Inside: What is the Grinch drinking game and how do I play?

Christmas season is upon us, and you know what that means…CHRISTMAS DRINKING GAMES! I know that may not be the direction that you thought I was going in, but alas…here we are. 

As I got older, I tried to find new ways to bring back that childlike wonder that I used to feel when I was a child. I don’t think Christmas will ever quite be the same as when I thought Santa was real…s o I have come up with some ways to make it magical for ADULT me.

And yes, that involves alcohol. But, you can really make a drinking game out of ANYTHING.

The Ultimate Guide Grinch Drinking Game

So today, we are going to discuss one of my all-time favorite drinking games that you can only play during the holiday season. Drum roll, please… it’s the Grinch drinking game!  I have created the ultimate how-to guide to playing this game so you have everything you need to know in one place. 

What Is the Grinch Drinking Game?

As this name suggests, the Grinch drinking game is essentially where you choose specific call-to-action phrases that are in the Grinch movie, and when you hear them on the screen, you have to take a drink.

There are different actions for different categories of lines. For example, take a sip every time someone says Christmas vs Take a shot when someone says Who Hash. This is mainly to save your liver because the word Christmas is said many more times throughout the movie, and if you had to take a shot every time it was said…you’d be blacked out before you get to act two.

How to Play the Grinch Drinking Game

Okay, so to play this game, you will need some friends, some boos, and a way to watch the Grinch Who Stole Christmas movie. Once everyone is together, you can pick and choose your call to action. I have created a list below of all of the best ones, but feel free to make it your own.

Before you start the movie, everyone has to either take a shot or shotgun a beer. This is the best way to get the good times rolling! Remember to have water on hand and to drink responsibly. Do NOT go past your limit. 

Take a Drink When

Take a Drink When…

For this first list, I thought we should start with the lighter ones, meaning you only have to take a sip when these things happen. This entire list has 35 ideas, so only pick the ones that you are going to be able to look for. I say pick ten throughout the movie, max. Otherwise, you will either be TOO drunk, or you’ll miss them entirely.

1. When the grinch says ‘Max!’

2. Whenever someone mentions being a Who

3. Whenever someone mentions Whoville

4. When someone takes about Christmas

5. When Cindy Lou sings

6. When there is an adult innuendo 

7. When someone talks smack about the Grinch

8. Whenever the Mayor is Rude

9. Whenever Lou Who stands up for his daughter

10. Whenever you see a Christmas Tree

11. When the Grinch Crushes on Martha May

12. Take a drink when you hear Christmas Bells

Finish your Drink When Someone Says…

Now this one is a little more intense. When these phrases are said, you have to finish your whole drink, or you can opt to take a shot if you don’t want to get too full too quickly. Like I said above, always have snacks and water on standby; this game is no joke, so you have to be careful. But most importantly, have fun!

13.  “Kids today. So desensitized by movies and television.”

14. “Santa, don’t forget the Grinch. I know he’s mean and hairy and smelly, and his hands are cold and clammy, but I think he’s kinda… sweet.”

15. “The, the, the… THE GRINCH!”

16. “Honey, the babies here! He sure looks an awful lot like your boss.”

17. “What’s Santa have that I don’t?”

18. “It came without ribbons, it came without tags. It came without packages, boxes, or bags.”

19. “You can’t hurt Christmas, Mr. Mayor, because it isn’t about the gifts or the contests or the fancy lights.

20. “The three words that best describe you are as follows, and I quote: Stink, stank, stunk!”

21. “No matter how different a Who may appear, he will always be welcome with holiday cheer.”

22. “I am the Grinch that stole Christmas… and I’m sorry.”

23. “Christmas Day will always be just as long as we have we.”

When the Drink Says

When the GRINCH says…

Of course, I couldn’t make this guide without adding some of the Grinch’s most famous moments. For these, I thought I would leave you some room to decide what you want the action to be that goes along with these phrases. A good rule of thumb with this is the more famous the phrase, the more severe the action. So sip, take a shot, or finish your drink!

24. “4:00, wallow in self-pity. 4:30, stare into the abyss. 5:00, solve world hunger, tell no one. 5:30, jazzercize; 6:30, dinner with me. I can’t cancel that again. 7:00, wrestle with my self-loathing. I’m booked. Of course, if I bump the loathing to 9, I could still be done in time to lay in bed, staring at the ceiling and slip slowly into madness.”

25. “Now you listen to me, young lady! Even if we’re horribly mangled, there’ll be no sad faces on Christmas.”

26. “No matter how different a Who may appear, he will always be welcomed with holiday cheer.”

27. “Give me that! Don’t you know you’re not supposed to take things that don’t belong to you? What’s the matter with you? You some kind of wild animal?”

28. “And they’ll feast, feast, feast, feast. They’ll eat their Who-Pudding and rare Who-Roast Beast. But that’s something I just cannot stand in the least. Oh, no. I’M SPEAKING IN RHYME!”

29. “I’m all toasty inside.” 

30. “Am I just eating because I’m bored?”

31. “Cheer up, dude. It’s Christmas.”

32. “Saving you, is that what you think I was doing? Wrong-o. I merely noticed that you’re improperly packaged, my dear.” 

33. “HELP ME…I’m FEELING.”

34. “If you utter so much as one syllable, I’LL HUNT YOU DOWN AND GUT YOU LIKE A FISH! If you’d like to fax me, press the star key.”

35. “It’s because I’m green, isn’t it?” 

Grinch Drinking Game

So there you have it, the ultimate guide to playing the Grinch drinking game. I hope this shows you that growing older doesn’t have to be so bad. Sure Christmas might not feel the same as when you are a kid, but it still feels magical.

Experiencing Christmas as an adult has its own perks…like getting to drink! I hope you loved this guide, and if you are looking for some more ways to have some extra fun this Christmas season, then you should check out some of our Christmas Game ideas! We have so many to choose from. 

And remember, “Christmas Day will always be, just as long as we have us.” Dang, that Doctor Suess knew what he was doing. That line is getting to me. This movie is one of the greats when it comes to holiday classics. We’ll be watching it with our kids and their kid’s kids, and it’s so cool to think we got to be around when it first came out.