Word Search Puzzles Online🔎Word Search
Find the hidden words.
About Word Search
Themed word searches: animals, food, space, sports and more. Drag across letters to find every word in the list. Three grid sizes, and the clock records how fast you find them all.
Controls
- ▸Drag across the letters of a word
- ▸P or Esc to pause
- Difficulty
- ★★★★★
- Session
- ~6 min
- Plays
- 0
- Time played
- 0 min
How to play Word Search
Choose a theme (Animals, Food, Space, Sports, Colours or School) and a grid size: 8×8 hides 6 words, 10×10 hides 8 and 12×12 hides 10. To mark a word, press on its first letter, drag to its last letter and let go. Words run across, down or diagonally. Each find is highlighted in its own colour and crossed off the list.
The clock starts when the puzzle appears and stops when the last word is found. Your score is your time, so lower is better. Stuck? The Hint button, or the H key, makes the first letter of a missing word pulse, but adds 15 seconds to your time.
Tips
- ▸On the 8×8 and 10×10 grids, words only read left to right, top to bottom, or diagonally to the right, so scan in those directions.
- ▸Look for a word's least common letter rather than its first, such as the Z in ZEBRA or the K in COOKIE.
- ▸You can drag in either direction, which helps on the 12×12 grid where words can run backwards.
- ▸A hint costs 15 seconds, so it only pays off once you've been stuck for longer than that.
Word Search FAQ
- Can words be backwards or diagonal?
- Diagonal words appear on every grid size. Backwards words, reading right to left, bottom to top or along reversed diagonals, only appear on the 12×12 grid.
- How is my time scored?
- Your score is the time on the clock when you find the last word, including 15 seconds for each hint. Your best time is saved in your browser.
- Is it good for children?
- Yes. The lists use everyday words like LION, PIZZA, PENCIL and PURPLE, and the 8×8 grid with six words is a gentle start for younger readers.
