Icebreakers
79 Icebreaker Questions for Work (Office-Safe)
· updated · 8 min read
A good icebreaker question is quick to answer, has no wrong answer, and gets people telling a short story rather than giving a one-word reply. Every question below is office-safe: nothing about politics, religion, relationships, money, health, looks or age, and nothing that assumes someone has kids, a partner or a pet.
There are 79 questions, grouped by what you need them for, including Thanksgiving and winter questions for the end of the year. Use one to open a meeting, go round the room with a few, or let a spinner pick at random.
Quick, easy questions
Low-stakes questions anyone can answer in a few seconds. Good for the start of a meeting or a new group.
- You can eat only one cuisine for the rest of your life. Which one, and why?
- You get a rewind button or a pause button for life. Which do you pick?
- Which decade would you time-travel to for one week?
- You can instantly master one instrument. Which one, and what's the first song you play?
- You get a surprise free day tomorrow. What do you do with it?
- What's a small thing that instantly makes your day better?
- You can be world champion at one thing. What is it?
- Which animal would make the best coworker?
- What's a snack you'd defend in a debate?
- If you could eliminate one household chore forever, which one goes?
- You wake up amazing at any skill, but it can't help your career. What do you pick?
Funny icebreaker questions for work
For when the room already knows each other a little and you want a laugh.
- What's the most useless thing you're weirdly good at?
- What's the most ridiculous thing you've ever bought online?
- What's a song you secretly know every single word to?
- If you were on a quiz show, what would your specialist subject be?
- What's the worst gift you've ever received, or given?
- What would the title of your autobiography be?
- What's a trend you fully committed to and now regret?
- What's a word you mispronounced for years before someone corrected you?
- What's your most irrational fear? (Pigeons count.)
- Which fictional character would be the worst coworker, and why?
- If you could add one ridiculous rule to the office, what would it be?
- What would you name a boat if you owned one?
- What's the strangest food you've ever eaten?
- What's the most "you" thing you've done this week?
- What's a food combination you love that everyone else thinks is gross?
- What's the worst advice you've ever actually followed?
- Is a hot dog a sandwich, or is cereal a soup? Defend your answer in 15 seconds.
- What's one trend (fashion, slang, or internet meme) you hope never comes back?
- If a theme song played every time you walked into a room, what would it be?
- What's your biggest irrational pet peeve?
- If you had to enter a reality TV show tomorrow, which one could you actually win?
- If you were a superhero, what would your mildest, most unhelpful superpower be?
- You get a million dollars, but must spend it all in 24 hours on things starting with your first initial. What are you buying?
Questions to get to know each other
These get people telling short stories, which is where colleagues learn something real about each other.
- What's a skill you have that nobody here would guess?
- What's the most unusual job you've ever had, or almost had?
- What's a weirdly specific topic you could give a 10-minute talk on with no prep?
- What did you want to be when you grew up, and how close did you get?
- What's something you've done exactly once and will never do again?
- What's a hobby you tried and quit, and what made you quit?
- What's the most interesting thing within arm's reach of you right now?
- What's a place you've been (or lived) that most people have never heard of?
- What's a rule you always follow that other people find odd?
- What's the closest you've come to being famous, or meeting someone famous?
- What's something on your bucket list that would surprise us?
- What were you completely obsessed with as a kid?
- What would surprise your family most about what you do at work?
- What's a talent you could show us right now, on this call?
- What's the most useless piece of trivia you know by heart?
- If you could instantly become a world-class expert on one completely random topic, what would it be?
Work-related icebreaker questions
Light questions about work life that never turn into a status update.
- What's the strangest question you've ever been asked in an interview?
- What's one work habit your colleagues have definitely noticed?
- If our team were a band, what instrument would you play?
- What's the most useful thing you've ever learned from a YouTube video?
- What's an app on your phone you couldn't live without, and one you're slightly embarrassed by?
- What's something you're learning right now outside of work?
- What's the best thing you've ever fixed, built, or cooked yourself?
- What's the best thing you've seen someone do in a meeting?
- What was your very first job, and what's the weirdest thing you had to do there?
Thanksgiving icebreaker questions for work
For the meetings in the week before Thanksgiving. They're about food, small wins and thank-yous, never about who someone spends the holiday with.
- What's one dish that has to be on the table, or you'd rather skip the meal?
- What's a small thing at work this year you're thankful for?
- Who on this team helped you out this year without being asked?
- Stuffing or mashed potatoes: which one wins, and why?
- What's a skill you picked up this year that you're glad you have?
- If this team had a Thanksgiving dish, what would it be?
- What's the best leftover meal you've ever made?
- What tool or app made your work life easier this year?
- What's one thing you're looking forward to doing over the long weekend?
- Pie of choice: pumpkin, pecan, apple, or something else entirely?
Winter icebreaker questions for work
For December and January meetings. They work whatever the weather where each person is, and don't assume anyone celebrates a particular holiday.
- What's your go-to hot drink when it's cold outside?
- Would you rather spend a winter break somewhere snowy or somewhere hot?
- What's the cosiest thing you own?
- What's a winter food you look forward to all year?
- What's one thing you want to finish before the year is out?
- Best winter activity: skating, sledding, a long walk, or staying under a blanket?
- What's a song you can't escape at this time of year?
- What's one goal you'd like this team to hit in the new year?
- What's the best thing you did this year that wasn't work?
- If you could hibernate for a week, what would you want to wake up to?
How to use icebreaker questions at work
- Ask one question per meeting. Go round the room with thirty seconds each. For a big group, pick three or four people rather than everyone.
- Answer first yourself. A host who goes first, briefly and a bit self-deprecatingly, sets the tone and the length.
- Let people pass. An easy "skip" keeps it fun for anyone who'd rather not answer.
- Pick at random. Choosing who goes next is the awkward part, so let a spinner or a list decide.
Common questions
What are 5 good icebreaker questions for work?
"What's a skill you have that nobody here would guess?", "What would the title of your autobiography be?", "What's a small thing that instantly makes your day better?", "What was your very first job?" and "If you could add one ridiculous rule to the office, what would it be?" All five are quick, safe and get a story going.
What makes a bad icebreaker question?
Anything personal (family, health, money, beliefs), anything that puts one person on the spot to perform, and anything with a "right" answer that might embarrass someone.
Let a spinner pick the person and the question
Every question above except the seasonal ones is in TeamPlay's Icebreaker Roulette. Share your screen, everyone joins on their phone, and the app picks who answers and which question they get. For more ideas, see our icebreakers for office meetings. Host a free session.