Hangman

Hangman is one of the world's oldest pen-and-paper word games, playable anywhere with just paper and a pen. One player thinks of a word and marks blank dashes for each letter. The other player guesses letters one at a time — correct guesses fill in the blanks, wrong guesses add a body part to the gallows drawing. The guesser wins by completing the word; the word-setter wins if the drawing is completed (typically in six to ten wrong guesses) before the word is found.

Classic rules

• The word-setter draws a gallows and marks one dash per letter, indicating word length.
• Each wrong guess adds one element: head, body, left arm, right arm, left leg, right leg (6 wrong guesses = game over in the classic version).
• Correct letters are written in their correct positions. No positional hints beyond placement.
• Phrases and proper nouns can be used in extended versions — spaces between words are typically shown.

Strategy tips for guessers

• Always start with the most common letters: E, T, A, O, I, N, S, H, R. In that order they cover roughly 70% of English letter usage.
• Once you have a few letters placed, focus on word pattern recognition — _AT could be CAT, BAT, HAT, MAT, FAT, RAT, SAT, VAT. Guess R, C, and B to quickly distinguish.
• Short words (3–4 letters) are often harder — there are fewer letters to work from. Long words (8+) are often easier because each correct guess reveals a lot of structure.
• Watch for uncommon letters last: Q, X, Z, J, K, V, W are rarely worth early guesses.