Advertisement

Create a printable word search puzzle from your own word list, with a word bank and a separate answer key, then print it or download a PDF.

Options

Spaces, hyphens and accents are handled for you. 3 to 60 words works best.
Difficulty
Word directions
mm
Same options and same seed always rebuild the exact same sheet — note it down to reprint it later.

Live preview

For an exact 1:1 print, keep the print dialog at 100% scale and turn off "Fit to page".

If your language's alphabet is not supported by the built-in PDF fonts, the downloaded PDF falls back to English labels — printing always keeps your language.

Advertisement

About Word Search Maker

The Word Search Maker turns any list of words into a printable puzzle. Paste your spelling list, vocabulary set or party theme, give the sheet a title, and a grid is built around your words straight away, with a word bank underneath and a matching answer key on its own page.

You stay in control of how hard the puzzle is. Choose a fixed grid from 10x10 up to 25x25 or let the size follow your list, allow words to run across, down, diagonally or backwards, and pick an easy, medium or hard layout: easy keeps the words apart, hard overlaps them and reuses only the letters of your own list as filler, which makes scanning far more demanding.

Everything happens in your browser. The sheet is drawn in real millimetres, so the live preview, the printed page and the downloaded PDF are the same document at the same size, and your word list is never uploaded anywhere. The seed shown next to the options reproduces an identical puzzle later, which is handy when you need a second copy of a sheet you already handed out.

How to use Word Search Maker

  1. Type or paste your words, one per line, and give the puzzle a title.
  2. Pick a grid size, or leave it on Auto to fit the list.
  3. Choose which directions words may run in, and how hard the puzzle should be.
  4. Turn the word bank and the answer key page on or off.
  5. Check the live preview, then print the sheet or download the PDF.

Frequently asked questions

Yes. Building the puzzle, printing it and downloading the PDF are free, with no watermark and no account needed.

Yes. Switch on the answer key and a second page is added where every hidden word is highlighted and the filler letters fade back, so you can mark the sheets at a glance.

Yes. Spaces and punctuation are removed when the word is hidden in the grid, so "sea horse" is hidden as SEAHORSE, while the word bank still shows the original spelling. Accented letters are kept as they are.

The tool tells you which entries could not be placed instead of quietly dropping them. Increase the grid size, allow more directions or shorten the word, and it will fit.

Yes. Note the seed shown under the options: entering it again with the same word list and settings rebuilds exactly the same grid.


Popular searches
word search maker free printable word search word search generator make your own word search custom word search pdf word search puzzle maker word search with answer key printable word search for kids
Need help?
Found an issue with this tool? Let our team know.
Report an issue

Add this free tool to your own website — copy and paste the code below.