When you think “ice breaker,” you probably imagine awkward team-building sessions or cringey get-to-know-you questions. But breaking the ice doesn’t have to induce eye rolls! Here’s a comprehensive list of work-appropriate ice breaker questions to use next time you need to spice up your team-building session.
Work-related
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What other jobs have you worked?
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What’s been your favorite position thus far?
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Where do you see your career in ten years?
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What’s your dream job?
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What’s your best tip for staying organized?
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How do you practice self-care after work?
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What did you want to be when you were younger?
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What’s a job you’ve had that you liked the least?
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What job could you never do, but wish you could?
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What’s your favorite part of your job?
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If you could have any perk at work, what would it be?
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Do you have a favorite TED Talk ?
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Pop culture
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Who’s your favorite celebrity?
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What book changed your worldview the most?
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If you could only watch three movies for the rest of your life, what would they be?
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What’s the most recent movie you’ve seen, both at home and in theaters? Would you recommend them?
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What TV shows have you been watching lately?
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What’s the most bingeable show you’ve ever watched?
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What’s your guilty pleasure TV show?
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What celebrity do you not like that everyone else loves?
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If you could live in any TV show, what would it be?
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What book do you bring along on airplanes?
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What’s your go-to karaoke song?
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What’s your favorite reality TV show?
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Which celebrity was your childhood crush?
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If you could be friends with any celebrity, who would it be?
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If you had an entrance song play every time you entered a room, what would it be?
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Which actor or actress do you think deserves an Oscar but doesn’t have one yet?
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What album could you listen to over and over again and not get sick of?
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What artists have you seen live? Which was the best?
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Which musician , alive or dead, do you wish you could see perform?
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Have you ever met anyone famous?
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What’s your favorite podcast right now?
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What’s your favorite animated movie?
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Which celebrity has your favorite social media presence?
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Who’s your favorite superhero?
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What’s the scariest movie you’ve ever seen? Funniest? Saddest?
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Sports & games
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Who’s your favorite football/baseball/basketball team?
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What’s your favorite sport to watch?
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Did you play any sports in high school or college?
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What’s your favorite board game?
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You can pick one game, and if you win, you get a million dollars. What game do you pick?
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Who’s the greatest basketball/football/baseball player of all time?
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Have you ever been to a professional sports game?
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Which sports stadium has the best atmosphere?
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What’s your favorite unusual sport (bowling, fencing, cricket, etc.)?
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What’s your favorite sport to watch during the Olympics?
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Which sport do you wish got more attention?
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If you could play any professional sport, what would you choose?
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Travel & food
- What's your favorite place to travel?
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What are you the best at cooking?
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If you could only eat one thing for the rest of your life, what would it be?
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What’s your favorite breakfast food?
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Where would you like to retire?
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Would you rather spend a month backpacking across Europe or two weeks at an all-inclusive resort in Mexico?
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What’s your favorite breakfast cereal?
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How do you take your coffee?
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What’s your drink of choice?
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Name a food that you can’t fry.
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What’s your least favorite food?
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What’s your go-to pizza topping?
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What’s the most interesting food you’ve ever eaten?
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Which U.S. state is your favorite?
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Would you rather go scuba diving or rock climbing?
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What’s your best restaurant recommendation?
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If you had the chance to go to outer space, would you go?
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What are your must-have sandwich toppings?
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What’s your go-to takeout order?
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Would you rather live in the city, suburbs, or countryside?
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Have you ever been out of the country? If so, where to? If not, where would you like to go?
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What fictional place do you wish you could visit in real life?
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What’s the most underrated food?
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What’s the most underrated place to visit in the U.S.?
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What’s your favorite food combination?
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What snacks do you have to have on a road trip?
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The wild card icebreakers
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What’s your biggest phobia?
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You can have a superpower, but you can only use it once per day. What do you pick?
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If you had to spend a million dollars in ten minutes, what would you buy?
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If you could commit a crime and get away with it, what would you do and why?
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If you could master one skill —singing, dancing, cooking, archery, anything—what would it be?
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What’s the best thing you’ve ever purchased?
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If you could live in any decade, which would you pick?
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Is water wet?
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Are you a dog person or a cat person?
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If you had the choice to instantly teleport to one place in time (and back again), where would you pick?
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What’s the number-one thing on your bucket list?
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What invention would make your life significantly easier?
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Can you play any instruments? If not, what do you wish you could play?
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What’s your favorite hobby right now? What’s a hobby you’ve always wanted to take up?
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What’s your favorite holiday and why?
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What’s your favorite season?
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If you could become fluent in any language, which language would you pick?
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If you had enough money to never work again for the rest of your life, how would you spend your time?
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If you had an unlimited budget to design your dream home, what big-ticket feature would you include (movie theater, infinity pool, bowling alley, steam room, etc.)?
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What’s a random fact that you know?
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If you had to give an impromptu 15-minute presentation on a topic of your choice, what would it be and why?
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If you could have any animal as a pet, what would you choose?
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What’s your favorite smell?
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Describe your ideal day off.
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