Random word generator guide
Using a random word generator for games, prompts and practice
In short
Choose how many words you want and press Generate. Filter by word type (nouns, verbs, adjectives or adverbs), subject, length, first or last letters and syllables, or paste your own list to draw from. Quick setups get you Pictionary words, charades actions, five-letter words and writing prompts in one click. Type a seed and you'll get the same words every time, which is handy when a whole class needs the same list.
- Built-in words
- 406 hand-picked entries
- Per draw
- 1 to 100 words
- Repeatable
- Yes, with a seed
- Your own list
- Up to 5,000 items, kept private
How to generate random words
Set Number of words (1 to 100), then pick a Word type and Subject, or leave them on mixed and all.
Open the advanced filters to limit letters (for example exactly 5), set a starting or ending letter, a fragment the word must contain, or a syllable count.
Press Generate. Click the bookmark on any word to save it, or the copy icon to copy just that one.
Copy the whole set as lines, commas, spaces, bullets or a numbered list, or download it as text, CSV or JSON.
Random words for Pictionary, charades and word games
| Quick setup | What you get | Good for |
|---|---|---|
| Pictionary | 12 nouns from the objects list, 3–10 letters | Things that are easy to draw |
| Charades | 12 action verbs, 3–12 letters | Things you can act out |
| Five letters | 10 common five-letter words (93 to choose from) | Word-game practice and warm-ups |
| Writing spark | 5 mixed words, including less common ones | Creative writing prompts |
In Pictionary the cards are grouped into categories such as objects, actions and difficult words, and a player has one minute to draw. The Pictionary setup sticks to objects because they're the easiest to draw in that time; switch Word type to Verbs for an action round.
For writing prompts, the Writing spark setup draws five words of mixed types and includes less common ones. Try to fit all five into a single paragraph, or build a short story around the noun and let the other words decide its mood. It works as a classroom warm-up too: one set of words on the board, ten minutes, and see who uses them best.
Turn on “Avoid this session's words” for games with several rounds. Words that have already come up won't be drawn again until you reset, so nobody gets the same card twice.
Random nouns, verbs, adjectives and adverbs
| Word type | Words | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Nouns | 222 | anchor, apricot, archive |
| Verbs | 79 | adapt, balance, build |
| Adjectives | 69 | agile, bright, calm |
| Adverbs | 36 | boldly, briefly, carefully |
The list is small on purpose: every word was picked by hand, so you get words people know rather than obscure dictionary entries. Turn off “Common words only” to include a few less familiar ones.
How to get the same random words again
Type anything into Repeatable seed, for example class-7b or round-3, and the same settings will always produce the same words in the same order. Share the seed (or use Share setup, which copies a link with your settings) and everyone gets an identical list, which helps when a whole class or team needs the same words.
Without a seed, each draw starts from a random seed made with your browser's cryptographic random number generator, and the active seed is shown under the results so you can reuse it. The draw itself uses a fast, repeatable method rather than a cryptographic one, so don't use it for lotteries, prizes or passwords.
Pick random words from your own list
Switch Source to “My own list” and paste names, prompts, vocabulary words or anything else, separated by new lines, commas, semicolons, tabs or pipes. Duplicates are removed and up to 5,000 items are kept. All the letter and pattern filters still work; items longer than 24 letters (spaces aren't counted) are skipped, so keep prompts short.
Your list stays in the page. It isn't uploaded, and it's left out of any link you share, so you can use it for student names or private prompts.
Common questions
How does a random word generator work?
It filters a word list by your settings, then draws words from what's left in a random order. Here, a seed controls the order, so the same seed and settings always give the same words.
Can I get the same random words again?
Yes. Enter a Repeatable seed, or reuse the seed shown under your results. The same seed with the same settings always produces the same list.
What are good words for Pictionary?
Concrete nouns that are easy to draw quickly, like objects, animals and places. The Pictionary quick setup draws 12 of them from the objects list.
Can I use it as a random noun generator?
Yes. Set Word type to Nouns and every word drawn is a noun. You can also narrow it by subject, such as nature, food or places, or by length and first letter.
Can I generate random five-letter words?
Yes. Use the Five letters quick setup, or set both Min letters and Max letters to 5.
Can it avoid repeating words?
Yes. “No repeated results” is on by default within a set, and “Avoid this session's words” stops words from earlier sets coming back until you reset.
Can I use my own list of words?
Yes. Choose My own list as the source and paste up to 5,000 items. The list isn't uploaded or included in shared links.
Are the words truly random?
They're pseudo-random: unpredictable enough for games and prompts, and repeatable with a seed. They aren't suitable for lotteries, draws with prizes or security.
How many words are in the English language?
There's no fixed number. The Oxford English Dictionary covers over half a million words, phrases and senses, and new words are added every year. Most people use a few tens of thousands.
Can I download the words?
Yes, as plain text, as a CSV with each word's type, letters and estimated syllables, or as JSON with the seed included.
Sources
- Math.random() (not seedable, not cryptographically secure)MDN Web Docs
- Pictionary (rules and categories)Wikipedia
- CharadesWikipedia
- Oxford English DictionaryWikipedia