parlor game

noun

: a game suitable for playing indoors

Examples of parlor game in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Be sure to check out the ever-changing roster of activities, including country excursions outfitted by outerwear company Barbour and parlor games featuring Checkers, Tic Tac Toe, and Connect 4 designed by Edie Parker. — Christina Pérez, Vogue, 9 Oct. 2026 On the reality competition show, a group of contestants plays a live-action game of social deduction similar to parlor games like Mafia. — Angeline Jane Bernabe, ABC News, 17 Sep. 2026 For three days, trying to crack the mystery became Telluride’s unofficial parlor game. — Los Angeles Times, 7 Sep. 2026 The sibling drama, meanwhile, rather fades out of view amid these loftier goings-on; the film’s narrative begins to feel devised by the old parlor game Consequences, repeatedly wrenched in erratic new directions. — Guy Lodge, Variety, 31 Aug. 2026 See All Example Sentences for parlor game

Word History

First Known Use

1854, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of parlor game was in 1854

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Cite this Entry

“Parlor game.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/parlor%20game. Accessed 20 Oct. 2026.

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