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Family Conversation Starters — Free Question Cards Online

Dinner table questions that work across generations, road trip questions for the back seat, and versions written for kids and teens who normally answer in one word.

Play these as cards → 420 questions · 7 decks · all free

Decks in this category

Christmas Questions

For the long lunch, the relatives you see once a year, and the hours after.

  1. What's the best Christmas present you've ever received?
  2. What's the worst one, and who's responsible?
  3. What's the food on this table you'd fight for?
  4. What's a Christmas song you'd ban?
  5. What's been the best part of your year?
  6. What was harder than you expected this year?
  7. What are you glad you did?
  8. What do you want to leave behind in this year?
  9. Who's missing from this table, and what do you miss most about them?
  10. What's a Christmas that changed something in this family?
  11. What do you wish this family talked about honestly?
  12. What's the hardest thing you've been through this year?

All 60 christmas questions →

Questions for Kids

Questions that get more than “fine” and “nothing”.

  1. If you could have any animal as a pet, what are you picking?
  2. What would you do if you were in charge of the whole house for a day?
  3. What's the funniest thing that happened today?
  4. If you could only eat one dinner forever, what is it?
  5. What was the best part of your day, and the worst?
  6. What's something you're really good at?
  7. What made you laugh today?
  8. Who was kind to you today?
  9. What's something that worries you?
  10. When do you feel happiest?
  11. What makes you feel safe?
  12. What's something you wish you could tell me but haven't?

All 60 questions for kids →

Questions for Teens

Questions that don't get an eye-roll and a closed door.

  1. What's the best thing you've watched recently?
  2. What's something everyone's into that you don't get?
  3. What would you do with a completely free weekend?
  4. What's the most useless thing you've learned at school?
  5. What's actually been hard lately?
  6. What do you wish people asked you about?
  7. What's something you're worried about that you haven't mentioned?
  8. What kind of person do you want to be?
  9. What's something you've never told anyone?
  10. When did you last feel really alone?
  11. What's in your head at 1am on a bad night?
  12. What are you most afraid of at the moment?

All 60 questions for teens →

Dinner Table Questions

One card per plate. Works for family dinners and dinner parties alike.

  1. What was the best part of your day?
  2. What's something that made you laugh today?
  3. What's the best thing on this table?
  4. If you cooked dinner tomorrow, what are we having?
  5. What's something you've been thinking about lately?
  6. What's a decision you're weighing up at the moment?
  7. What's something that's been harder than you expected?
  8. What do you wish you had more time for?
  9. What's something you've never said at this table?
  10. When did you last feel really understood?
  11. What do you need from the people here?
  12. What's something you're struggling with quietly?

All 60 dinner table questions →

Family Conversation Starters

Questions that work whether the table is four people or fourteen.

  1. What's the best thing that happened to you today?
  2. What's a family story that gets told every single year?
  3. What's the best meal that's ever come out of this kitchen?
  4. If our family had a motto, what would it be?
  5. What's something about your childhood you've never told us?
  6. What did you worry about at my age?
  7. What's a decision in your life you'd make differently?
  8. What do you wish this family talked about more?
  9. What's the hardest thing you've never told this family?
  10. What do you think we've all agreed not to talk about?
  11. Who in this family do you wish you were closer to, and why aren't you?
  12. What's a loss in this family that still shapes us?

All 60 family conversation starters →

Road Trip Questions

For hour three, when the playlist has run out and nobody wants another podcast.

  1. Best road trip snack, and no wrong answers except yours?
  2. What's the best journey you've ever taken?
  3. If we could stop anywhere on this route, where?
  4. What's the worst car you've ever been in?
  5. What have you got right this year?
  6. What did you think your life would look like by now?
  7. What's something you'd do if you had six months free?
  8. What's a place that changed something in you?
  9. What's something you've never said out loud?
  10. What are you running from at the moment?
  11. What do you want your life to be about?
  12. What's the hardest year you've had?

All 60 road trip questions →

Thanksgiving Questions

For a long table, mixed generations, and at least one conversation nobody wants to have.

  1. What's the best thing on this table, and who made it?
  2. What's a Thanksgiving dish that should be retired?
  3. What's your earliest memory of this holiday?
  4. Who in this family is the best cook, and be brave?
  5. What are you genuinely grateful for this year — not the easy answer?
  6. Who helped you this year, and have you told them?
  7. What was the hardest month of your year?
  8. What's something you're proud of that hasn't come up today?
  9. What's a story about this family that should be told before it's forgotten?
  10. Who's missing from this table, and what would they have said today?
  11. What's the hardest year this family has been through together?
  12. What do you wish you'd asked your parents or grandparents while you could?

All 60 thanksgiving questions →

Three levels deep

Light

Easy openers. Safe for anyone.

Deeper

Personal, but not heavy.

Deepest

The ones that stay with you.