Drawing tips for history & famous people
Eras are one costume and one prop: a toga and a column, a cowboy hat and a cactus, a bowler hat and a steam train. Famous people are their signature silhouette or invention (a kite and a key, a light bulb, a wild-haired professor at a chalkboard). Events are the scene: a flag on the moon, a ship and an iceberg.
Who this category suits
It is the category for history teachers and trivia-loving families; the hard tier is a proper challenge for adults. There are 82 easy words, 109 medium and 107 hard, so it works as a whole-game theme rather than a single round: set the difficulty from the menu above and the pool moves with the table. 2 of the words are grown-up references that only appear with the Adults audience; the rest are safe for everyone. A round idea: Timeline round: after each correct guess the team must place the word before or after the previous one in time.
The full history & famous people list
All 298 words, grouped by difficulty. The letter after each word is its classic card category (P, O, A or D); hover to see the name.
Easy (82)
- Stone ageP
- Caveman clubO
- Stone axeO
- Stone wheelO
- Ancient egyptP
- PharaohP
- HieroglyphicsO
- King tutP
- CleopatraP
- SarcophagusO
- Roman soldierP
- Roman helmetO
- Greek columnO
- Laurel wreathO
- The wild westP
- SheriffP
- Sheriff's badgeO
- Wanted posterO
- Covered wagonO
- StagecoachO
- LassoO
- SwordO
- Bow and arrowO
- SpearO
- CannonO
- Viking helmetO
- Viking shipO
- QuillO
- Ancient scrollO
- ThroneO
- ScepterO
- TorchO
- Treasure chestO
- Message in a bottleO
- Pirate hatO
- Pirate flagO
- SpyglassO
- BlacksmithP
- AnvilO
- HorseshoeO
- Town crierP
- JesterP
- ArcherP
- PeasantP
- Palace guardP
- ExplorerP
- Castle moatO
- Gold barO
- Pilgrim hatO
- The mayflowerO
- George washingtonP
- Abraham lincolnP
- ShakespeareP
- Leonardo da vinciP
- The mona lisaO
- Christopher columbusP
- NapoleonP
- King arthurP
- MerlinP
- The sword in the stoneO
- BlackbeardP
- HerculesP
- ZeusP
- MedusaP
- Trojan horseO
- CyclopsP
- MinotaurP
- PoseidonP
- JoustingA
- Sword fightA
- Panning for goldA
- Walking the plankA
- The liberty bellO
- Stovepipe hatO
- Totem poleO
- Oil lampO
- Spinning wheelO
- Butter churnO
- PlowO
- BrontosaurusP
- DragonP
- PegasusP
Other categories
Animals · Food & Drink · Household Objects · Actions & Verbs · Places · People & Jobs · all 24 categories. For the rules of a round, see how to play Pictionary; for a five-word card built from any category, use the classic card generator.
Last updated September 2026. Independent list; Pictionary® is a trademark of Mattel, Inc.