Word Search Maker

How to make a printable word search

1. Type or paste your words, one per line or separated by commas, or start from the Christmas, winter, animals or birthday list and change it. Up to 60 words; 12 to 20 is the usual amount for one page.
2. Pick a difficulty and, if you like, a hidden message. Leave the grid on Auto and it picks the smallest square that holds every word and the whole message.
3. Check the preview. Tap Answer key to see page 2. Don't like where the words landed? Shuffle the grid keeps your words and moves them.
4. Download the PDF and print it at 100% (“Actual size”). Page 1 is the puzzle, page 2 the answer key, so print only page 1 for the players.

Want the same words as a word scramble? Pick Word scramble at the top of the form (or open polyatic.com/word-search-maker/#scramble): your list, title and picture clues carry over, nothing is retyped.

Want a stack of different puzzles instead of one? Pick Puzzle book at the top of the form: up to 12 Christmas and winter themes in one PDF, with a cover and the answer keys at the back.

Questions

How do I get a word search with an answer key?

It is always there: every PDF has the answer key on page 2. Each word is circled with a rounded line over its letters, the other letters are greyed out, and a table gives each word's start (row and column, counted from the top left) and its direction. To hand out puzzles without the answers, print “Pages: 1”, or download the separate PNG of the puzzle page.

How do I make a word scramble?

Type your words (or tap a starter list), then switch What to make to Word scramble. Each word on your list becomes a numbered line of jumbled capitals with a box for every letter, and the last page of the PDF is the answer key: the jumbled word, then the answer, in the same order. Every jumble uses exactly the letters of its word, the same number of each, and is checked never to be the word itself or another word on your list, so LISTEN can never print as SILENT when both are on the sheet. Spaces and hyphens stay where they are: Candy cane gets a group of five boxes and a group of four, which is a clue in itself. Pick Easy (the first letter stays in place and is printed in the first box), Medium (every letter mixed, boxes kept) or Hard (no boxes, just a writing line, so the length is not given away). On Hard you can tick With clues and type a short hint per word, such as “pulls the sleigh”, which prints in brackets under the jumble. Mix the letters again gives a new set of jumbles; the same settings always give the same sheet. A list too long for one page continues on a second page at the same size rather than shrinking the letters, and it says “Page 1 of 2” at the top. Set Copies to make a class set: every child gets the same words jumbled differently, each sheet with a Name and Date line and a version number, and the answer keys follow at the back in the same order. One honest limit: short words have few arrangements. Elf on Easy can only become EFL, so it looks the same on every copy, and a two-letter word cannot be scrambled on Easy at all because its first letter must stay; the page names any word it had to leave out and says why.

Where can I get a Christmas word scramble with answers?

Tap the Christmas starter list and choose Word scramble. You get 16 words (reindeer, snowman, stocking, candy cane, mistletoe, ornament, sleigh, tinsel, carol, gingerbread, presents, elf, wreath, chimney, North Pole and holly) and a PDF with the scrambled sheet on page 1 and the answer key on page 2, so you can print only page 1 for the players and keep the key. For adults, pick Hard: with no boxes there is no letter count to lean on, and GINGERBREAD or MISTLETOE jumbled with the first letter moved takes real thought. Swap in harder words of your own (frankincense, poinsettia, nutcracker, figgy pudding) if the family is quick. For a party, set Copies to the number of guests: everyone gets the same 16 words, jumbled differently on each sheet, and the first to solve them all wins. The title prints as “Christmas Word Scramble”; type your own above the list.

How do I make a word scramble easier for young kids?

Choose Easy: the first letter stays first and is already written in the first box, so a child starts with “S _ _ _ _ _ _” and a set of letters to place. Keep the list short, 8 to 10 words, and use words of three to six letters; a five-year-old can unjumble CTA into CAT, but GINGERBREAD in 11 boxes is a job for an older sibling. Turn on Picture clues: the scramble then prints a small line drawing beside each word that has one (a dog, a bell, a star), so a child who can sound out letters but not yet guess a word sees what it should be. Large print makes the letters and the boxes bigger for small hands and pencils. A trick that works well: let the child cross out each jumbled letter as they write it in a box, so none is used twice. The jumble is checked to be different from the word itself, but it can by chance spell some other real word that is not on your list (TEA could come out as EAT); the answer key always gives the word you typed.

Can I print a whole Christmas word search book?

Yes. Switch What to make to Puzzle book (or open polyatic.com/word-search-maker/#book). It has 12 themes written for this page: Christmas Eve, baking and cookies, carol titles (only public-domain carols such as “Silent Night” and “Deck the Halls”, titles only, no lyrics), the reindeer and the words of the 1823 poem “A Visit from St. Nicholas”, decorations, the nativity, winter animals, Christmas around the world, the Christmas dinner table, a snow day, gifts and wrapping, and a cosy night in. Each has 16 or more words. Keep all 12 or untick the ones you don't want, add a cover title such as “Grandma's Christmas Puzzle Book”, and download. With all 12 you get a 16-page PDF: a cover with a contents list, one puzzle per page with its theme as the title, and 3 pages of answer keys at the back, four to a page, each labelled with its puzzle number. Every page after the cover is numbered. The grids are built one at a time with a progress bar, so an older phone does not lock up; it takes a second or two. The same settings always give the same book; New grids moves every word. Each word is checked to appear exactly once in its grid, so there are no accidental doubles to argue about.

Is there a Christmas word search for adults, hard, or in large print?

In the book, the Adults: hard level hides words in all 8 directions, backwards and up included, and swaps every theme to a list of longer, less common words: Frankincense and Annunciation instead of Star and Donkey, Ptarmigan and Narwhal instead of Robin, carols such as “In Dulci Jubilo” and “Masters in This Hall”. Plain Hard uses the same 8 directions with the everyday words. The grids are packed tight (12 × 12 to 17 × 17, the smallest square that holds the words), so there is little empty filler to skip. Large print works with every level: bigger, bolder letters and a larger word list; book grids then stop at 17 × 17, which still gives cells of about 9 to 10 mm on A4. For a very young child, Very easy uses 8 short words per theme on a grid of at most 10 × 10.

Is there a Thanksgiving word search for kids and one for adults?

Yes, two starter lists. Thanksgiving gives 16 everyday words (turkey, pumpkin pie, gravy, stuffing, cranberry, harvest, grateful, acorn, cornucopia, pilgrim, parade, leaves, family, feast, gather, autumn), sets the level to Easy (across and down only) and hides “Happy Thanksgiving” in the leftover letters; it usually fits a 12 × 12 grid, which suits ages 6 to 9. Thanksgiving (hard) is for grown-ups and teenagers: 24 longer words such as mashed potatoes, butternut squash, Wampanoag and thankfulness, set to Hard, so words run in all 8 directions, backwards included, on a 17 × 17 or 18 × 18 grid. For children who cannot read yet, choose Picture clues and the Thanksgiving ready picture list: 10 short words (turkey, pumpkin, pie, acorn, leaf, corn, apple, pilgrim hat, bread, pear), each shown as a small drawing instead of a word, on a very easy 10 × 10 grid. All three print as a PDF with the answer key, work as a class set with a different grid per child, and can be shared to play on a phone. One limit: the 16-word list is too long for Very easy, whose grid stops at 10 × 10, so use the picture list for the youngest players.

Is there a free printable Halloween word search for kids, and a hard one for adults?

Yes, two starter lists, both free to print as a PDF with the answer key on the second page. Halloween is for children: 16 friendly words (pumpkin, ghost, bat, witch, broom, candy, costume, spider, moon, owl, cauldron, lantern, skeleton, trick or treat, black cat, mask), nothing gory, set to Easy so every word runs across or down, with “Happy Halloween” hidden in the leftover letters. It fits a 12 × 12 grid, which suits ages 6 to 9. Halloween (hard) is for adults and teenagers: 24 longer words such as poltergeist, superstition, All Hallows Eve and Samhain (the Gaelic festival Halloween grew out of), set to Hard, so words hide in all 8 directions, backwards and diagonally included, on a 15 × 15 or 16 × 16 grid. For children who cannot read yet, choose Picture clues and the Halloween ready picture list: 10 short words (pumpkin, ghost, bat, witch hat, broom, candy, spider, moon, cauldron, cat), each shown as a small line drawing instead of the word, on a very easy grid of at most 10 × 10. Every list can be edited before you print, made into a class set with a different grid per child, or shared to solve on a phone. One limit: the 16-word children’s list does not fit Very easy, whose grid stops at 10 × 10, so the picture list is the one for preschoolers.

Is there a free printable Hanukkah word search for kids, and a hard one?

Yes, both are in the Hanukkah section above, free to print as a PDF with the answer key. Easy, with pictures has 10 short words: dreidel, menorah, candle, gelt, latkes, oil, gift, donut, song and applesauce. Each has its own small line drawing beside the word (the menorah has all nine candles lit, the shamash taller in the middle), so a child who is still learning to read can find DREIDEL by looking at a dreidel. Words run only across and down, never diagonally or backwards, the letters are large print, and “Happy Hanukkah” is hidden in the leftover letters; the grid is 10 × 10. Hard, for adults has 22 words about the history and the customs, such as Maccabees, Antiochus, Kislev, shamash, sufganiyot, hanukkiah and nes gadol haya sham (“a great miracle happened there”, the phrase whose initials are on the dreidel). Words hide in all 8 directions, diagonals and backwards included, on a 16 × 16 grid, and “Chag sameach” is hidden in the leftover letters. One limit: for children under 5, switch the easy one to Very easy and Pictures only, because APPLESAUCE fills a whole row of the small grid.

Is there a free printable Diwali word search with answers, for kids and for adults?

Yes, both are in the Diwali section above, and each PDF has the answer key on page 2 with every word circled. Easy, with pictures has 10 words: diya, rangoli, sweets, lights, lantern, family, sparkler, flowers, gift and fireworks, each beside its own small line drawing (a clay diya with its flame, a plate of ladoos for sweets, a marigold for flowers), so a child who is still learning to read can match the picture to the word. Words run only across and down, the letters are large print on a 9 × 9 grid, and “Happy Diwali” is hidden in the leftover letters. There are no pictures of gods or goddesses, only the lamps, food and decorations of the festival. Hard, for adults hides 20 words in all 8 directions, diagonals and backwards included, on a 13 × 13 grid; two-word names are run together in the grid, so NEW CLOTHES and BHAI DOOJ are hidden as NEWCLOTHES and BHAIDOOJ. One limit: the maker places the letters without regard to meaning, so a short rude word can now and then appear by chance in the random letters; tap Shuffle the grid for a new one if that happens.

How do I use the Diwali word searches in a classroom, and what do the hard words mean?

For a class, load a puzzle, set Copies to the number of pupils and download one PDF: every child gets a different grid with the same words, so neighbours cannot copy, and the answer keys come at the back in the same order. The easy one suits reception to year 3 (kindergarten to grade 2); the hard one suits older pupils and adults, and makes a good starter for a lesson on the festival. Diwali is kept by Hindus, Sikhs (as Bandi Chhor Divas) and Jains, so it is worth saying so before you begin. What the hard words mean:

• Deepavali: the Sanskrit name of the festival, “a row of lamps”.
• Dhanteras: the first of the five days, when many families buy gold, silver or new kitchen pots.
• Diya: a small clay oil lamp with a cotton wick, set in rows at doors and windows.
• Rangoli: patterns of coloured powder, rice or petals made on the floor at the entrance.
• Marigold: the orange and yellow flower strung into garlands.
• Toran: a hanging over the doorway, often of marigolds and mango leaves.
• Kandil: a hanging paper lantern, often star-shaped, lit outside the house.
• Ladoo, barfi, jalebi: sweets shared with neighbours: round balls of gram flour or semolina, milk fudge cut into diamonds, and spirals of fried batter in syrup.
• Amavasya: the new-moon night, the darkest of the month, on which Diwali falls.
• Kartik: the lunar month of that new moon in the north Indian calendar (in the calendar used in much of the west and south, the same night ends the month of Ashvin).
• Bhai Dooj: the last of the five days, when sisters and brothers mark their bond.

Is it Hanukkah or Chanukah?

Both are right. The Hebrew word, חנוכה, starts with the letter chet, a throaty sound English has no letter for, so it is written in Latin letters in several ways: Hanukkah is the most common spelling in the US, Chanukah is common in Jewish communities and in the UK, and Hanukah and Chanukkah also turn up. The hard word search hides both Hanukkah and Chanukah, so players meet both spellings. Spelling is up to you everywhere else too: edit the list and type it your way before you print, and the word list under the grid prints exactly what you typed. Likewise the nine-branched Hanukkah lamp is called a menorah by most people and a hanukkiah (or chanukiah) by others; the easy puzzle uses menorah, the hard one hanukkiah.

How does the hidden message work?

After the words are placed, some cells are still empty. The maker writes your message into those cells, left to right and top to bottom, like reading a page. When a player has found and crossed out every word, the letters left over spell the message. Only letters count: spaces and punctuation are dropped, so “Merry Christmas!” takes 14 cells. The puzzle sheet shows one blank per letter, grouped by word, so players know how long it is. If the grid has more free cells than the message needs, the cells after the message get random letters, and the blanks tell the player where to stop. On a fixed grid that is too small, the message is cut and the page says so; Auto grows the grid instead.

Which difficulty suits which age?

As a rough guide: Very easy (across and down only, on a 6 × 6 to 10 × 10 grid with big capitals) is for ages 4 to 6. Easy (words only run across and down) suits ages 5 to 7 and early readers, ideally with short words and a 10 × 10 or 12 × 12 grid. Medium adds the two diagonals that read left to right and suits ages 8 to 11. Hard lets words run in all eight directions, backwards too, and is the one adults and teenagers find satisfying, especially on a 15 × 15 or larger grid. Grid size matters as much as direction: twelve words in a 20 × 20 grid is harder than in a 12 × 12, because there is more to scan.

How do picture clues help children who cannot read yet?

A word search normally assumes the child can read the list. With Picture clues on, the list under the grid becomes small line drawings instead: a dog, a bell, a cake. The child names the picture out loud, says the first sound, and then hunts the grid for the letters, so the puzzle practises exactly what pre-readers are learning: linking a spoken word to its first letter and the letters that follow. Under each drawing is one short line per letter, so a child can see that DOG is 3 letters and SNOWMAN is 7 before they start. Choose Pictures + words once they start to read: the word under the drawing lets them check the spelling. There are 72 drawings, made for this page (no clip-art, no cartoon characters), and four ready lists of 10: Christmas, animals, food, and home and toys. Type your own words and any that have a drawing (plurals too: CATS finds the cat) get one; the others stay as text, and the sheet says how many. Switching picture clues on also switches to Very easy, because a child at this stage needs big capitals and words that only run across and down. Pictures do not make every word easy: CHERRY and CHEESE both start with CHE, which is a good thing to talk about rather than a trap.

How do I print picture word searches for a class?

Pick a ready picture list (or type your own), set Copies to the number of children and download the PDF. Every child gets a different grid of the same words, each page with a line for their name, and the same drawings in the same order, so you can hold up your own sheet and point to “the bell” for the whole class. The answer keys follow, one per version, with the drawing next to each word and where it is. The drawings are vector lines in the PDF, so they print sharp on any printer and photocopy well in black and white; the PNG is drawn at 300 dpi for the same reason. The Puzzle book also takes picture clues: words in a theme that have a drawing show it, the rest stay as words. On a tablet, Share to play on a phone keeps the pictures: the child drags across the letters and each picture is crossed out when its word is found.

Can I make a word search for kindergarten?

Yes: choose Very easy. Words then only run left to right and down, never diagonally or backwards, and the grid stays between 6 × 6 and 10 × 10 (the size is picked for you), so each row is at most ten big capital letters. The word list prints in the same capitals as the grid, because a child who is just learning letters matches shapes, and “cat” does not look like CAT. Keep it to 5 to 8 short words a child already knows, such as their name, colours or animals: about 40 letters fill a 7 × 7 or 8 × 8 grid nicely. A word longer than 10 letters (“Gingerbread” has 11) cannot fit and is named, not hidden away. Leave the hidden message empty for this age; it is a puzzle for readers. Many 4-year-olds still need an adult to point at the first letter; most 6-year-olds manage alone.

How do I stop children copying from each other?

Set Copies to the number of children, up to 40. The PDF then holds that many different grids made from the same words, one per page, each with a line for the child's name and the date and a small “Version 3” in the corner, followed by the answer keys labelled the same way, so you mark each sheet against its own key. Neighbours look for the same words, so they can still help each other read the list, but a word at the top left on one sheet is somewhere else on the next. With very short lists on a small grid, two versions can look alike at a glance even though the letters differ; a few more words gives more variety. A class of 30 makes a 60-page PDF; print pages 1 to 30 for the class and keep the keys.

Should I print on A4 or US Letter?

Pick the paper in your printer. The maker starts on US Letter (216 × 279 mm) if your browser is set to US or Canadian English, and on A4 (210 × 297 mm) everywhere else. Letter is 18 mm shorter, so with a long word list the grid gets a little smaller on Letter. Everything stays at least 7 mm inside the paper edge, beyond the 3 to 5 mm most home printers cannot reach. Print at 100%; “Fit to page” only shrinks it slightly.

What does large print change?

Bigger, bolder grid letters and a larger word list, for grandparents, people with low vision and young children. To keep the letters big, the grid stops at 15 × 15; on A4 that gives cells of about 12 mm, close to half an inch.

Why was one of my words left out?

It is never left out quietly: the page names every word it could not place and says why. A word longer than the grid is wide cannot fit, and a crowded small grid can run out of room; the Use a bigger grid button fixes both. Words of one letter, repeats of a word already in the list, and words with letters the print fonts lack (Greek, Cyrillic or Polish Ł, for example) are named too. Accented letters such as É or Ñ print as they are.

Is it really free? Do I need an account?

Yes, and no. There is no sign-up, no watermark, no limit on how many puzzles you make, and no paid version. The puzzle and the PDF are made in your own browser, so your word list is never sent anywhere. Make a fresh sheet for every class or every guest.

How does sharing a puzzle to play on a phone work?

Press Share to play on a phone. On a phone it opens the share sheet, so you can send it straight to WhatsApp, Messages or a family group; on a computer it copies the link. The puzzle lives in the link only: your words, title, hidden message and the grid's seed are packed into the part after #p=, and the receiver's browser rebuilds the identical grid from them. Browsers never send the part after # to a server, so there is no copy stored on polyatic.com and nothing to delete later; the flip side is that anyone holding the link can read the words in it, and if you edit the puzzle you need to share a new link. The 16-word Christmas starter list makes a link of about 390 characters; chat apps and SMS carry that fine (a long SMS is just sent in a few parts), and the link shortens nothing, so paste it whole. The receiver drags a finger (or the mouse) from a word's first letter to its last, in any of the 8 directions and either way round; a found word is circled and crossed off the list, a wrong drag just fades. A timer runs from the first drag, Show answers circles whatever is left, and when every word is found the hidden message appears.

Can I make several different puzzles from the same words?

For a whole class, set Copies and you get every version in one PDF (see above). For a handful, you can also press Shuffle the grid before each download: the words stay the same and land in new places, so neighbours in a classroom cannot copy each other's answers. Each version's answer key matches its own puzzle, because both pages come from the same download.