Word search maker
Make a word search from your own words.
Type a list of names, places or this week's spelling words, and get a word search in a second. Hide a message in the leftover letters if you like. Share it to solve on a phone, or print it with the answer key.
- Free to make and share
- No sign-up needed
- Solved on any phone
A Day at the Beach
Sample puzzleWords to find
- bucket
- crab
- kite
- ocean
- picnic
sandcastle(found)seashell(found)- spade
- sun hat
- sunscreen
- towel
waves(found)
How it works
- On the maker's first page, type your words, one per line: 4 to 40 of them, each 3 to 20 letters. A short phrase works too: sun hat is hidden as SUNHAT and listed the way you typed it.
- Choose how hard it is and how big, or leave both as they are.
- Make the grid. Every word is placed, or you're told which one didn't fit and what to change. Don't like the layout? Build another.
- Give it a title, then share the link or download the PDF.
If one word is hidden inside another (CAT inside CATERPILLAR), the maker points it out, since solvers may find it twice. You can keep both.
Three difficulties
- Easy
- Across and down only.
- Medium
- Across, down and diagonally - always forwards.
- Hard
- All eight directions, backwards included.
Sizes
Best fit is the default: the smallest grid that holds your longest word and leaves the words room to breathe. Or choose one yourself:
- Small 8×8
- Medium 10×10
- Large 12×12
- Classic 15×15
- Big 20×20 - for printing, with Plus or Pro
A puzzle meant to be solved on a phone stays at Classic 15×15 or smaller, where the letters are big enough for a finger. Choose a smaller size for a fuller, harder grid.
A hidden message
Turn on Add a hidden message and type a short sentence: Happy birthday Grandma, See you at the lake. Its letters go into the squares no word uses, in reading order, and appear once the last word is found. A message needs exactly as many letters as the grid has free squares, so the maker counts them as you type and says whether they fit, with a one-tap change of size when another one would.
Solving on a phone
Anyone with the link can solve it in their browser, with no app and no sign-up. Drag across a word, or tap its first letter and then its last; found words are ringed and crossed off the list. Progress is saved on their device, and the clock shows how long they took.
Printing
The PDF is a clean page for US Letter or A4: your title, a large grid, the words to find with a box to tick (alphabetical, or in your own order), blanks for the hidden message if it has one, and the answer key on the second page with every word ringed.
A different grid for every student
With a class pack, the same words come in a new layout on every copy, so nobody can copy a neighbour: up to 40 copies in one PDF, each on its own page and numbered (“Copy 7 of 30”), with the answer keys at the back by copy number. Class packs come with Plus and Pro.
Pricing
Free to make. Pay only to print.
Word searches are priced like our crosswords. Making, sharing and solving them is free. A print-ready PDF with the answer key is US$3 a puzzle, or US$5 a month with Plus for 10 puzzles, which adds class packs and the Big 20×20. Pro (US$10 a month) prints as many as you like.
Questions
Good to know.
Is the word search maker free?
Yes. Making a word search, sharing it by link and solving it cost nothing, and you don't need an account. You pay only for a print-ready PDF (US$3 a puzzle) or a plan, if you print often.
Can I make one for my class?
Yes: put in this week's vocabulary or spelling words and print it, or share the link for students to solve on a tablet or laptop without accounts. With Plus or Pro, a class pack gives every student a different grid of the same words, up to 40 in one PDF.
How does the hidden message work?
The squares no word uses spell your message, left to right and top to bottom. Solvers see it once they've found every word. Spaces and punctuation stay out of the grid, so only the letters count, and the maker tells you as you type whether they fit the size you chose.
Can I make a crossword too?
Yes. The same maker makes crosswords from your words, free-form or newspaper-style. Choose the type on its first page.
More answers in Help.
Your words. Their puzzle.
Start with a few words and see the grid appear. It's free, and there's nothing to sign up for.