Parlor game

Dice games have been part of human culture since ancient times. They may have originated in Asia and migrated across the globe. Now they can be found in nearly every culture on Earth. Dice are small cubes that are marked with dots on each side; these dots represent numbers from one to six. The small playing pieces are usually made of plastic in most modern games, but in the past have been made of bone, wood, stone, fruit pits, seeds, ivory, and clay. Dice are thrown from a player's hand or dice cup and the total number showing face-up after the dice have settled determines the value of the throw.

Dice are used either on their own in games of chance, such as Yahtzee, or as part of another game, like in various board games. Dominoes is a game played by two or more people using small rectangular blocks made of plastic or wood. Older versions of the game contained blocks made of ivory and bone.

It is a game that dates back to ancient China, but was not introduced to the western world until the eighteenth century. Each domino is divided in two by a line or ridge. Above and below the line is a combination of spots. The dominoes are numbered in a specific sequence. There are many derivations of the game. Don't play Darts when the little ones are around—save it for the more grown-up crowd.

Those heavy darts can be quite sharp and little hands love to get involved in adult fun. The origin of Darts is a bit of a mystery, but we know that it existed in British folklore.

The English apparently played Darts before defeating the French at the Battle of Agincourt in the fifteenth century, and the Pilgrims supposedly played the game as they traveled to America in Skill is needed in order to play Darts successfully. For example, the way the dart is held and thrown and the concentration involved in hitting the target are important factors.

Despite its buried roots, Darts is hugely popular in modern times. It is a game that is played in almost every British pub and American bar. It is so popular that the real enthusiasts consider it a sport to be reckoned with, and not just a game for fun-seekers.

Nothing spices up a holiday party like a good murder mystery. The murderer covertly winks at the other players in the circle, causing them to drop dead. Using his or her deductive reasoning skills the detective has three shots to guess which of the players left alive is the murderer.

The only thing you need to play Lookabout is an object. Players take a seat whenever they spot it, and the last person remaining becomes the next hider. A round of Forfeits is a fast way to loosen up your party guests.

To start, everyone forfeits an item of value keys, phone, wallet, etc. Players can get their item back for a price—the auctioneer might tell them to sing a song, share a secret, or do jumping jacks. In the smartphone era the stakes of this Victorian parlor game are even higher. This game, while certainly an ice-breaker, is probably best left to the Victorians.

To play snap-dragon, party guests, typically together for Christmas Eve, would dunk raisins in a bowl of brandy and set the booze on fire. Players would then attempt to pick out the raisins and pop them in their mouths. Suddenly spending the holidays glued to your phone sounds like the saner option.

Wikimedia Commons. Subscribe to our Newsletter! Save Word. Definition of parlor game. Examples of parlor game in a Sentence Recent Examples on the Web But guessing who might launch a theoretical primary challenge to Harris has become an ongoing insider parlor game. Cooke, National Review , 11 June The comparisons can just feel like a highfalutin parlor game. First Known Use of parlor game , in the meaning defined above. Learn More About parlor game. Time Traveler for parlor game The first known use of parlor game was in See more words from the same year.

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