O ©
INSTRUCTIONS
QUICK!
How do you get your
team to say APPLE?
You cant say RED, FRUIT, PIE,
CIDER, or CORE. They're Taboo” —
utterly unmentionable words!
Think fast, talk fast and don't
say a Taboo word or you'll
get buzzed and lose a point!
You might say:
* “NEW YORK 1S THE 'BIG' ONE"
* “EAT ONE OF THESE A DAY TO
KEEP THE DOCTOR AWAY”
* “WILLIAM TELL USED ONE FOR
TARGET PRACTICE”
As you call out the clues,
your teammates shout out
the answers.
Play Taboo. Its easy. It's fast-
paced. And it’s unspeakably
fun!
Before playing, please read
the rules that follow. Not to
do so would be TABOO!
Ages 12 to Adult
For 4 or More Players
CONTENTS:
504 Cards, Card Holder,
Buzzer, Timer, Scorepad
OBJECT:
Score the most points by
guessing the most words.
GETTING READY TO PLAY
1. Buzzer Battery Insertion: Remove battery
cover by pressing back clip with your
thumb. Insert two “AA” size batteries,
matching (+) and (-) signs. See Figure 1.
Alkaline batteries are recommended for best
performance. Slide the battery cover back
and snap into place.
Test the batteries by pressing the buzzer but-
ton. If the buzzer doesn’t work, the batteries
may be weak or improperly installed.
CAUTION:
To Avoid Battery Leakage
* Be sure to insert the batteries correctly
and always follow the game and battery
manufacturers” instructions.
* Do not mix old and new batteries or
alkaline, standard (carbon-zinc) or
rechargeable (nickel-cadmium) batteries.
* Always remove weak or dead batteries
from the product.
2. Team B's players (in dark shirts) sit beside
or behind Team A's Clue-giver so they can
see the cards as the Clue-giver plays them.
Team B controls the buzzer.
3. The Clue-giver's teammates are not
allowed to see the cards and they should sit
opposite their Clue-giver, waiting to shout
out their answers.
4, After Team A's Clue-giver has completed
a turn, a member of Team B is chosen to be
the next Clue-giver for their team. Seats are
exchanged so that the new Clue-giver's
teammates cannot see the cards and the
opposing team can see the cards. The
buzzer is passed to Team A.
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2. Place the buzzer and timer within easy
reach of all players.
3. Fill the card holder with cards. Play with
red side first. See Figure 2.
4. Divide the players into two teams (Team
A and Team B). It doesn’t matter if one team
has one more player than the other.
Figure 2
side of
cards
The red side of the cards should be facedown.
The blue side of the cards should be faceup but
positioned as shown.
5. Teams take turns appointing Clue-givers
and guessing words until all players have
had one turn as Clue-giver. NOTE: If one
team has one less plaver than the other, one
player from that team is the Clue-giver twice.
EE
TAKING YOUR SEATS AND zr \
TAKING YOUR TURNS
See the picture at right for
seating.
1. Team A (in white shirts)
chooses one of their players to be
their first Clue-giver, and that
player sits facing the card holder
with the timer close at hand.
(TN
Guess word Deli
KOSHER
Taboo words
PASTRAMI
SANDWICH
FOOD
EAT
Me À
When giving clues for the
Guess word DELI, you could
say, “Its a kind of
restaurant... You'll find lots of
lox there and bagels,
too... You can get the best of
the wursts here...It's a NEW
city in India...”
Finished playing with
the red side of the cards?
Then, just flip them over and
play with the blue side!
PROOF OF
PURCHASE SEAL
TABOO’
©1999 Hersch and Company.
All Rights Reserved.
©1999 Hasbro, Pawtucket, RI 02862.
All Rights Reserved. 04015-1
PLAYING THE GAME
1. The Clue-giver draws a card from the
card holder and places it on the easel, as
shown in Figure 3. The word at the top of
the card is the Guess word the Clue-giver is
trying to get his or her teammates to say.
The five words below the Guess word are
the Taboo words the Clue-giver CANNOT
say when giving clues for the Guess word.
Figure 3
Red
side of
cards
2. As soon as a card 1s drawn, the Clue-giver
turns over the timer and starts giving clues
that will make teammates say the Guess
word. The clues may consist of detailed
sentences, phrases or single word hints. See
example at left. The clues CANNOT break
any of the rules listed in Number 3:
RULES FOR CLUES below.
3. RULES FOR CLUES
* No form or part of ANY word
printed on the card may be given as a
clue. Examples: If the Guess word is
PAYMENT, “pay” cannot be given as a
clue. If DRINK is a Taboo word, “drunk”
cannot be given as a clue. If SPACESHIP is
the Guess word, you can’t use “space” or
“ship” as a clue.
* No gestures may be made. Examples: You
can’t form your hand in the shape of a gun
as a clue for “shoot”; or point to your nose as
a clue for “beak.”
* No sound effects or noises may be made,
such as explosions or engine noises.
However, feel free to break out into song.
* You cannot say the Guess word “sounds
like” or “rhymes with” another word.
* No initials or abbreviations can be given
if the words they represent are included on
the card. Examples: MD cannot be used if
MEDICAL or DOCTOR is the Guess word
or a Taboo word. TV cannot be used if
TELEVISION is the Guess word or a Taboo
word.
4. As the Clue-giver gives clues, his or her
teammates shout out possible words trying
to say the Guess word. There is no penalty
for wrong guesses.
5. SCORING A POINT
Each time a teammate shouts out the correct
Guess word, the Clue-giver's team scores a
point. The guessed card remains on the easel.
The Clue-giver quickly draws another card
and puts it on the easel in front of the
already-guessed card(s). The number of
guessed cards in the easel is the number of
points the Clue-giver earns for his or her
team.
6. LOSING A POINT
Clue-givers can lose points in two ways: by
getting buzzed and by passing on a card. All
Points lost are awarded to the opposing team.
Getting buzzed: During the Clue-giver’s
turn, the members of the opposing team
watch the Clue-giver and the cards. If a
Taboo word is used by the Clue-giver or if
any of the RULES FOR CLUES are broken,
the buzzer is sounded by the opposing
team. This signals that the card is dead. The
opposing team then quickly explains why
the card was killed.
The Clue-giver removes the dead card from
the easel and places it in a discard pile. Then
the Clue-giver quickly draws a new card
and continues playing. The number of cards
in the discard pile are the points awarded to
the opposing team on a turn.
Passing on a card: You may choose to pass
and not play a card at any time during vour
turn as the Clue-giver. Pass by removing the
card from the easel and placing it in the dis-
card pile. The opposing team scores a point
each time you pass.
Remember, you are racing against the timer and
it may be in your best interest to pass rather than
spend a lot of time on one card.
7. The Clue-giver's turn continues until the
timer runs out. The opposing team watches
the timer and signals when time is up.
8. If there is an unfinished card on the easel,
place it out of play. It does not count in the
scoring. Now count the remaining cards on
the easel for the Clue-giver’s team’s score.
Count the cards in the discard pile for the
opposing team’s score. Record the scores on
the scorepad for cach team after each turn.
9. All cards on the easel and in the discard
pile are placed out of play, before the
opposing team’s Clue-giver starts the
next turn.
WINNING THE GAME
When all players have had one turn as
Clue-giver (or both teams have had the
same number of turns as Clue-giver), the
points on the scorepad are totaled. The team
with the most points wins the game.
In the case of a tie, each team chooses their
best Clue-giver and takes one more turn to
determine the winner.
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