This is a great 4-person game, in which one person is giving clues, another from the opposite team is watching over his or her shoulder to ensure the clue-giver is not using any of the "taboo" words, his or her partner is guessing, and the other opponent is the time-keeper.
More than four people play in teams, and it's fun to both guess and provide clues, and challenging enough to keep you on your toes and laughing.
My advice for having the most fun and gaining the competitive edge is to personalize your clues. If you use a taboo word and get "buzzed," it's distracting, so it's better to just scan them quickly, so you know what they are, and then use shared experiences and/or preferences. For "spaghetti," when you can't say Italian, pasta, sauce, noodle, meatballs, etc. you mention what your partner had for lunch at Olive Garden, or if you've ever gone to a Revolve Tour or read Chad Eastham: what girls are, if guys are waffles
Guys Are Waffles, Girls Are Spaghetti.