What are the basic rules of Hangman?

The guesser suggests a letter. If the letter is in the word, the setter reveals all positions where that letter appears. If the letter is not in the word, one body part is drawn on the hangman (head, body, arms, legs).

Spelregels Galgje - Zo speel je het

Doel

Word setter: Keep your word secret until the hangman is complete. Guesser: Discover the word before running out of guesses.

Overzicht

Hangman is a classic word-guessing game for two players. One player thinks of a word and shows blank spaces for each letter. The other player guesses letters, with wrong guesses adding parts to a 'hangman' drawing. Guess the word before the drawing completes!

Opzet

The word setter thinks of a word and draws blank spaces (underscores) for each letter. A gallows structure is drawn to the side where the hangman figure will be added for wrong guesses.

Hoe te spelen

The guesser suggests a letter.
If the letter is in the word, the setter reveals all positions where that letter appears.
If the letter is not in the word, one body part is drawn on the hangman (head, body, arms, legs).
The guesser continues suggesting letters one at a time.
The guesser may attempt to guess the entire word at any time.
Standard rules allow 6-8 wrong guesses (head, body, 2 arms, 2 legs, optionally hands/feet).
The game ends when the word is completely revealed or the hangman is complete.

Het spel winnen

Guesser wins by completing the word before the hangman is fully drawn. Setter wins if the hangman is completed first.

Strategietips

Start with common vowelsE, A, I, O, U appear in most words.

Follow with common consonantsR, S, T, L, N are frequent in English.

Look at word patternsDouble letters and common endings (-ING, -TION, -ED).

For settersUse uncommon letters (J, Q, X, Z) and unusual words.

Consider word length when guessingShort words have fewer possibilities.

Avoid random guessesThink about what letters fit the revealed pattern.

Geschiedenis

Hangman's origins are unclear, but it has been played since at least the Victorian era. The 'hanging' theme, while morbid, has kept the game memorable for generations of children.