How to Play the Paranoia Game: The Best Questions to Ask

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A complete guide to play the party game with or without alcohol

Co-authored by Marcus Pruitt, BS Reviewed by Ashton Wu

Last Updated: June 15, 2025 Fact Checked

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What is the Paranoia drinking game?

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Playing with Drinks

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Playing without Drinks

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Fun Paranoia Questions

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Tips

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Warnings

Paranoia is a party game where you ask saucy questions about your friends. You’re not supposed to let them know what the question is. Instead, answer with their name to make them paranoid. Paranoia is all about spilling the tea about your friends and having fun during the pregame! In this article, we teach you how to play Paranoia with or without drinking, give you a list of questions to ask, and teach you everything you need to know about this exciting party game.

How to Play Paranoia

Gather a circle of 3 friends or more. Have someone whisper a “who” question to the person on their right, like “Who’s gonna fall asleep first?,” then have the person answer the question. Whoever’s name is said can choose to hear the question by taking a drink or move on by asking the person next to them a question.

Section 1 of 4:

What is the Paranoia drinking game?

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In Paranoia, a person asks a fun question about someone without them knowing. For this party game, one player starts by whispering a “Who” question to the person next to them, like “Who’s the most likely to eat the last slice of pizza?” Then, the other person answers the question with a name of someone in the group. The person who was named can either give into the paranoia and learn the question by drinking or resist and move on.^{[1]
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- Paranoia is a great game to play at a pregame, which is when you gather with friends for drinks before a main event, like a bar or sporting event.
- The questions for Paranoia aren’t too serious. Instead, they’re amusing, fun, and playful.
- The game is called Paranoia because it plays on our natural urge to find out what people think of us. Judgement can make you scared, paranoid even.

Section 2 of 4:

How to Play Paranoia with Drinks

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Gather 3 or more friends in a circle and choose your drinks of choice. You need at least 3 people to play Paranoia. Gather them around a table or in a circle and have your drinks on hand. It’s best to play with shots or cocktails, but beer, cider, and other sippers work just as well.^{[2]
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- If you don’t drink, sub the alcohol for water or soda.
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Whisper a “who” question to the person on your right. Start off with a fun, light question then work your way up to more exciting questions. For example, it’d be best to start with something like “Who here is the most likely to be late for work after a night out?” before asking “Who here is most likely to be fired from their job for showing up drunk from the night before?”^{[3]
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- If you’re comfortable with your group, skip breaking the ice to speed things up.
Don’t say the question, just say the name of your answer. For example, answer “Oscar” to the group if you think your friend Oscar is the most likely to be late for work after a night out, but make sure you don’t say the question. ^{[4]
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The person who was named can either drink to know the question or move on. No matter where the person is in the circle, they have a choice to make. They can either drink to find out the question or they can move on by asking the person to their right a new question.^{[5]
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- To drink for the question, take a shot or a five-second drink from a beer, cider, cocktail, or another drink of choice.
After wrapping up the last question, continue asking other people questions until you’re ready to end the game and move onto something else. There’s no official end to Paranoia, you and the group decide when to call it.^{[6]
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Section 3 of 4:

How to Play Paranoia without Drinks

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You need at least 3 people to play Paranoia. Gather them in a circle or around a table and have a coin on hand.
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Whisper a “who” question to the person on your right. Ask the person on your right a “Who” question, like “Who would be the last one to leave the movie theater?” or “Who is most likely to get scared at a haunted house?”
- As the game progresses, feel free to ask more exciting questions, like “If you were getting bullied at school, who in this circle would be the first to come help?”
Just say the name of the answer. Do not say what the question was.
To eliminate the drinking aspect, flip a flip flop in the air. If it lands on heads, then you have to say what the question was to the circle. If it lands on tails, move on to the next question. The person who was last named is the next to ask a question.^{[7]
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Keep the game going by asking more questions. There’s no end to Paranoia, so play as long as you’d like. Or until you’re too paranoid to keep going.^{[8]
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Section 4 of 4:

Questions to Ask for Paranoia

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Ask exciting ‘who’ questions that teach you more about the players. Questions in Paranoia are a great opportunity to learn what everyone thinks of each other, so asking fun, exciting questions is crucial! Here’s a list of questions to choose from:
- Who here has the worst job?
- Who here is most likely to black out tonight?
- Who’s gonna be the first one to leave tonight?
- Who in this room is basically a celebrity?
- Who here is the most likely to be TikTok famous?
- Who here would cheat on their partner?
- Who is the fakest person in the room?
- Out of everyone, who keeps it real the most?
- Who is the worst in bed?
- Who cooks the best food?
- Who is the one always getting into shenanigans during a night out?
- Who’s the most likely to go home with a random at the end of the night?
- If you were in a fight and needed backup, who would you call?
- Who’s the most likely to ditch you in a haunted house?
- Who would you call to bail you out of a police station?
- Who is most likely to wake up in a random place?

Join the Discussion...

Give me your best paranoia questions!

Hunter Rising

These Paranoia questions are perfect for learning the most about the other players and will get the biggest laughs at your next game night:

If everyone here was in trouble, who would you save first?
Who has the best music taste?
Who is the most likely to cancel plans at the last minute?
Which person is the kindest?
Who's the worst at keeping a secret?
Who is most likely to become famous?
Who has the worst singing voice?
Who is your best friend in the group?

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Tips

Keep your answers to people in the circle. Don’t answer with someone who isn’t playing.

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If someone doesn’t want to participate, that’s all good! They can observe.

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Drink responsibly! If you feel as though you’re getting more drunk than you’re comfortable with, pull out of the game and take a breather.

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Warnings

Don’t drink and drive. If you’re playing Paranoia before you have to go somewhere, use a rideshare service or have a designated driver.

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Don’t drink if you’re under 21. If you want to play Paranoia but you’re underage, follow our instructions for playing without alcohol.

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