Phrase Squares
| No. of Players: | 1+ |
| Type of Game: | written |
| What you need: | pen and paper |
Goal
To fill a square grid with letters from a phrase to form interlocking words.
How to play
This game is a variation of Word Squares. Players challenge themselves and others to arrange the letters of a 25-letter phrase into a five-by-five word square. One player provides the other players with a phrase and the first player to successfully create a word square from its letters is the winner. This game can also be played in reverse: a completed word square is provided to the other players who must then arrange its letters into a phrase. A hint can also be provided for the phrase. To ease gameplay even further, the word square need not form words that read the same horizontally and vertically. Shorter phrases (e.g., 16-letter) with smaller word squares (e.g., four-by-four) can also be used.
Example
Andrew and Bianca challenge each other to create a five-by-five word square with letters that can also be re-arranged to form a 25-letter phrase. Below are the phrases and squares they created.
Andrew
Engineering tortuous tenets.
Bianca
Thirteen bees burden Sam Rear.
In case you're wondering, the images under the title of this word game form a rebus puzzle:
TRASH - T + PH - H + E + SQUARES = PHRASE SQUARES
