Play Name, Animal, Place, Thing online with friends

What is NOUN?

Name, Place, Animal, Thing is a pen-and-paper game played in classrooms, on long trips and around kitchen tables all over the world, under many local names such as Stop, Petit Bac or Stadt Land Fluss. Everyone gets the same letter and writes one word for each category. The fun is in the rush: your mind goes blank on "an animal starting with U", then you remember a word you're sure nobody else will have.

Ping44 calls it NOUN, because every answer is one. The online version keeps the shared letter, the race and the debates over what counts, and drops the chores: nobody has to keep time, shout "stop", compare lists or add up scores.

Want different categories, like Food, Movie or ones you type yourself? That's Flexi Noun, the same game with categories the host chooses.

How to play NOUN

1. A letter is picked. Each round, the next player in turn chooses a letter not used yet in the game. If they don't choose in time, a random one is picked.
2. Everyone answers at once. Type a Name, an Animal, a Place and a Thing that each start with the letter. You can leave a box blank if you're stuck.
3. Beat the clock. You have 10 to 30 seconds, set by the host. The round ends when everyone has sent their answers or time runs out; whatever you typed is sent for you.
4. Review in secret. Each player is given one other player's answers to check. Tick the answers that fit the category and start with the letter. Only ticked answers score.
5. See the results, with everyone's answers and points. Then a new round starts with a new letter.
6. Win the game. After the last round, the player with the most points wins.

The letter

The letters are A to Z, each used once per game, so a game has at most 26 rounds. Accents don't change the letter: "Éclair" counts for E.

Reviewing answers

• Every player checks exactly one other player's answers, never their own.
• Blank answers and answers that don't start with the round's letter are rejected automatically, even if a reviewer ticks them.
• Reviewers have 2 minutes. If people are still checking, the host can add a minute, up to five times.
• When the review time runs out, a review is sent as it stands: answers that weren't ticked score nothing.
• After the round, the host can fix the scores once, say to accept a good answer a reviewer missed.

NOUN settings on Ping44

The host sets these in Game settings before starting:

• Mode: Classic Noun (Name, Animal, Place, Thing) or Flexi-Noun, where you choose 4 to 6 categories.
• Total number of rounds: 1 to 26. The default is 26, the whole alphabet.
• Round timer: 10 to 30 seconds to fill in the answers. The default is 30.
• Letter pick timer: 5 to 10 seconds to choose the letter. The default is 5.
• Auto-start next round: on by default. The next round begins 30 seconds after the results, and the host can pause the countdown.
• No timer for first round: the first round waits for everyone, so new players can learn without pressure.

Scoring on Ping44

The server scores every round:

• 10 points for an accepted answer that nobody else wrote.
• 5 points for an accepted answer that someone else also wrote. Answers are compared letter for letter, ignoring capitals and accents, so "Éléphant" and "elephant" are the same answer.
• 0 points for a blank, rejected or wrong-letter answer.
• 10-point speed bonus for the player who sent their answers first, if they also have the round's top score. If players tie, each of them gets it.

A perfect Classic round is worth 50 points: four unique answers plus the bonus. The round's top scorer gets a round win in their stats, and the most points after the last round wins the game.

Tips and strategy

• Go for the unusual answer. For B, "Bear" will probably be shared. "Bison" or "Barracuda" is more likely to be yours alone, and that's twice the points.
• Fill the easy boxes first. Get three answers down, then use the time left on the hard one. A blank costs 10 points at most.
• Don't rush in with blanks for the bonus. It only goes to the fastest player if they also top the round.
• Pick letters with a plan. When it's your turn to choose, pick a letter you know good, rare answers for. Late in a long game the letters left tend to be the hard ones, so have a few Q, X and Z answers ready.
• Review fairly and quickly. The whole table waits for the last review, and the host can fix scores only once per round.

How to start a game of NOUN on Ping44

1. Go to ping44.com, sign in with email or Google (it's free) and create a room. Only the host needs an account: friends can join as guests by just picking a name.
2. Share the room: send the invite link, read out the 6-character room code, or let friends scan the QR code.
3. In the lobby, choose NOUN as the game, then pick Classic Noun as the mode in Game settings. Set the rounds and timers.
4. When at least 2 players are in, start the game. Anyone who'd rather watch can follow along as a spectator.

Why play NOUN on Ping44

• No arguing about the clock or the math. The server times every round, checks every letter, finds the unique answers and adds up the scores.
• Fair, secret reviews. You only see the answers you're reviewing until the results come out, and a reviewer can't accept an answer with the wrong letter.
• Room for everyone. Up to 100 players can play in one game.
• Voice chat built in. The host can turn it on when creating the room, and there's text chat with emote reactions too.
• Free, with no ads and no download. It runs in the browser on phones, tablets and computers.
• Stats that stick. Signed-in players keep their points and wins, with leaderboards and achievements.
• More games in the same room. When you've had enough letters, the host can switch to Word Chain or 20 Questions without anyone leaving. See all our word games.

Frequently asked questions