Making Family Dinners Fun: 150 Conversation Starters for Family 

Are you looking for conversation starters for family dinners? Or simply looking for new ways to connect as a family? These family discussion questions are a great way to get the whole family talking, with fun discussion prompts to get to know each other better and make dinner-time conversation more fun. This is the ultimate list of conversation topics for families.

Family dynamics can be complex as each member of the family moves through a different season of life. 

Whether you’re struggling to keep the kids off devices long enough to enjoy a family meal together or its monosyllable responses from your teen. Maybe you are stressed from a busy work week. Regardless, engaging in meaningful conversations with our loved ones is essential for connection. 

The Benefits Of Family Dinners 

Family dinners are the cornerstone of family life and a time when loved ones can gather, share news and catch up with one another. 

However, getting the whole family together for a daily meal isn’t always easy! 

Families who regularly eat meals together tend to have healthier eating habits and healthier lifestyle habits overall, since participating in a family meal time reduced the likelihood of making poor food choices or choosing unhealthy snacks. 

Kids whose families eat together around the family dinner table tend to be better communicators and more confident than their same-age peers. 

The act of sharing meals and conversation also helps all members of the family to feel heard, let go of day-to-day stress and feel connected. 

Even if you cannot make family dinner a daily routine in your household, due to work or hobby commitments, making it a priority to have at least one proper family meal as a whole family each week is far more beneficial than none at all! 

So, whether you’re looking to get to know each other better, explore your goals and dreams, or simply create lasting memories of quality time spent eating together, these fun conversation starters will help you make the most of your family dinner time. 

How To Effectively Use Conversation Starters With Your Family

Using conversation starters and topic prompts during family dinners is a wonderful way to get the whole family engaged so that it becomes more than just a time to eat. 

Asking questions such as these Would You Rather questions or conversation starters for kids makes it easier to go beyond small talk. 

Here are some tips for using conversation starters around the dinner table:

• Active Listening – Ensure you are using active listening while each person is talking. Listen carefully to what they are saying, give them your full attention and resist giving advice unless it is requested. 
• Use Follow-Up Questions – If relevant, ask follow-up questions that relate to what a family member has said to encourage a full discussion on the topic. 
• No Wrong Answers – This activity should be a judgement-free zone, allowing everyone to speak what is on their heart and on their mind. Be thoughtful and supportive in your responses. 
• Ask Questions That Require More Thought – Use open-ended questions rather than yes and no questions that allow everyone to share their experiences.
• Allow The Conversation To Flow – It’s okay if your topic of conversation changes and you end up talking about something completely different because you may end up learning something surprising. 

Funny Conversation Starters & Ice Breakers

If you’re struggling to get the family to engage in meaningful conversation and instead be met with lots of awkward silences and small talk, don’t despair! Funny icebreakers can just the thing to get everyone to join in. 

Use these ice breakers to break down communication walls and get everyone in a playful mood.

After all, it can be hard to resist a silly question! Light-hearted conversation can get everyone laughing and pave the way for some deeper conversation topics:

• If you could be any fictional character, who would you be and why?
• If you could eat one food for the rest of your life, what would you choose?
• What fictional world would you like to live in?
• Would you prefer to have only 3 fingers on each hand or 3 toes on each foot? 
• What is the funniest joke you have ever heard?
• If you could have any superpower, what would you choose and why?
• Who is your celebrity crush?
• What would be worse – having a monobrow or big ears?
• If you had a time machine, what place and time would you go?
• If you could create your own holiday, what would it be?
• If you could switch places with anyone in the world, who would it be and why?
• For your next vacation, would you rather go to Walmart or Subway? 
• What would be the hardest thing about being a unicorn?
• What would be the best thing about being a troll?
• What is one movie that should never have been made?
• What is the ugliest item of clothing you own?
• If you could decide your own name, what would it be?
• What famous parents do you wish you had? 
• If you could only learn one subject in school, what would you choose?

Family Getting To Know You Questions

Even living with each other day in and day out doesn’t mean you know everything about one another. In fact, it can be easy to take for granted exactly how well you do know one another when in reality, all of us are constantly changing and growing through every week, month and year of our lives. 

Interests change. New passions develop. Experiences shape us.

So these questions to get to know your family better can be a great way of getting back to basics:

• What is your favourite thing to do in your free time?
• What hobby do you wish you had more time for?
• What is your favourite food?
• What is something you love most about yourself?
• What is your biggest fear?
• What is your biggest pet peeve?
• What is your idea of a perfect day?
• Which TV show do you love best?
• What movie have you seen the most times?
• What is a personal challenge you are currently facing?
• What is your favourite memory from childhood?
• Who is your best friend?
• What are 3 things on your bucket list?
• What is your most prized possession?
• What is your favourite song?
• If you had a million dollars, what would you spend it on? 
• What day of the week do you like best?
• What place would you most like to travel to?
• What is your earliest memory?
• What helps to get you out of a bad mood?
• What famous person would you love to meet?

Questions About Family & Relationships

Family relationships are important to a happy household, but so are relationships with friends and extended family. These questions get your family discussing their relationship values, how they see their own family and a few fun ones as well.

• What do you love most about our family?
• What is your favourite thing about our family home?
• What chore do you dislike doing the most?
• If you could create 3 family rules, what would they be?
• What is your favourite thing that we do together as a family?
• What is your favourite holiday to celebrate?
• What family value is most important to you? 
• Which family tradition of ours do you love most?
• What is a new family tradition that you would love to start?
• If you had to pick three words to describe your family, what would they be?
• Which family member do you miss the most?
• What is 1 quality you admire about each person in our family?
• What is a hobby we could do together?
• What is something you would like to learn as a family?
• What do you think makes for a happy family?
• Where would you like to go on a family vacation?
• Where was the best place we have been on a family vacation?
• Who is the funniest person in our family?
• Who is the best cook in our family?
• What is something unique about our family?
• What TV family do you think we are most similar to?
• If we were to have a new family heirloom to pass on to future generations, what could it be?
• What kind of family legacy would you like to leave behind?
• If money or time were not an issue, how would you like to change our current family life?
• What values should be most important for a family?
• What kind of role do you think technology plays in our family life? Is it negative or positive? 
• Are there any topics you think should be off-limits for family conversations?
• Do you think the household chores are evenly shared between us?
• What are some ways our family can give back to the local community?
• Do you want to get married one day? Why?

Thought-Provoking Questions For Families

Deep and meaningful conversations with family can be a really powerful way to connect and get to know what is in one another’s hearts. It can also lead to some really interesting discussions too! 

These deep conversation starters for families are to get you thinking beyond the simple things, revealing more about each family member’s inner thoughts, with opportunities for empathy and deep understanding too. 

• Would you rather give advice to your future self or your past self? What would you tell them?
• What is the hardest decision you ever had to make?
• If you could change one thing about the world, what would it be?
• Do you think technology has been a blessing or a curse for society?
• What type of things do you think should be taught in school these days?
• What is something small you could do now that can make a big impact on your future?
• If you could change one thing about the world, what would you change?
• What do you think is a more critical area of concern – the global economy or the environment?
• If you knew you would be suddenly forced to stay home for the next year, what 3 things would you do before it happened?
• What is something that has had the biggest impact on your life?
• What global issue worries you the most right now?
• If you could live in a different country, where would you live and why?
• What is the most important thing in life?
• How do you define happiness?
• What is the best piece of advice someone has ever given you?
• What is the best compliment someone has given you?
• What is more important – possessions or experiences? 
• Who is someone you believe is a real life superhero?
• If you could trade places with one fo your family members for a week, who would it be?
• Would it be better to lose the love of your life or to never have been in love?

Gratitude Conversation Starters For Families

Gratitude conversation starters can help your family focus on the positive aspects of their lives and remind us of the smaller blessings that we might overlook if we didn’t have this opportunity to explore. 

Encouraging your family members to express gratitude and practice positive thinking can help make your home a supportive, warm and loving environment too. 

To further support having a positive mindset, these gratitude journals and gratitude books are wonderful tools for kids. 

By focusing on the good in their lives, your family can cultivate a spirit of thankfulness and positivity. Keeping the conversation light-hearted and encouraging can foster a safe space for everyone to share their thoughts.

• What are you grateful for today?
• What is something that made you smile today?
• What are 3 things in your life you are thankful for?
• Name a person who has positively impacted your life and explain why you’re grateful for them.
• What is one thing that makes you unique?
• What’s the best gift you’ve ever received and why was it so special?
• What helps you to feel better after you’ve had a hard day?
• What is something kind you have done for someone recently?
• What is something kind someone else has done for you?
• What is the best thing about being you?
• How can expressing gratitude improve your life?
• What can you do to make more effort to appreciate the little things in life?
• How does being grateful improve relationships with others?
• What advice would you give to someone who is struggling through a difficult time?
• Should we always be happy?
• Is it possible to learn from mistakes without focusing on negative feelings?
• What is the hardest thing you’ve ever achieved?
• What is one physical feature you have that you love?
• What do you consider to be your super power personality trait?

Questions About Goals & Dreams

By encouraging your family members to talk about their goals and dreams, you open up a world of possibilities for them. It’s important to create an environment where your loved ones feel safe to share their aspirations, no matter how big or small they may seem.

People who set goals are more likely to achieve them and this is tenfold if you are sharing those goals with others. Sharing goals creates accountability and it means other people can help you take the right steps and stay focused too! 

• What is something you wish you were better at?
• What would be your dream career?
• What is your biggest goal right now?
• What have you achieved that you are most proud of?
• Who is someone that inspires you?
• What do you think it means to be successful?
• Who is someone you think is successful and why?
• Are there any goals you would like to achieve as a family?
• Are there any obstacles that could potentially impact you from accomplishing your goals right now? What are they?
• What can you do to stay motivated?
• What kind of support would most help you with staying focused on a goal?
• What is better – one big goal or many small goals? Why?
• If money was no issue, what skill would you learn?
• What does your dream house look like?
• What would you most like to be known for?
• What is more important – getting good grades at school or being creative?
• If you could start your own business, what would it be?
• If you could invent something, what would it do?
• What instrument would you like to learn?
• What hobby would you like to learn?
• What is a skill you wish you could be better at?
• What would you prefer to invest in – property or shares?

Would You Rather Questions For Families

If you’re all feeling a little tired by the end of the week and not so keen on deep conversation, these Would You Rather questions can be a fun way to keep your dinnertime chat routine going, while keeping it light and entertaining.

You can find even more family Would You Rather Questions in case you finish this list! 

• Would you rather only eat ice cream or only eat pizza?
• Would you rather live in Poland or live in New Zealand?
• Would you rather go on a shopping spree or go on a world vacation?
• Would you rather read a book or watch a movie?
• Would you rather sing or dance?
• Would you rather have a pet elephant or a pet monkey?
• Would you rather eat dinner at your favourite restaurant every day for a year, or cook dinner at home every day for a year?
• Would you rather have super strength or be able to read minds?
• Would you rather stay up all night playing video games or get up early to watch the sunrise? 
• Would you rather go on a road trip or on a cruise?
• Would you rather give up TV for a year or give up music for a year?
• Would you rather have no phone or no toothbrush?
• Would you rather have a personal maid or a personal chef?
• Would you rather only eat sweet food or only eat savoury food?
• Would you rather have pineapple on pizza or anchovies on pizza?

Family dinners are much more than just a meal! They are an opportunity to connect and build meaningful relationships with the people we love. By using these dinner conversation starters, you can add some fun and excitement to your dinners and create memories that will last a lifetime. So, have fun with it and see where the conversation takes you.

I hope these family dinner conversation starters lead to some wonderful meal times together!