300+ Kenyan Words to Describe: The Ultimate Game Night Word List

Every describing game — 50-50, charades, Heads Up, Taboo — runs on one thing: a good word list. Generic imported lists are the reason these games fall flat in Kenya. Nobody wants to act out "lawnmower". They want "kanjo", "mursik" and "Nyayo era". Here is a free list you can screenshot and use tonight, sorted so you can pitch it at the right crowd.

How to use it: pick a category, have the Caller describe words without saying them, and run a 50- or 60-second timer. Five points a word, first team to 100 wins if you want a quick game.

Easy: everyone in the room will get these

Food and drink

• Ugali · Sukuma wiki · Nyama choma · Chapati · Githeri · Mandazi
• Mukimo · Pilau · Samosa · Mutura · Kachumbari · Uji
• Chai ya maziwa · Tusker · Stoney · Blue Band · Royco · Mursik

Everyday life

• Matatu · Boda boda · Tuk tuk · Kanjo · Mama mboga · Duka
• M-Pesa · Fare · Conductor · Traffic jam · Jua kali · Kibanda
• Shamba · Jiko · Sufuria · Kanga · Gumboots · Paraffin lamp

Places

• Nairobi · Mombasa · Kisumu · Nakuru · Eldoret · Nyeri
• Mount Kenya · Maasai Mara · Lake Victoria · Diani · Naivasha · Rift Valley
• Uhuru Park · KICC · Gikomba · Nyayo Stadium · Thika Road · Likoni Ferry

Medium: fun to describe, harder to land

Music and entertainment

• Gengetone · Benga · Ohangla · Taarab · Genge · Kapuka
• Sauti Sol · Eric Wainaina · Nameless · Jua Cali · Nonini · Wahu
• Churchill Show · Vioja Mahakamani · Tahidi High · Papa Shirandula · Machachari · Mother-in-Law

Sport

• Harambee Stars · Gor Mahia · AFC Leopards · Kenya Sevens · Safari Rally
• Eliud Kipchoge · David Rudisha · Catherine Ndereba · Kipchoge Keino · Ezekiel Kemboi
• Iten · Kasarani · Nyayo National Stadium · Marathon · Steeplechase

Sheng and slang

• Sasa · Poa · Fiti · Buda · Msee · Mzee
• Chapaa · Doo · Ganji · Mulla · Kitu kidogo · Kubali
• Nimeshika · Mabeshte · Manzi · Dere · Rada · Noma

Hard: for the people who think they are good at this

History and politics

• Mau Mau · Harambee · Uhuru · Jamhuri Day · Madaraka Day · Nyayo era
• Dedan Kimathi · Mekatilili wa Menza · Tom Mboya · Wangari Maathai · Koitalel arap Samoei
• Devolution · Referendum · County government · Green Belt Movement · Independence 1963

Culture and tradition

• Ruracio · Kitchen party · Sherehe · Chama · Merry-go-round · Ushago
• Kiondo · Maasai shuka · Kikoi · Beadwork · Isukuti · Mugithi
• Ngoma · Ohangla dancer · Circumcision season · Dowry negotiation · Send-off

Modern Kenya

• SGR · Expressway · Hustler fund · Sacco · Boda boda app · Fintech
• Silicon Savannah · Konza · Fibre internet · Data bundles · Influencer · TikTok trend
• Loadshedding · Fuel prices · CBC curriculum · Huduma Centre · e-Citizen

Rules that make a word list play well

• Never say the word, any part of it, or its translation. That includes the Kiswahili and Sheng versions.
• Mix the difficulties inside a single round. Three easy words then a hard one keeps the energy up.
• If a word is regional, let the team challenge it and swap it out. Nobody has fun losing on a word they have never heard.
• Rotate the Caller every round so the same person is not carrying the team.
• Keep the timer visible. Half the fun is watching the last five seconds.

Or skip the list entirely

Screenshotting a list works, but somebody has to hold the phone, hide the screen, keep score and watch the clock — usually the same person, who then never gets to play. Karibu Play's Kenya@50 does all of that for you: home-grown Kenyan words, a built-in timer, automatic scoring, and a Charades mode where the phone goes on your forehead. It is free in the browser, one phone for the whole room, and the word bank keeps growing so you are not re-reading the same list every game night.