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Taboo box
Box image: Toycra

Party word game · Indian edition available

Taboo

Get your team to guess the word without saying the obvious ones

Players
4–10
Best with
6-8
Play time
20–60 min
Age
13+
Rules
Easy
Language
Needs English

Taboo is Hasbro's team word-guessing party game: you describe the word on your card so your team can guess it, without saying any of the five 'taboo' words printed below it, before the sand timer runs out. It suits teenagers and adults who are comfortable in English, in groups of four or more. Genuine Taboo is sold in India right now: Hasbro India's Classic Taboo is made in India and cost ₹1,670-1,999 at Indian stores in October 2026, so there is no need for an imported copy.

Is Taboo right for your table?

A good pick for

  • Big groups of teenagers and adults who enjoy talking, interrupting and laughing
  • Festival nights and family get-togethers where people split easily into teams, such as cousins against cousins
  • Teenagers who read English well and like word play
  • Taking along to a friend's place: Hasbro offers a free online buzzer, timer and scoreboard, so the card box alone is enough

Skip it if

  • Some of your group are not comfortable in English, since every card and clue is in English
  • You usually play with only two or three people; you need at least four for two teams
  • Most of your players are under 13, the age Hasbro recommends

How Taboo plays

Split into two even teams and sit so the two teams alternate around the table, which makes it easy to keep an eye on each other. The cards are colour-coded: pick one colour for the whole game and stack the cards so that colour is face down.

On your team's turn, one player describes and the rest of the team guesses. A player from the other team holds the squeaker and reads the card over the describer's shoulder. Start the sand timer, flip a card and describe the Guess word at the top without saying it or any of the five Taboo words listed under it. Imagine a card asking for 'biryani' with rice, spicy, chicken, Hyderabad and dum all barred, and you will see why it gets funny.

The other team squeaks you if you say any part of a word on the card, use a plural or a short form such as 'TV' for television, make gestures or sound effects, or give 'sounds like', 'rhymes with' or 'starts with' hints. Singing is allowed. You may skip a card whenever you like, but it costs you.

When the timer runs out, your team scores 1 point for each card it guessed, and the other team scores 1 point for each card you skipped or were squeaked on. Then the other team plays, with a new describer every round. Once everyone has described the same number of times, the team with more points wins; if it is a tie, each team takes one more turn.

Takes about 5 minutes to teach. Every card is in English, and the describer has to find other English words on the spot under time pressure. Guessers need a good vocabulary too. We found no Hindi or other Indian-language edition.

Buying Taboo in India

Genuine Taboo is sold and made in India. Hasbro's rules sheet for Classic Taboo (F5254) says 'Made in India' and gives an India consumer helpline, Hamleys and FirstCry list India as the country of origin, and Toycra and Hamleys name Hasbro India Toys Pvt. Ltd. (Mumbai). On 5 October 2026 it was in stock at Toycra (₹1,855) and Hamleys (₹1,999). It is also sold on Amazon.in. Imported American copies cost far more; they are genuine but unnecessary.

The current box is Hasbro's Classic Taboo (item F5254, a 2023 remaster): 212 cards with 848 Guess words, a squeaker, a notepad and a sand timer. The earlier box (A4626, sold in India as E2616) had 162 cards and a 'game-changer' die; Toycra lists it as out of stock and Hamleys as unavailable. Hasbro also makes Midnight Taboo (adults only, listed at Hamleys), Taboo Uncensored (17+) and Taboo Junior. Special versions such as Taboo Buzz'd or the Disney edition appear on Amazon.in at import prices or without a price.

How to make sure you get a genuine copy

Clone risk: High
  • Look for Hasbro or Hasbro Gaming on the box and in the listing's brand field. The current Indian box is black with a colourful pattern and the Taboo logo.
  • Check the contents. The current genuine box has 212 cards (848 Guess words), a squeaker, a notepad and a sand timer. The older genuine box had 162 cards and a die. A listing that does not match either is a warning sign.
  • Check the price. On 5 October 2026 genuine Taboo cost ₹1,670-1,999 at Indian stores. It is also sold on Amazon.in. Unbranded 'Taboo' boxes at ₹600-800, or 'Hasbro Taboo' at ₹599 against an inflated MRP, deserve suspicion.
  • The rules sheet of the Indian box says 'Made in India', shows item code F5254 and states that Taboo is a trademark of Hersch and Company.
  • Avoid listings where the brand is an unknown name, the title has spelling slips, and there are only a handful of reviews.

Amazon.in has several unbranded boxes titled 'Taboo Board Game' at ₹600-800 (with a claimed MRP of ₹1,999) and only a few reviews, plus a few titled 'Hasbro Taboo' at ₹599 against an MRP of ₹2,960 with no reviews. Taboo is a trademark of Hersch and Company and is published by Hasbro, so a 'Taboo' from any other brand is not the real game; we could not confirm what those boxes contain.

If Taboo isn't quite right

Codenames box

Codenames

2–8 players15 min14+
from ₹1,899 genuine

Another team word game, with one-word clues and a grid of 25 words instead of a timer

Guess in 10 box

Guess in 10

2–6 players20 min6+
from ₹312 genuine

Skillmatics' made-in-India question-and-clue game that younger children can also play

Dixit box

Dixit

3–8 players30 min8+
from ₹3,999 genuine

Clue-giving with dreamlike pictures instead of words, so it works across ages and languages

Questions people ask about Taboo

Is genuine Taboo sold in India?

Yes. Hasbro India sells Classic Taboo, and Hasbro's own rules sheet for this box says it is made in India. On 5 October 2026 it was in stock at Toycra for ₹1,855 and Hamleys for ₹1,999. It is also sold on Amazon.in. Imported copies at ₹6,000 or more are not needed.

What age is Taboo suitable for?

Hasbro rates it for ages 13 and up and for 4 or more players. The cards assume a good English vocabulary, so younger children may struggle. Hasbro has made a Taboo Junior for younger players, but we did not find it at the Indian stores we checked.

Is there a Hindi version of Taboo?

We did not find one. Hasbro India's Classic Taboo has English cards only. If your group prefers Hindi or another language, a picture-based game such as Dixit may suit you better.

What is the difference between the old and new Taboo boxes?

The current Classic Taboo has 212 cards with 848 Guess words, a squeaker, a notepad and a sand timer, and it is made in India. The older box had 162 cards and a 'game-changer' die that adds rule twists. Both are genuine Hasbro games, but Indian stores now mostly stock the newer one.

Sources

Facts on this page come from the publisher, Indian distributors and the store listings below. Prices were checked on 5 October 2026.

Prototype notes for review (won't appear on the live site)
  • Amazon match: exact link, medium confidence. Listing title seen: "Taboo Board Game|Word Guessing Party for Adults and Teens|Ages 13+|for 4+ Players|Hilarious Party Games".
  • How it was found: COMPOSIO_SEARCH_AMAZON on amazon.in, 5 October 2026. Query 'Hasbro Taboo game': position 1, ASIN B0B3FXMB7Q, ₹1,299 (MRP ₹1,999), 1,900 reviews, 4.6 stars, '50+ bought in past month'. It also came up for 'Taboo board game' (position 7) and 'Hasbro Gaming Classic Taboo 212 cards' (position 6). Alternatives seen: imported Hasbro Taboo listings such as B06XYL6Y5C (₹6,195, 6,500 reviews), B0BPMHQK8M (₹8,091) and B0BT284KJF (₹10,063); Midnight Taboo B01ISKSSZM (₹4,612).
  • Play time and maximum players: Hasbro gives no play time and says '4+ players'. The 20-60 minutes and 4-10 players are from Wikipedia's infobox. The best count of 6-8 is an editorial choice.
  • Original publisher in 1989: Wikipedia says Parker Brothers (citing BoardGameGeek), while vintage boxes sold online carry Milton Bradley. Not resolved, so only Hasbro is named.
  • Amazon.in ASIN B0B3FXMB7Q: the brand and seller were not shown on Amazon.in. Its identity as Hasbro's F5254 comes from the same ASIN on Amazon.com and Amazon.ca. Whether Amazon.in ships Indian-made or imported stock was not confirmed.
  • FirstCry: the price is worked out from its MRP (₹1,855) and listed 10% discount. Its description mentions the older box's game-changer die while giving India as the country of origin, so the edition is unclear. Stock depends on delivery pincode.
  • Toycra's F5254 page leaves the country of origin blank. 'Made in India' comes from Hasbro's F5254 rules sheet and from Hamleys and FirstCry.
  • Hamleys' contents field says '12 cards (848 Guess words)', which looks like a typo for 212.
  • The cheap 'Hasbro Taboo' and unbranded 'Taboo' listings on Amazon.in were not examined beyond their search results, so they are flagged as suspicious, not confirmed fakes.
  • Whether the F5254 cards include many US-specific pop-culture words was not checked.