In most versions of the show, successfully guessing a word also allows contestants to draw numbers to fill in a Bingo card.

The first was aired in daily syndication from September 28, 1987, until March 25, 1988, and taped at the BCTV studios in the Vancouver suburb of Burnaby, British Columbia; initially hosted by Michael Reagan, series creator Ralph Andrews took over beginning in February 1988.

On August 5, 2002, Game Show Network (GSN) premiered a revival of Lingo, which was hosted by Chuck Woolery and ran for six seasons through 2007.

[2] On June 6, 2011, GSN premiered a second revival hosted by comedian Bill Engvall,[1] running for one season.

On February 11, 2022, CBS announced that it had ordered a primetime revival of Lingo, with RuPaul as host and executive producer,[3][4] which premiered on January 11, 2023.

The first team to correctly guess a word was awarded 25 points and the opportunity to draw two balls.

The team with the most points at the end of this round won the game and moved on to play Bonus Lingo.

In the event of a tie, a seven-letter word would be displayed and the letters filled in one at a time, with all four contestants able to buzz in.

The bonus round of the 1987 version had the exact opposite objective of the front game, with the champion team trying to avoid making a Lingo.

The round was played until a Lingo was made or the team survived five words without making one.

Coinciding with the change in scoring in the front game, the bonus round rules were adjusted.

Forming a Lingo won the team a $4,000 prize package consisting of an Argus digital camera, a Borders gift card, a Croton watch, and a Cassiopeia EM-500 Pocket PC plus the money earned in the first half of Bonus Lingo.

[6] From season two onward, the team was also given "bonus letters": one for winning the main game, and an additional one for each Lingo they had scored.

Throughout the series' run, the team won $5,000 for achieving a Lingo in two or more draws, or $100 per correctly guessed word if they failed to do so.

A special episode that aired on April Fool's Day in 2003 had the entire roster of GSN's six original show hosts together playing for charity.

While Woolery hosted, Mark L. Walberg (Russian Roulette) and Marc Summers (WinTuition) played against Kennedy (Friend or Foe?)

If a team is mathematically unable to catch up, the game ends once the balls have been drawn for the last word.

In season two, teams who win the Lingo Showdown are invited to appear on the next show as returning champions.

Beginning on February 22, 1988, executive producer Ralph Andrews took over as host and Margaux MacKenzie replaced Martell as co-host.

On August 5, 2002, Game Show Network revived the program with Chuck Woolery as host.

In 2011, GSN announced the show would restart production after a nearly four-year hiatus, with Bill Engvall as the new host.

On February 11, 2022, CBS announced that it had ordered a primetime revival of Lingo, with RuPaul as host and executive producer;[3][4] it was filmed at Dock10 in Salford, England (where the current British version is filmed) with American contestants.

RuPaul also signed on to host a series of Celebrity Lingo episodes for broadcast in the UK.

Despite this, Ion has not aired this or any other game show (except the previous year's Family Feud episodes by special arrangement) since 2005.

In late 2021, Two Way Media launched a mobile version of Lingo available for iOS and Android users.

If the player correctly guesses a word, they win coins and have the option to play bingo.