Easy · 0
- candy cane Hard · 5
- christmas eve Easy · 1
- christmas tree Easy · 0
- deck the halls Hard · 5
- north pole Hard · 5
- silent night Easy · 1
- sleigh bells Hard · 5
- wrapping paper Medium · 2
- hot cocoa Hard · 5
- gingerbread house Easy · 0
- jingle bells Hard · 6
- stocking stuffer Medium · 2
- ugly sweater Medium · 3
- twelve days of christmas Medium · 4
- santa's workshop Medium · 2
Words worth a closer look
- myrrhFive letters and no a, e, i, o or u. The only vowel is the y, so it is one of the hardest short words you can set. Save it for players who always open with vowels.
- poinsettiaNamed after Joel Roberts Poinsett, the first United States minister to Mexico, who sent the plant home in the 1820s. Players often miss the second t.
- eggnogThree g's in six letters. One correct guess of g fills half the word, which makes it a good confidence builder for younger players.
- reindeerBoth male and female reindeer grow antlers, which is unusual among deer. The ei spelling trips up spellers who expect rain or rein to be spelled ai.
- sleighThe eigh spelling makes the long a sound, the same pattern as weigh, eight and neighbor. Worth pointing out after the round if you are teaching spelling.
- yuleFrom the Old Norse jol, a midwinter festival that predates Christmas. It is short but has only one common vowel, so it lasts longer than its length suggests.
- mistletoeThe t after the s is easy to drop when spelling it aloud. In hangman the double e at the end often falls in the first two guesses.
Using this list in class
In the last week before the winter break, the phrases work well as a whole-class warm-up on the board: split the class into two teams and let each team guess one letter at a time. For a quieter activity, print the sheet and let pairs play each other using the answer key to check.
If your school marks several winter holidays, pair this list with the Hanukkah and winter lists so every student sees familiar words. Spelling teachers can pull the words with the same pattern, such as sleigh, reindeer and eight, and use the round as a hook for a lesson on the long a sound.
Print a Christmas 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
- Winter Hangman WordsWinter hangman words about snow, ice, cold weather and animals, with phrases and teaching notes. Play online or print a sheet with an answer key.
- Hanukkah Hangman WordsHanukkah hangman words covering the menorah, candles, foods, history and family traditions, written for teachers and families. Play online or print.
- New Year's Hangman WordsNew Year's hangman words for countdowns, resolutions, fireworks and fresh starts, ready to play online or print as a free sheet with answers.
- Desserts Hangman WordsDessert hangman words from cake and pie to meringue, tiramisu and cannoli. Play online with this list or print a sheet with an answer key.
- Thanksgiving Hangman WordsThanksgiving hangman words covering the feast, the harvest, family traditions and early American history, from short table words to long, tricky ones.
- Halloween Hangman WordsHalloween hangman words with costumes, pumpkins, candy and friendly spooky themes. Play online or print a free sheet with an answer key.