We design playful, high-energy language workshops that help people communicate with confidence and personality.

How It Works

Think Balderdash, but with a twist. Each Private Joke ® card shows a funny prompt e.g. "The sudden English urge to say sorry".

Players write down what word they think is on the other side.

  • Half the words are real, often niche and untranslatable words e.g. "Flabbergasted"
  • The other half? Invented by our communinity.

Win points for guessing right, and earn special points for inventing words deemed the funniest by your team!

It's competitive, creative, and incredibly revealing about how language actually works.

How To Get Involved

  • 🏢 For Companies

    English Workshops for international teams. Practical, high-energy sessions designed to improve how your team communicates.

  • 👩‍🏫 For Schools

    With humour, creativity and play at the forefront, our workshops and print and play editions reinvigorate a love of languages.

  • 🍷 For Expats

    Global dinner parties. A relaxed evening for curious, international people who enjoy words, humour, and good conversation.
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Print & Play - Educator Editions!

What People Think

It was so fun, the others came up with very franglais words while mine where just quite French. It was just so funny to hear how they chose to combine English and French; even just the order of the words/ letters. They came up with some incredible funny words. - Year 11 French GCSE student.

When something makes me laugh, I remember it. This was the first time I actually remembered French words. I want to play Private Joke again! - Year 7 student.

I really enjoyed the feature with the letter tiles. It was very interesting to discover new letters and the sounds that they make in some other modern languages! I could also use the phonetic sound of the letter to be more creative with the words which I created. 10/10 game. Year 13 Spanish A Level Student.

Your Questions Answered!

What is Private Joke®?

Private Joke ® is a fast-paced, laugh-out-loud card game that turns language learning into comedy. It’s quick to learn, endlessly replayable, and guaranteed to spark laughter (& a few new favourite words).

How do you play?

4-6 players | Age 10+

  • Take it in turns to be Boss PJ i.e. the player who draws a card - definition side up! Make sure the word side is hidden from the group.
  • Everyone (including Boss PJ, who will know the word) writes down one word that could be used to define this prompt.
  • Time for the reveal!
  • If your word is the same as the card, automatically win 1 letter tile.
  • If you have invented a word, and the group deems it to be "better" than the original, win the card.
  • Each card is worth 3 points.
  • If no one has invented a word, the card goes back to the bottom of the deck.

The goal? 🏆 To collect as many points as possible!

Who is it for?

Anyone over the age of 10! Language lovers (or haters) 😈, teachers, teenagers, creatives, chaotic dinner party hosts, boardroom execs, and anyone who’s ever said, “I want to learn a language but I don't know where to start!”

What languages does it support?

The Original Private Joke ® game is in English and features 15+ different languages. This game is great to inspire that first nugget of language inspiration and open to door to what's possible.

We’re building single-language versions in English, French, and Spanish and these will be available for everyone to Print & Play by September 2025.

Do I need to be good at languages?

No way! The whole reason I (Olive) created PJ was to break down the barriers to entry so that anyone & everyone can feel like they have the ability to learn a language.

The Story

Hullo, this is Olive. 🫒 My life mission is to make language FUN.

The SOLUTION? Private Joke ® , the card game fusing comedy & creativity. Designed for classrooms, boardrooms, and everything in between, PJ invites players to invent, explore and experiment with language.

Equal parts Scrabble, Cards Against Humanity and Eurovision, Private Joke ® helps players giggle their way fluent.

This was all made possible through a successful Kickstarter campaign which saw 130 supporters raise an initial £4,586 to bring the game to life.

Join me in redefining languages one giggle at a time.

Avec du luv, Olive x