Free word search maker with clues. This game is more challenging than wordsearch. The students don’t get the word search words, but they get clues to find the words in the puzzle.
Make your own word search puzzle with clues. With this word search puzzle maker you can create or your own puzzle or load an existing puzzle. This game is a varation of the famous word search game. But in this game the player gets the descriptions of the words that are hidden in the puzzle. With these clues they can find the words in the puzzle. You can change the size of the puzzle and the directions of how the words are placed in the puzzle. Add a small description of the puzzle. Then click on download the puzzle. It will take a second before your printable pdf file is created.
When you have created your own word search puzzle, we save your puzzle. After checking the puzzle there is a chance that we will added it in puzzle list.
Create your word search puzzle with clues
Word search title:
Instructions:
Select the directions of the words in the puzzle.
Terms of use of the edu games.
1. You can use the worksheets for free for non-commercial purposes, such as in schools, training centers or at home.
2. It is strictly forbidden to modify the worksheets in any way.
3. You can place an image of the worksheet on a website, but you have to place clearly and close to the image a link to www.edu-games.org.
4. It is forbidden to place the worksheet as a pdf file on a website.
5. You are allowed to use the worksheets (as pdf) in a closed environment for teaching purposes, as such Google’s Classroom. As long as the school or institution is free for the students and that they have free access to the worksheets.
6. There are no limitations on the numbers of worksheets you can create and download.
7. You give the edu games website the permission to use your created puzzles. Your puzzle will be checked and if it is suitable for other users it will be published on the website.
8. It is forbidden to embed www.edu-games.org into an i-frame of another website.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a word search?
A word search is a puzzle where there are rows of letters placed in the shape of a square, and there are words written forwards, backwards, horizontal, vertical or diagonal. There will be a list of words for the player to look for and the goal of the player is to find those words hidden in the word search puzzle, and highlight them.
How do I choose the words to use in my word search?
Once you’ve picked a theme, choose words that have a variety of different lengths, difficulty levels and letters. You don’t need to worry about trying to fit the words together with each other because WordMint will do that for you!
How are word searches used in the classroom?
Word search games are an excellent tool for teachers, and an excellent resource for students. They help to encourage wider vocabulary, as well as testing cognitive abilities and pattern-finding skills.
Because the word search templates are completely custom, you can create suitable word searches for children in kindergarten, all the way up to college students.
Who is a word search suitable for?
One of the common word search faq’s is whether there is an age limit or what age kids can start doing word searches. The fantastic thing about word search exercises is, they are completely flexible for whatever age or reading level you need.
Word searches can use any word you like, big or small, so there are literally countless combinations that you can create for templates. It is easy to customise the template to the age or learning level of your students.
How do I create a word search template?
For the easiest word search templates, WordMint is the way to go!
Pre-made templates
For a quick an easy pre-made template, simply search through WordMint’s existing 500,000+ templates. With so many to choose from, you’re bound to find the right one for you!
Create your own from scratch
- Log in to your account (it’s free to join!)
- Head to ‘My Puzzles’
- Click ‘Create New Puzzle’ and select ‘Word Search’
- Select your layout, enter your title and your chosen words
- That’s it! The template builder will create your word search template for you and you can save it to your account, export as a Word document or PDF and print!
How can I print my word search template?
All of our templates can be exported into Microsoft Word to easily print, or you can save your work as a PDF to print for the entire class. Your puzzles get saved into your account for easy access and printing in the future, so you don’t need to worry about saving them at work or at home!
Can I create a word search in other languages?
Word searches are a fantastic resource for students learning a foreign language as it tests their reading comprehension skills in a fun, engaging way.
We have full support for word search templates in Spanish, French and Japanese with diacritics including over 100,000 images.
Free word search maker with images or text hints
from Tools for Educators: These worksheet makers are light, easy to use, but very powerful. Make work searches for kids, elementary school, phonics programs, language classes and more.
You can use text for your puzzle hint: find the same word, unscramble the word and find it, read a clue for the puzzle word, or use your own ideas. It’s up to you.
word search maker: text only
You can use images as the puzzle hints: choose an image category below and type the word you want entered into the puzzle. The maker will generate a puzzle with your image choices below.
— if you want to make a word search with clues, use the text only generator above. There is an option to include free text instead of the puzzle word as a hint!
— if you want a crossword and word search together on the same page, use the crossword maker.
You can use up to 16 images for your word search with images. You can use less by just using 8, 12 or any lower number. The maker will generate a puzzle based on what you enter.
These word search makers are free word searches to print that you can use online to make personalized word searches with images as hints. You can select the image you want to use and type in any text for that picture you’d like. So, you can choose from 1,000s of images to create the perfect word search for school, home use, parties, waiting rooms, anything.
These can handle some foreign languages as well. So, I hope French, LOTE, Spanish teachers and more can use the word search creator for their classes as well.
End User License Agreement: You are free to use any resource created from this site as an end user and MES grants you an End User License with the following restrictions: You may not redistribute, copy, modify, transfer, transmit, repackage, re-engineer, charge for, or sell any of the materials from this site. You may use photocopies or printouts for the purposes of distributing them for free to your students. MES reserves the right to terminate or make changes to this agreement for any reason and without notice.
Copyright © 2005 — 2023 Tools for Educators and MES English | privacy
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Title:
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Instructions:
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These word search puzzles were made here! -
Our MOST ASKED QUESTION:
How do I make multi-word entries?
Colorado Springs
I Have a Dream
United States, etc.
It’s simple! Click the video —>
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Make «Hidden Message» Word Searches!
Watch our video to learn how you can create a puzzle inside of a puzzle, commonly called a Hidden Message Word Search puzzle!Please SUBSCRIBE to our
- Do you want UPPERCASE or lowercase? We’ve always had that ability! It is in the blue menu after making the puzzle under «Advanced Options…» we have LOTS of options in that menu. We get asked everyday for options that are already there! Don’t cheat yourself out of the perfect puzzle by not looking for it in the blue menu on the left.
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Rows
(10-50)
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Columns
(10-50)
- Grid styles
- Language
- Word Placement
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Show Grid Lines
Yes
No -
Place Word List:
Hide word list
Sort word list alphabetically
- # of columns for word list if ‘Bottom’ list is chosen above.
- TIP: Use the «Fun Options» for neat options like:
1. Hide «WordSearchPuzzle» but show «Word Search Puzzle» in the word list! and
2. Hide «SantaClaus» but show «Who visits on Christmas?»
Watch the video below for more fun tips!
Choose up to 3 fonts + Arial (default)
Check out our «Fun Options» video, then click the button below!
I understand that by clicking «Fun Options» below, it will lock out my word list above to further changes, and saving options will be unavailable.
Fun Options
For many years I have enjoyed puzzling over a Word Search. I would curl up on the couch or in bed, or sometimes even sit at the kitchen table, for hours, hunting down the elusive words featured on the puzzle’s list. During those times, I gave little thought to the how and why of Word Search. Its objective and purpose did not mean much to me. All I knew was that it meant hours of quiet enjoyment for me, and that was enough.
I was recently asked about the actual object and purpose of the puzzle and felt it was worth giving it a bit of thought. I discovered the general meaning, objective, purpose, as well as benefits of Word Search.
- Word Search is a word puzzle, invented in 1968 by Norman E. Gibat, that involves searching for words in a grid of letters.
- The objective of Word Search is to locate a list of words hidden on a grid. As each of the words is located, they are circled on the grid and then struck from the list.
- The purpose of Word Search is to be entertained as well as educated. Of course, finding all the words means that the puzzle is “solved”.
There are many benefits of Word Search, from improving spelling and vocabulary to reducing stress and improving context clue fluency.
These are just the summarized points pertaining to what a Word Search is, what its objective is, and what its purpose is. There’s always more to the story, isn’t there? If these points have piqued your interest and you want to learn more about Word Search, simply read on. Below I go into a bit more detail on each of the abovementioned points.
Word Search: What it is all about!
What is doing a Word Search all about? What is the draw, so to speak? Doing a Word Search should be somewhat of a ritual – at least it is for me. How do you make Word Search a ritual, you ask?
You find a comfortable spot. You have the puzzle, your pen/pencil, and quietness all on the ready. You make yourself comfy and fully engross yourself in the task for as long as it takes. For me, that is what a Word Search puzzle is all about. It is about disconnecting from the rest of the world and getting lost in the words. Most of all, it is about expanding my mind while completely relaxing and unwinding. When I was a kid, my parents used to describe this behavior as “being in the Word Search zone” – and they were right!
Ok! You might be wondering, but what exactly is Word Search. Well, it is a word puzzle that came out in the 1960s.
In Spain, it is known as “Sopa de Letras” (which means Soup of Letters), and it was first publicized by Pedro Ocón de Oro in the 1960s. In North America, it was first published by Norman E. Gibat in 1968 in his Selenby Digest. At the time, Gibat hoped that the puzzle would drum up some new interest in his digest, and it certainly did. It was not long before teachers were requesting extra copies of the digest and the puzzle to give to kids in the classroom, and before too long, word of the puzzle had spread. And as they say, “the rest is history”.
Let’s talk about the underlying objective of the Word Search puzzle. Above, I mentioned that the objective of Word Search is to locate a list of words hidden on a grid of letters. The grid consists of what appears to be a selection of jumbled letters, but if you look closely, you will find certain words nestled in between these letters. The more you do Word Search, the easier it seems to be become finding those hidden words.
The main objective of the game is to consult with a list of words supplied with the grid, and find all the words on that list. The puzzle is usually given a theme, and the words on the list typically fit in with this particular theme. Puzzlers must spend time investigating the grid and applying various strategies to locate the words on the grid and circle them.
The strategies are not complex; in fact, they are quite simple. One can methodically look through each row horizontally and vertically as one strategy. Another strategy is to focus on finding words on the grid and then locating them on the list (working in reverse order). Once the words are circled on the grid, they must be marked off on the list.
Of course, when there is a mystery Word Search puzzle at hand, the objective is similar, but not quite the same. Instead of a list of words being provided, the puzzler must focus on the theme of the Word Search and then hunt for hidden words in the grid that pertain to that particular theme. The objective of this particular type of Word Search is not to find listed words, but to find words that are hidden instead.
What is the Purpose of Word Search?
You might be wondering if there is any real purpose to Word Search puzzles and other word puzzles too. The truth is that there is – which is good news, right? It is not just about passing the time, but also about deriving some enjoyment and benefits from it. Just like many other games and puzzles, there is always a purpose. Most of these word games and puzzles are designed to provide entertainment, but that is not all. Other purposes included:
- Creating the opportunity for families and peers to bond.
- Educating people or teaching a new skill.
Of course, Word Search puzzles cater to both of these purposes. Generally speaking, the purpose of Word Search is to entertain, educate, and bring people together. I can quite confidently say that it has done each of these things in my life.
What are the Benefits of Word Search?
Are there any benefits to doing Word Search puzzles on a regular basis? Yes, there is, but the catch is that you do actually have to solve them or work on them regularly in order to enjoy these benefits.
Something that has been noticed is that people who do Word Search puzzles, both young and old, enjoy a variety of benefits. These benefits are simply undeniable, and if you are looking to add value to your life, doing regular Word Search puzzles is the way to go. You can solve them alone, with your partner, or even as a family or group of friends. It can be something done in quiet time, or it can be a social activity – Word Search is quite versatile in that way. Doing Word Search puzzles is always fun.
Below are a few of the benefits of regularly solving Word Search puzzles:
- You enjoy a sense of achievement or accomplishment when all the words are found.
- Time spent doing Word Search puzzles is time away from screens and social media. If you want less screen time for yourself or the kids, Word Search is the way to go.
- You get to expand your mind by learning new words (bigger vocab) and learning how to spell them. A bigger vocab and better spelling skills mean good things for your future prospects.
- You get to relax, unwind, and minimize stress levels.
- You get to have fun.
- The more Word Search puzzles you do, the more advanced your context clue fluency will become. You will be able to tie concepts, ideas, and conversations together with greater ease. This means that Word Search puzzles actually improve communication.
These are just a few of the benefits of doing Word Search puzzles. If you take the time to really delve into the benefits, especially for kids, you might find that it gives them something to look forward to and is a good confidence booster too.
Last Word
As an avid puzzler, it is easy for me to say that Word Search is the obvious choice for those looking for a word game or puzzle.
The best thing to do, now that you know the objective, purpose, and benefits, is to get your hands on a Word Search or two, and try it out for yourself. You will find a variety of Word Search puzzles online free to download and print. Alternatively, you can buy a puzzle book or even download an app on your mobile device from your relevant app store. Whichever way you get your Word Search to test, just focus on relaxing and enjoying it. Good luck!