Team BridgeIcebreaker questions for work
Good icebreaker questions are easy to answer in a sentence, say something about the person and never put anyone on the spot. Below are 60 we’d actually ask in a meeting, sorted from a team’s first week to a team that has worked together for years, and the games that ask them for you, with answers typed on everyone’s own screen.
Two Truths, One Lie is free to play. Who Said That?, People Bingo and the other premium games are included with a TeamBridge pass.
What asking them in a game looks like
Who Said That?: Marcus guesses who wrote “Bake bread and talk to the dough like a weirdo” while the team votes 
Who Said That?: The reveal: Aisha wrote “Bake bread and talk to the dough like a weirdo”, and Sofia guessed right for +100 
Hot Seat: Priya in the Hot Seat ranks the team lunch orders she really likes while Daniel and Aisha have already locked in their guesses
Three ways to ask them in a meeting
Reading questions out loud in turn works for five people. For more, or for a quiet team, let everyone answer at once.
- 5 min
One question, everyone answers: Who Said That?
Type any question below as your own prompt. Everyone answers anonymously on their screen, then the team guesses who wrote each answer.
- 10 min
One person, five answers: Hot Seat
The person in the seat ranks five things, like their favourite lunch orders, and the team guesses the order. Up to 12 people take a turn.
- 10 min
Find the person: People Bingo
The game puts facts like “Has lived in another country” on a bingo card. Everyone ticks their own, then fills the card with names.
Games that ask icebreaker questions for you
Who Said That?
PremiumAdd any of these questions as your own prompts.
3–30 players
8–15 min
Hot Seat
FreeOne person ranks five things, the team guesses the order.
3–25 players8–15 min
Three statements, one lie: the get-to-know-you classic, with votes and a reveal.
4–20 players5–10 min
People Bingo
PremiumAbout 230 facts in 5 packs: find the teammate each one is true for.
3–100 players8–12 min
Speed Meet
Premium1-on-1 video chats of a minute each, with a light question for every pair.
4–100 players5–20 min
Think Alike
PremiumAnswer the way the team will.
3–50 players8–16 min
Top Answers
PremiumYour own survey questions, answered by the team, then two teams guess the top answers.
3–100 players10–15 min
Easy icebreaker questions for a new team
For a team’s first weeks, a new manager or a new joiner: questions anyone can answer without thinking, about things people are happy to share.
About work, lightly
What was your first job? · What’s one thing you’re looking forward to this quarter? · Which app could you not do your job without? · What did you want to be when you were ten? · Early bird or night owl?
About the weekend
What’s the best thing you did last weekend? · What does a perfect Saturday look like for you? · What are you reading, watching or listening to right now? · Coffee, tea or neither?
About where people are
Where in the world are you dialling in from? · What can you see from your desk? · What’s one thing a visitor to your town should eat? · What’s the weather doing where you are?
Small favourites
Favourite snack for a long meeting? · The best meal you had this year? · A song you never skip? · A film you could watch again tonight? · A podcast you’d recommend? · Your favourite way to spend a lunch break?
Get-to-know-you questions for teams that already work together
Once people know names and roles, these go one step further, still without anything too personal.
Habits and quirks
What’s a small thing that always makes your day better? · What’s your go-to order at a café? · How many tabs do you have open right now? · What’s a skill you have that would surprise the team?
Stories
What’s the best advice a manager ever gave you? · What’s the strangest job you’ve had? · What’s something you learned the hard way? · What’s a place you’d go back to tomorrow? · What’s the best thing you’ve learned from a colleague?
Hypotheticals
If you could master any skill overnight, what would it be? · If you swapped jobs with anyone on the team for a day, whose would you take? · If you had a free afternoon in the middle of the week, how would you spend it?
Fun facts
What’s a fact about you most people here don’t know? · What’s the most unusual thing you own? · Have you ever met someone famous? · What’s a hobby you’ve picked up and dropped?
Icebreaker questions for the first meeting back in January
The first team meeting after the holidays is the easiest time to ask what people want from the year, as long as the question is light.
Looking back
What was the best thing you ate over the break? · Did you learn anything new over the holidays? · What’s one thing you did for yourself last year that you’d do again?
Looking ahead
What’s one thing you want to learn this year? · What’s a small habit you’re trying this year? · Which project are you most curious about this quarter? · What’s one trip you want to take this year?
For the team
What’s one thing our team did last year that you’d like to keep doing? · What should we try as a team this year? · What would make Monday mornings better?
One-word answers
Describe last year in one word · Describe how you want this year to feel in one word · Your energy level today, from one to ten?
Quick questions for a stand-up or a big call
For a stand-up, a call of 30 or more, or cameras off: questions with a one-word or two-option answer, so everyone answers at once and the room sees the split.
Two options
Mountains or beach? · Call or message? · Sweet or savoury breakfast? · Plan the trip or go with the flow? · Morning meetings or afternoon meetings?
One word
The emoji you use most at work? · Your favourite day of the week? · The last thing you bought? · The first app you open in the morning?
Rank them
Rank pizza, tacos, sushi, curry and burgers · Rank the seasons · Rank email, chat, calls and meetings. Hot Seat turns this into a game.
Let the game pick
Think Alike: everyone answers the way they think the rest of the team will, and the biggest group scores.
How to ask icebreaker questions without the awkward silence
Keep it optional
Every question should be easy to pass on or answer lightly. Avoid family, health, money, politics and anything about appearance.
Go first
Answer the first question yourself, with a real answer. People copy the length and tone of the first answer they hear.
Let people type
Typed, anonymous answers get more from quiet people than going round the call. The reveal is where the conversation starts.
One question is enough
One good question at the start of a weekly meeting does more than ten in a one-off session. Rotate them each week.
Questions
What are good icebreaker questions for work?
Questions anyone can answer in a sentence that still say something about the person: “What was your first job?”, “What’s a small thing that makes your day better?” or “What’s one thing you want to learn this year?”. Avoid anything about family, health, money or politics.
How many icebreaker questions should we ask in a meeting?
One, at the start of the meeting, for five minutes. A short habit every week works better than a long session once a quarter.
How do we ask icebreaker questions on Zoom or Teams?
Paste a Who Said That? lobby link in the meeting chat and add your questions as prompts. Everyone answers on their own screen, anonymously, and the game shows the answers one at a time for the team to guess who wrote them.
What are good icebreaker questions for a new team?
Easy, low-stakes ones: “Where are you dialling in from?”, “Early bird or night owl?”, “What app could you not work without?”. Two Truths, One Lie and Speed Meet help a new team learn a little about everyone quickly.
What should we ask in the first meeting of the year?
Something light that looks ahead: “What’s one thing you want to learn this year?”, “Describe how you want this year to feel in one word” or “What should we try as a team this year?”.
Are the games free?
Two Truths, One Lie is free to play, as are Spy Words and seven more games. Who Said That?, People Bingo and the other premium games are included with a TeamBridge pass.
Icebreaker games for meetingsThis or that questions for workHow to play Who Said That?
Ready for your next team social?
Share one link. Everyone plays in the browser.
Games to play on Microsoft TeamsOffice party gamesTeam building games for workIcebreaker games for meetingsA skribbl.io alternative for workA Gartic Phone alternative for workVirtual team triviaGames to play on Zoom with coworkersA Jackbox alternative for workPictionary on Microsoft TeamsA Kahoot alternative for team buildingFun Friday games for remote teamsA QuizBreaker alternative you play liveEnd of year team building gamesTeam building games for large groupsHoliday party games for large groupsIcebreakers for large groupsThis or that questions for workTeam building activities for workEmployee engagement ideasHoliday trivia for workChristmas Pictionary onlineHoliday icebreakers for workChristmas awards for workVirtual holiday bingo for workChristmas music quiz for workA Confetti alternative you host yourselfA Games for Work replacement for TeamsA Water Cooler Trivia alternative, played liveCompare team building options