How to Play Trivial Pursuit

Co-authored by Our Family Plays Games

Last Updated: May 1, 2024 Fact Checked

VIDEO

Trivial Pursuit is a super fun trivia board game. The goal of the game is simple: answer trivia questions and try to be the first player to answer a question correctly in each category. Trivial Pursuit is a great opportunity to show off your knowledge of history, pop culture, science, art, literature, sports, and more. Keep reading to learn all the rules of the game!

Part 1

Part 1 of 2:

Setting Up the Game

Download Article

1
Familiarize yourself with the board's layout. The Trivial Pursuit game board is shaped like a 6-spoke wheel. Players begin at the center, then move out to earn a wedge from each of the wedge-marked spaces where a spoke meets the outer wheel, and finally return to the center to answer a final question. On all but the oldest sets, a "Roll Again" space is set two spaces to either side of each wedge space.^{[1]
X
Research source}
- The wedge spaces are six spaces out from the center space.
2
Decide whether to play as individuals or teams. Trivial Pursuit is designed for up to six players or teams. If more than six people want to play, or if players aren't comfortable playing by themselves, you may wish to divide into teams. Team play is a bit more casual and may work well if you are having a party.^{[2]
X
Research source}
- The benefits as a team would be that you have more minds available to answer questions.
Advertisement
Before you start playing, you should figure out if you will play by any special rules. For example, you may want to set a time limit for answering questions. If you do set a time limit, make sure that you have a timer handy. Or, you may want to set a rule that players must be very specific about their answers, such as with names or dates.^{[3]
X
Research source}
4
Choose a playing token. There are six playing tokens in different colors. The colors are blue, green, yellow, pink, brown, and orange. Playing tokens are circular in shape with slots for the wedges. Place a token at the center of the board for each player or team.^{[4]
X
Research source}
- Some editions of Trivial Pursuit include track pawns that match the color of the pie pieces. You can use one of these track pawns to keep track of your spot on the board and use the pie token to keep track of your score.^{[5]
  X
  Research source}
5
Get out the question cards. Older editions of Trivial Pursuit come with two cardboard boxes full of questions. With these editions, if players are divided into two teams, you may wish to give one box to each team; if players are divided otherwise, you may wish to use only one box at a time.^{[6]
X
Research source}
- Some editions, such as the 25th Anniversary Edition, have one plastic box for each category; in this case, place each box by the matching color wedge.
The player or the team with the highest roll starts the game. After the first player goes, play passes to the left (clockwise). If two or more players or teams tie for the highest roll, have them roll again to see who starts.^{[7]
X
Research source}

Part 2

Part 2 of 2:

Playing Trivial Pursuit

Download Article

1
Roll the die and move your pie the number of spaces indicated on the die. You can move your token in any one legal direction: toward a wedge or toward the center when on a spoke, clockwise or counterclockwise when on the outer wheel. You can also move from a spoke to the outer wheel or from the outer wheel to a spoke. However, you cannot reverse direction in the middle of a roll.^{[8]
X
Research source}
- If you land on a "Roll Again" space, roll the die again. (You can move in any legal direction, including the opposite direction from your previous roll.)
2
Move again if you give the correct answer. In Trivial Pursuit, you get to move again if you give the right answer. You can keep rolling, moving, and answering questions until you get one wrong. Just keep in mind that the questions you answer must correspond with the color space you land on. For example, if you land on a blue space, then you must answer a blue question.^{[9]
X
Research source}
- If you are in the center space and have not earned all six wedges, you may answer a question in any category of your choice.
- In the 25th Anniversary Edition, the question you must answer is also determined by the roll of the die, as each box contains questions for a single category. The higher you roll, the more difficult the question you receive.
3
Earn pie pieces if you land on a wedge space and give the right answer. You can earn pie pieces by correctly answering questions, but you can only earn a pie piece when you are on a pie space. These spaces look different from the others on the board because they show an image of the pie token with a wedge in it.^{[10]
X
Research source}
- For example, if you land on a brown wedge space and answer the question correctly, then you would earn a brown pie piece.
4
Keep playing until someone has all six wedges. When a player gets all six pie pieces, that player may begin moving to the center or the board. You must keep rolling and moving each turn as usual until you get to the center space on the board. You need to roll the exact number of spaces to get to the center space.^{[11]
X
Research source}
- Keep in mind that you may spend several turns coming up short of or overshooting the center until you land on it.
5
Answer a question in a category chosen by the other players. When you get to the center space, your fellow players may choose any category and ask you a question from that category. If you answer this question correctly, you win the game. If you miss it, your turn ends, and play passes to the next player or team.^{[12]
X
Research source}
- The other players may not look at the questions before choosing the category. They must select the category without looking at the card and then read the question.
- If you miss the question, you will have to roll again during your next turn and try to answer a different question when you get into the center space again.

Community Q&A

Search

Add New Question

Question

Can two players be on the same spot?

Community Answer

Yes. Due to the way the board is laid out and how the flow of the game works, it's possible for multiple players to be on one spot and within the rules too.

Thanks! We're glad this was helpful.
Thank you for your feedback.
If wikiHow has helped you, please consider a small contribution to support us in helping more readers like you. We’re committed to providing the world with free how-to resources, and even $1 helps us in our mission. Support wikiHow
Yes No

Not Helpful 4 Helpful 15
Question

Do I have to give the answer if a player gets it wrong?

Llp33

Community Answer

It is a fun part of the game to learn the answers, so it is recommended but not required. (Plus, if the question comes back some other time, you'll know the answer!)

Thanks! We're glad this was helpful.
Thank you for your feedback.
If wikiHow has helped you, please consider a small contribution to support us in helping more readers like you. We’re committed to providing the world with free how-to resources, and even $1 helps us in our mission. Support wikiHow
Yes No

Not Helpful 8 Helpful 12
Question

What do I do if I already have that color wedge?

Community Answer

You don't take a wedge that turn. You only take a wedge when you get a question right and don't have that wedge.

Thanks! We're glad this was helpful.
Thank you for your feedback.
If wikiHow has helped you, please consider a small contribution to support us in helping more readers like you. We’re committed to providing the world with free how-to resources, and even $1 helps us in our mission. Support wikiHow
Yes No

Not Helpful 16 Helpful 22

See more answers

Ask a Question

200 characters left

Include your email address to get a message when this question is answered.

Submit

Video

Read Video Transcript

Tips

Look for clues within the question to help you answer it, such as "Where are Dungarees made?" (The answer is "Dungarees, India.")

Thanks
Helpful 3 Not Helpful 2
Some versions of Trivial Pursuit, such as the Know-It-All Edition, use score sheets in place of a game board.

Thanks
Helpful 0 Not Helpful 1

Submit a Tip

All tip submissions are carefully reviewed before being published

Name

Please provide your name and last initial

Submit

Thanks for submitting a tip for review!

Warnings

Be aware that older editions of Trivial Pursuit may contain information that was correct when the game was first released but has been superseded by new information. This is particularly true in the case of sports and entertainment award statistics. You may need to look up certain answers a player gives that don't match what's printed on the card.

Thanks
Helpful 9 Not Helpful 3
Be aware that some questions in some Trivial Pursuit editions may have deliberately placed incorrect answers. One edition supposedly identifies Superman as a Marvel Comics character, when in fact, Superman is a DC Comics character.

Thanks
Helpful 7 Not Helpful 5