How to Play Hum That Tune

1. The hummer thinks of a tune, or takes one from the host view, and tells nobody.
2. The hummer hums with lips closed. No words, no "la la", no miming and no tapping out the rhythm.
3. Teammates call out guesses freely. The hummer may nod or shake their head, and may start the tune again as often as they like.
4. A correct title within one minute scores one point. If the team clearly knows the song but not its exact name, the hummer may accept the answer.
5. When the minute ends without a correct guess, the other team gets one guess to take the point.
6. Teams alternate, and the hummer changes every turn.

What you need

Nothing. Voices only.

Nice to have:

• A one-minute timer
• Starter tunes from the host view

1. Form two teams of roughly equal size and decide how many turns to play — two per player is a good length.
2. Agree what counts as fair: tunes most of the room has heard, such as children's songs, celebration songs, famous classical themes and well-known television themes.
3. Choose the first hummer and start a one-minute timer if you are using one.

The game ends when everyone has hummed the agreed number of times. The team with more points wins; on a tie, each team picks one hummer for a single deciding tune, and the faster correct guess takes it.

Players

4–16 players

Best with

6–10

Play time

10–25 min

Prep

No prep

Materials

No materials

Energy

Lively

Noise

Loud

Movement

Seated

Seated option

Works seated

Where

Dinner table, Living room, Small space, Large room, Outdoors

Times are editorial estimates, not test results.

Reading: None. The hummer chooses a tune or is shown one on the host's screen.

Hum That Tune needs at least 4 players and works for up to about 16. It is at its best with 6–10 players.

Past sixteen players, teams become too big for everyone to call out a guess. Make three or four teams and let only the hummer's own team guess for the first thirty seconds; after that any team may take the point.

• Tell hummers to start with the most famous line of the tune, not its beginning.
• Different generations know different songs. Encourage tunes from weddings, birthdays and school rather than this year's charts.
• Nobody is judged on pitch. Say so before the first turn; it relaxes the reluctant hummers.
• If a hummer goes blank, let them swap to a starter tune without losing the turn.

Tunes to hum: nine you choose from your own life, and eight the whole world knows.

You choose the tune

• A lullaby you were sung as a child
• The song your family sings at birthdays
• A song that is played at every wedding
• The theme of a cartoon you watched as a child
• A song you learned at school
• The national anthem of the country you are in
• A tune that means the holidays have started
• A chant from a sports stadium
• A jingle from an advertisement

Tunes the whole world knows

• Ode to Joy
• Für Elise
• The Wedding March
• Spring, from The Four Seasons
• Eine kleine Nachtmusik
• Swan Lake
• The William Tell Overture
• The Blue Danube waltz

We recommend Hum That Tune in these collections:

• Party Games for Kids: 8 Games Children and Adults Play Together
• Car and Travel Games: 7 Games to Play With Nothing but Your Voices
• New Year's Eve Party Games: 8 Games to Carry the Room to Midnight
• Eid Gathering Games: 8 Family Games for a House Full of Guests

Traditional guessing game; this explanation, the example and the starter tunes are original to Gather & Play.

Editorially checked for clarity and consistency. We do not claim group playtesting for this page. Editorial policy.