Frequently asked questions

Quick answers to the questions that come up most often, from setting up a room to the rules that decide close calls. New to the game? Start with how to play.

Getting started

How many people can play ThoughtMatch?

From 3 to 12 players in a room. You need one Dener and at least two others, because a contact needs a clue giver and someone to make contact with them. The game is liveliest with 4 to 8 players, when there are enough clues on the table to keep the Dener busy.

Do I need an account or an app?

No. ThoughtMatch runs in your web browser on phones, tablets and computers. Type a name, host a game or join one with a code, and you're playing. Nothing to download, nothing to sign up for.

How do I invite friends?

When you host a game, the lobby shows a six-character room code and a "Copy invite link" button. Send the link, and your friends land on a screen that asks for their name and drops them straight into your room. They can also open the game and type the code under "Got a room code?".

Is it free?

Yes. ThoughtMatch is free to play. Ads on our articles and guides help pay for the servers. There are no ads during a game.

Rules and close calls

What exactly is a contact?

When you think you know the private word behind someone else's clue, you press Contact! and type it. A ten-second window starts. When it ends, the game compares the words. If everyone who joined the contact wrote the same word as the clue giver, the contact holds and the Dener has to reveal the next letter of the secret word.

Can more than one person join a contact?

Yes. Anyone except the Dener and the clue giver can join while the ten seconds run. Be careful, though: every person in the contact has to match. If one person writes a different word, the whole contact fails.

Can two contacts run at once?

No. Only one contact runs at a time. While it does, you can join it, but you can't start a contact on another clue until it finishes. This gives the Dener a fair chance to focus on one clue.

What happens to the words in a failed contact?

The other players see what everyone wrote, so you can learn from the mix-up. The Dener doesn't see those words, and they stay free to be clued again in the same round.

When can the Dener break a clue?

At any time, including during the contact window. The Dener types a word into their guess box, and it's checked against every open clue at once. Every clue it matches is broken, the word is revealed to everyone, and no letter is given away. The Dener can guess as many times as they like. Speed is the only limit.

What happens when a new letter is revealed?

Every clue must start with all of the revealed letters. When a new letter appears, open clues whose words no longer fit are cancelled automatically, and their words stay hidden.

What if a contact lands on the secret word itself?

Then the players win the round straight away. It only counts if the contact holds, meaning every contacter wrote that same word.

Words and clues

What counts as the same word?

Capital letters and extra spaces don't matter. Singular and plural count as the same word, so "apple" and "apples" match, as do "berry" and "berries". Different words with similar meanings, like "plane" and "jet", do not match.

Why was my word rejected?

Secret words and clue words must:

• be real dictionary words, using letters only;
• start with the letters already revealed;
• not repeat a word that's already been used this round.

Common proper nouns are in the word list: countries, big cities, days, months, festivals, languages and nationalities, so "india", "london", "friday" and "holi" all work. People's names are left out on purpose, so private references can't decide a game. The secret word also has to be 4 to 15 letters long.

If your group wants looser rules, the host can change the Words setting. Any word accepts any word made of letters, and Hinglish does the same while matching Hindi spellings loosely, so "accha", "acha" and "achha" all count as one word. Rude words are blocked in every mode.

Can my clue mention names or in-jokes?

Yes. The clue text can say anything, as long as it doesn't contain the word itself (or its plural or singular). Shared references are often the best clues. See writing great clues. Just keep them gettable: if the Dener thinks only one friend could know it, they can flag it as an inside reference, and the rest of the players vote on whether it's fair. A clue they void scores nothing.

How many clues can I have open?

Up to three of your own at a time. There's no limit on the total number of clues on the table.

Rooms and connections

What happens if my connection drops?

Your seat is held for about 20 seconds. If you reconnect in that time, or simply reload the page, you're back in the same room with the same score. After that you're treated as having left. If the Dener leaves mid-round, that round doesn't count and the game moves on.

Who controls the game settings?

The host: the person who created the room. They choose how the next Dener is picked, whether there's a round timer, and how many rounds to play. If the host leaves, the player who has been in the room longest becomes host.

Can I play on a video call or in Discord?

Yes. Many groups play in the browser while talking on a call or in a Discord voice channel. The game night guide has tips.

Scoring and winning

How many guesses do players get at the secret word?

Three per round, shared by the whole team. Any player can suggest a guess, and the rest of the team votes on it: it's only spent if everyone agrees within 20 seconds. If all three guesses are wrong, the Dener wins the round.

How else can the Dener win?

The Dener also wins if the optional round timer runs out, or if most of the other players vote to give up.

How are points awarded?