Word Search
Paused
Words to find
Every grid on this page is made fresh in your browser the moment you press New game, from 64 word lists covering animals, food, places, hobbies and more. Before you see it, the grid is checked so that each word on the list appears exactly once. The page opens on Medium, a 12 × 12 grid with 12 words. Pick another level on the right whenever you like. Each one keeps its own puzzle, so nothing is lost when you switch.
How to play
Drag across a word
Press on the first letter of a word and drag to the last. The line snaps to the nearest straight direction, so you do not need a steady hand. Let go, and if the letters spell a word on the list, it stays marked in its own colour.
Or tap the two ends
If dragging is awkward, tap the first letter, then tap the last. This works well on a phone and with a trackpad. Tap the first letter again to cancel.
Stuck? Take a hint
Hint picks a word you have not found yet and makes its first letter flash. A small orange dot stays on that letter until you find the word. Each hint costs 20 points.
Turn the grid, or print it
Rotate turns the board a quarter turn, which is a surprisingly good way to spot a word you have been staring past. Print gives you a clean copy of the grid and its word list.
There is a longer guide to playing word search if you are new to the puzzle.
Four levels, from Easy to Expert
The levels differ in three ways: how big the grid is, how many words are hidden, and which directions the words can run in. On the top two levels the spare letters are also chosen to trip you up.
Easy
Words only run left to right or top to bottom. A gentle grid for a coffee break.
Medium
Diagonals join in, both down and up the slope. Still nothing backwards. This is the level this page opens on.
Hard
All eight directions, so about half the words read backwards. Words cross more often.
Expert
A big grid packed with crossing words, and filler letters borrowed from the hidden words to make false starts.
| Level | Grid | Words | Directions | Backwards words |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Easy | 10 × 10 | 8 | Across, down | No |
| Medium | 12 × 12 | 12 | Across, down, two diagonals | No |
| Hard | 15 × 15 | 16 | All eight | Yes, about half |
| Expert | 18 × 18 | 22 | All eight | Yes, about half |
| Daily | 14 × 14 | 15 | All eight | Yes, about half |
A new puzzle every day, and one for kids
The Daily Word Search is the same grid for everyone on a given day, so you can compare times with friends. It changes at midnight where you are, and you can go back and play any of the last 30 days. Word Search for Kids has big letters, short everyday words and words that only run across and down.
How to find words faster
Hunt for the rare letters first
Letters like Q, Z, X, J and K are scarce, so a word that contains one is easy to pin down. Look for that letter, then check the squares around it.
Look for the first two letters together
Scanning for a single letter turns up too many matches. Look for a pair instead, such as "PL" for PLANET. Once you see the pair, the direction of the word is fixed.
Sweep the grid one row at a time
Run your eyes along each row, then down each column. A steady sweep beats darting about, and it is how you find the words you skipped.
Read backwards on purpose
On Hard and above, look for the last letter of a word first and read the other way. Backwards words hide in plain sight because our eyes read left to right.
Save the long words for later
Long words cross lots of other words, so they get easier as the grid fills with colour. Short words are easier to lose, so tick them off early.
There are more ideas in our word search tips and strategy guide.
Where the words come from
The 64 word lists were written for this site, and each puzzle uses one of them, named at the top of the word list: Under the sea, Fruit, Cities of the world, Musical instruments, Things that glow and many more. Words are chosen at random from the list, so the same list gives a different puzzle each time. A word that sits inside another, like CAT inside CATERPILLAR, is never used in the same grid. The letters that fill the gaps are random, but weighted like real English so they blend in, and every grid is checked to make sure those letters never spell anything rude.
The full story of how the grids are made is on the blog, with figures from thousands of test grids.
Keyboard shortcuts
| Key | What it does |
|---|---|
| ← ↑ → ↓ | Move around the grid |
| Space or Enter | Mark the first letter, then the last letter of a word |
| Esc | Cancel the letter you marked |
| H | Show a hint |
| R | Rotate the grid |
Click the grid first so the keys go to the puzzle.
Make it yours
Under Board theme there are eight colour schemes, including the colours of our other games and a dark one for late at night. Under Music there are five calm tracks that keep playing as you move from page to page. Your theme, music and level are remembered next time you visit.
Questions people ask
Is Word Search Online free?
Yes. Every puzzle is free to play in your browser. There is no account, no download and no limit on how many grids you play.
Are the words ever written backwards?
On Easy and Medium, never. On Hard, Expert and the Daily puzzle, about half the words run backwards: right to left, bottom to top, or along a diagonal the wrong way.
How many words are hidden in each grid?
Easy hides 8 words in a 10 × 10 grid, Medium 12 words in 12 × 12, Hard 16 words in 15 × 15 and Expert 22 words in 18 × 18. The Daily puzzle hides 15 words in 14 × 14.
Can a word appear twice in the same grid?
No. Before a grid is shown, it is searched in all eight directions to make sure every word on the list appears exactly once, so there is only one right answer for each word.
Will I lose my puzzle if I close the page?
No. Your grid, the words you have found and your time are saved in your browser after every move. Each level keeps its own puzzle, so you can switch from Easy to Hard and back without losing either.
Can I print a word search?
Yes. Press Print under the timer. You get the grid and its word list on one page, with tick boxes next to the words and nothing else from the website.
How is the score worked out?
Each word is worth 10 points per letter, multiplied by the level: 1 on Easy, 1.5 on Medium, 2 on Hard and 3 on Expert. A hint costs 20 points. Finish quickly and you get a time bonus on top.
Does it work on a phone?
Yes. Drag your finger across a word, or tap its first letter and then its last. On a small screen the word list sits under the grid so you can see both at once.