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Looking for Thanksgiving trivia questions your whole family can play before dinner? I put together 90 of them, from the 1621 harvest feast at Plymouth to the 100th Macy's parade on November 26, 2026, and you'll find each answer right under its question.
I split them into 7 rounds, with a kids round and a multiple-choice round, so your 2nd grader and your grandpa can play the same game.
We also made a printable PDF of all 90 questions and answers, so you can hand a copy to whoever's hosting.
[PRINTABLE]
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Thanksgiving trivia questions about Pilgrims and history
The Pilgrims held their harvest feast in 1621, but Congress didn't fix the holiday on the fourth Thursday in November until 1941. For a longer American history set, borrow a few of these U.S. history trivia questions.
Q: What ship carried the Pilgrims across the Atlantic in 1620?
A: The Mayflower
Q: About how many passengers sailed on the Mayflower?
A: 102
Q: What agreement did the Mayflower's adult male passengers sign before going ashore?
A: The Mayflower Compact
Q: Which Native American nation shared the 1621 harvest feast with the Plymouth colonists?
A: The Wampanoag
Q: Who was the Wampanoag sachem, or leader, at the 1621 feast?
A: Massasoit, also known as Ousamequin
Q: Which English-speaking Patuxet man showed the colonists how to plant corn?
A: Tisquantum, better known as Squanto
Q: How many days did the 1621 feast last?
A: 3
Q: About how many Wampanoag men came to the feast?
A: About 90
Q: Which president issued the first national Thanksgiving proclamation under the Constitution?
A: George Washington, in 1789
Q: Which magazine editor wrote to presidents for about 17 years asking for a national Thanksgiving holiday?
A: Sarah Josepha Hale, editor of Godey's Lady's Book
Q: Which president made Thanksgiving an annual national holiday in 1863, in the middle of the Civil War?
A: Abraham Lincoln
Q: What nickname did critics give the earlier Thanksgiving date Franklin D. Roosevelt set in 1939?
A: "Franksgiving"
Q: Why did FDR move Thanksgiving a week earlier?
A: To give stores a longer Christmas shopping season during the Depression
Q: In what year did Congress fix Thanksgiving on the fourth Thursday of November?
A: 1941
Q: What annual event have Native Americans held at Plymouth on Thanksgiving Day since 1970?
A: The National Day of Mourning
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Thanksgiving parade and football trivia
This round will keep all the sports fans happy. And if you need something for the kids before dinner is ready? Pull a few of these Thanksgiving activities at home into the afternoon.
Q: In what year was the first Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade held in New York City?
A: 1924
Q: What was the parade called in its first year?
A: The Macy's Christmas Parade
Q: What marched in the 1924 parade in place of giant balloons?
A: Live animals borrowed from the Central Park Zoo, including bears, elephants, and camels
Q: Which cartoon cat became the parade's first giant balloon in 1927?
A: Felix the Cat
Q: Which Peanuts character has appeared as a Macy's balloon more times than any other character?
A: Snoopy
Q: Why did Macy's cancel the parade from 1942 to 1944?
A: Rubber and helium were needed for World War II
Q: Whose arrival closes the Macy's parade every year?
A: Santa Claus
Q: Which U.S. city holds the oldest Thanksgiving parade, first organized by Gimbels department store in 1920?
A: Philadelphia
Q: Which dog show has aired on NBC right after the Macy's parade since 2002?
A: The National Dog Show
Q: Which 18-minute Arlo Guthrie song do many radio stations play every Thanksgiving?
A: "Alice's Restaurant Massacree"
Q: Which NFL team has hosted a Thanksgiving game almost every year since 1934?
A: The Detroit Lions
Q: Which NFL team has hosted on Thanksgiving almost every year since 1966?
A: The Dallas Cowboys
Q: In what year did the NFL add a third Thanksgiving game at night?
A: 2006
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Thanksgiving food trivia and turkey trivia questions
Half of this round covers the bird itself, from snoods to poults. For a bigger menu, add a few of these food trivia questions once the plates are cleared.
Q: What is a male turkey called?
A: A tom, or gobbler
Q: What is a baby turkey called?
A: A poult
Q: What is the fleshy flap that hangs over a turkey's beak called?
A: The snood
Q: Which turkeys gobble, males or females?
A: Only males
Q: About how fast can a wild turkey fly in a short burst?
A: Up to about 55 mph
Q: Which state raises the most turkeys in the U.S.?
A: Minnesota
Q: Which state grows the most cranberries?
A: Wisconsin
Q: Why do farmers flood cranberry bogs at harvest time?
A: Cranberries have air pockets, so they float and farmers can corral them
Q: Which Campbell's test kitchen cook created green bean casserole in 1955?
A: Dorcas Reilly
Q: What's the difference between stuffing and dressing?
A: Stuffing cooks inside the bird, and dressing bakes in a separate dish
Q: Which 3 birds go into a turducken?
A: A chicken inside a duck inside a turkey
Q: Which amino acid in turkey gets blamed for the after-dinner nap?
A: Tryptophan, though turkey has about as much as chicken, so the size of the meal is the likelier cause
Q: What phone hotline has Butterball operated since 1981 to answer turkey-cooking questions?
A: The Butterball Turkey Talk-Line
Q: Which bone do 2 people pull apart to make a wish?
A: The wishbone, or furcula
Q: Did the Pilgrims serve mashed potatoes at the 1621 feast?
A: No. White potatoes hadn't become a common crop in New England yet.
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Thanksgiving around the world trivia
The U.S. and Canada aren't the only places with a Thanksgiving holiday. Save this round for the second half, since it's the hardest in the set.
Q: When do Canadians celebrate Thanksgiving?
A: On the 2nd Monday of October, which is October 12 in 2026
Q: Which West African country celebrates Thanksgiving on the first Thursday of November?
A: Liberia
Q: What is the name of Japan's November 23 holiday that thanks workers?
A: Labor Thanksgiving Day, or Kinrō Kansha no Hi
Q: What is Korea's autumn harvest festival called?
A: Chuseok
Q: What is Germany's harvest thanksgiving festival called?
A: Erntedankfest
Q: Which Dutch city holds a Thanksgiving Day church service because the Pilgrims lived there before they sailed?
A: Leiden, at the Pieterskerk
Q: Which Caribbean island celebrates a Thanksgiving on October 25 to mark the 1983 U.S.-led intervention?
A: Grenada
Q: Which Australian island territory celebrates Thanksgiving on the last Wednesday of November, a custom brought by American whalers?
A: Norfolk Island
Q: Which South American country created a national Thanksgiving Day in 1949?
A: Brazil. Since 1966, it has fallen on the fourth Thursday of November, the same day as in the U.S.
Q: Which autumn Jewish harvest festival has families build and eat in a temporary hut?
A: Sukkot
True or false Thanksgiving trivia
Read each statement out loud and have everyone vote thumbs up (for true) or thumbs down (for false) before you reveal the answer.
Q: True or false? The Pilgrims ate pumpkin pie at the 1621 feast.
A: False. They had pumpkins but no ovens for baking pies.
Q: True or false? U.S. Thanksgiving always falls on a Thursday.
A: True
Q: True or false? November 22 is the earliest date U.S. Thanksgiving can fall on.
A: True
Q: True or false? Sarah Josepha Hale, the "Mother of Thanksgiving," also wrote "Mary Had a Little Lamb."
A: True
Q: True or false? Farm-raised turkeys can fly.
A: False. Commercial breeds are too heavy to get off the ground, though wild turkeys fly well.
Q: True or false? Benjamin Franklin formally proposed the turkey as the national bird.
A: False. He praised the turkey in a 1784 letter to his daughter and never made a formal proposal.
Q: True or false? Most "yams" sold in U.S. grocery stores are sweet potatoes.
A: True
Q: True or false? The first Macy's parade in 1924 featured giant balloons.
A: False. The first balloons appeared in 1927.
Q: True or false? The presidential turkey pardon became an official ceremony under George H.W. Bush in 1989.
A: True
Q: True or false? Lincoln's 1863 proclamation set Thanksgiving on the fourth Thursday of November.
A: False. Lincoln chose the last Thursday of November.
Q: True or false? The song "Over the River and Through the Wood" was first written about Thanksgiving.
A: True. Lydia Maria Child published it as a Thanksgiving poem in 1844.
Q: True or false? Cranberries grow underwater.
A: False. They grow on low vines in sandy bogs, and farmers flood the bogs only to harvest.
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Thanksgiving trivia questions for kids
These are easy enough for kids in kindergarten through 3rd grade. Let kids answer this round alone for double points, so the adults don't blurt out answers. For more all-ages rounds, try these family game night trivia questions.
Q: In what month is Thanksgiving in the United States?
A: November
Q: What big bird do most families cook for Thanksgiving dinner?
A: A turkey
Q: What orange vegetable goes into a famous Thanksgiving pie?
A: Pumpkin
Q: What day of the week is Thanksgiving in the U.S.?
A: Thursday
Q: What red berry gets cooked into a sauce for Thanksgiving?
A: The cranberry
Q: What giant floating characters fly above the streets in the Macy's parade?
A: Balloons
Q: What sound does a turkey make?
A: Gobble gobble
Q: What do you call the horn-shaped basket filled with fruit and vegetables?
A: A cornucopia, or horn of plenty
Q: What part of your body do you trace on paper to draw a turkey?
A: Your hand
Q: What sport do lots of families watch on Thanksgiving afternoon?
A: Football
Q: What do you call a turkey's tail feathers when they spread out wide?
A: A fan
Q: What colorful corn do people use as a fall decoration?
A: Flint corn, often sold as "Indian corn"
Q: In the 1973 cartoon A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving, which dog serves toast and popcorn for dinner?
A: Snoopy
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Multiple-choice Thanksgiving trivia
I love multiple-choice options because you can always throw in an option to confuse everyone. Plus, younger players and non-history buffs can still score. Make sure you tell everyone to listen to all the options before anyone answers.
For scoring, timers and tie-breakers, this guide on how to host a trivia night covers the full setup.
Q: In which year did the Mayflower reach Plymouth? (1492, 1607, 1620, or 1776)
A: 1620
Q: How many NFL games are played on Thanksgiving Day in a normal season? (1, 2, 3, or 4)
A: 3
Q: Which company launched Small Business Saturday in 2010? (Visa, American Express, Mastercard, or Discover)
A: American Express
Q: Which group coined the term "Cyber Monday" in 2005? (Amazon, eBay, Shop.org, or Google)
A: Shop.org, part of the National Retail Federation
Q: Where does the Macy's parade finish? (Times Square, Herald Square, Central Park, or Rockefeller Center)
A: Herald Square, on 34th Street
Q: What does the name Wampanoag mean? (People of the First Light, River People, Corn Growers, or Sun Dancers)
A: People of the First Light
Q: What is the latest date U.S. Thanksgiving can fall on? (November 26, 27, 28, or 30)
A: November 28
Q: Which of these countries celebrates Thanksgiving first each year? (U.S., Canada, Liberia, or Japan)
A: Canada
Q: Which president first received a turkey from the National Turkey Federation at the White House in 1947? (Truman, Eisenhower, Kennedy, or Nixon)
A: Harry Truman
Q: Which meat did the Wampanoag bring to the 1621 feast? (Ham, venison, lamb, or beef)
A: Venison, from 5 deer
Q: Which Plymouth museum recreates a 1627 English village and a Wampanoag homesite? (Plimoth Patuxet Museums, Pilgrim Hall Museum, the Mayflower Society House, or the Jabez Howland House)
A: Plimoth Patuxet Museums
Q: In what year did "Thanksgivukkah" happen, when Thanksgiving fell on the first full day of Hanukkah? (2001, 2013, 2019, or 2023)
A: 2013
Fun Thanksgiving facts and November trivia
Use these as conversation starters or for tie-breakers.
- Thanksgiving 2026 is on Thursday, November 26, the same morning as the 100th Macy's parade.
- Plymouth Rock doesn't appear in any Pilgrim account. A church elder named Thomas Faunce identified it in 1741, more than 120 years after the landing.
- Secretary of State William Seward drafted Lincoln's 1863 Thanksgiving proclamation.
- Forks weren't on the 1621 table. The colonists ate with spoons, knives, and their fingers.
- November comes from novem, the Latin word for nine, because it was the 9th month of the early Roman calendar.
- Topaz and citrine are November's birthstones, and the chrysanthemum is its flower.
- Native American Heritage Month is in November, after President George H.W. Bush signed a joint resolution in 1990.
- Veterans Day on November 11 marks the 1918 World War I armistice.
- Election Day in the U.S. is the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November, so the 2026 midterms are on November 3.
Keep the Thanksgiving game night going
Once you've played through these Thanksgiving trivia questions, you can keep the game night going with Weekend on your smart TV. Launch the Weekend Games app on Roku, Fire TV, Samsung, or LG and pick a game, including a few of our newest ones.
Here's what's in the lineup:
- Jeopardy! has officially licensed clues, categories, and music, with the same rules, timer, and pace as the TV show. Pick Casual, Classic, or Expert, then shout your answer into the TV remote or your phone, in the form of a question.
- Song Quiz is music trivia across decades and genres. Hear a short clip, shout the song and artist, and let the parents own the ’80s while the kids take the 2010s.
- Wheel of Fortune is the pick for mixed ages, since anyone old enough to call a letter can help solve the puzzle.
- Bingo has the TV draw and call every ball while each player's card stays private on their phone, so nobody has to sit out as the caller. Daub fast and hit the BINGO button before anyone else does.
- Wit’s End turns your TV into a chaotically fun fantasy adventure with an AI game master that builds entire stories around your choices.
- Short List is a game-show party game where you shout answers into your phone's mic, and only the most popular answers count. Any answer your team leaves unclaimed, the rival team can steal.
- Guess the Emoji is best for fast and fun visual puzzle lovers, with emoji strings that spell out movies, songs, and sayings.
- Spot On has you drop a pin on a 3D globe to match a clue, and the closest pin scores up to 5,000 points.
- Sketchy AF reveals a drawing stroke by stroke, and the earlier you shout the right guess into your phone, the more you score.
- BFFs is a would-you-rather game for 2 to 6 players. Pick Cats or Dogs, Pizza or Spaghetti, and you stay in only if you match your friends. At the end, you'll see how compatible every player is with everyone else.
- Karaoke (on Roku) scores each singer on words and pitch, with the Roku remote as the mic.
- Meme Supreme is for the adults after the kids go to bed. One player writes an absurd scenario, everyone answers with a meme on their phone, and the group votes anonymously on the best match.
- CoComelon: Sing & Play with JJ has sing-along mini-games like Wheels on the Bus and BINGO for toddlers and preschoolers aged 2 to 4.
Want to keep playing after the pie? Start your 7-day free trial and play Weekend Games on your smart TV.
FAQs
What are good Thanksgiving trivia questions for adults?
Good Thanksgiving trivia questions for adults cover Pilgrim history, the 1941 date change, turkey biology, and Thanksgiving around the world. I'd pick the questions on Tisquantum, "Franksgiving," Erntedankfest, and the Detroit Lions' games since 1934 to stump the history buffs.
Can you give me some Thanksgiving quiz questions for kids?
Easy Thanksgiving quiz questions for kids include what bird most families eat, what day Thanksgiving falls on, what a cornucopia is, and which dog serves popcorn in A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving. The kids round above has 13 questions pitched at kindergarten through 3rd grade.
What are some interesting facts about Thanksgiving?
Interesting facts about Thanksgiving include the 1621 feast lasting 3 days, Congress fixing the date in 1941, and the 100th Macy's parade on November 26, 2026. The fun facts section above has 9 more for tie-breakers.
How many questions should a Thanksgiving trivia game have?
A Thanksgiving trivia game works best with 30 to 40 questions split into 3 or 4 rounds of about 10. That fills roughly 45 minutes between dinner and dessert. Save the full 90 for a longer evening or a Friendsgiving.
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