Word Search Generator – Make a Puzzle from Your Own Words
Type the words to hide, one per line, and press “Generate puzzle”. The tool hides them in a grid of letters and gives you a word search you can print or save as a PNG, with an answer key on request. Good for classroom worksheets, party handouts and kids’ activities. For another printable activity, try the Maze Generator.
🔒 Runs in your browser · Your data is never sent to a server
Choose from 8 to 25 cells.
How to use
- Enter the words to hide in "Words to find", one per line (at least 2 letters, up to 50 words).
- Choose the "Grid size" and "Difficulty", then press "Generate puzzle".
- Tick "Show answer" to highlight where each word is hidden.
- Use "Save as PNG" to download an image or "Print" to print it. Whatever is shown, including the answer highlights if they are on, is what gets saved or printed.
Notes
- Generating the puzzle, computing the answer and creating the image all happen in your browser. The words you type are never sent to a server.
- Enter one word per line (commas also work as separators). Spaces are removed and letters are converted to upper case. Words shorter than 2 letters and everything past the 50th word are skipped.
- The grid can be 8 to 25 cells. A word longer than the grid cannot be placed, and a small grid with many words may leave some out; those are named in the message shown after generation.
- For words in Latin letters, hiragana or katakana, the empty cells are filled with letters of the same kind. Otherwise (for example kanji) they are filled with characters taken from your words.
- The filler is re-rolled to avoid creating an extra copy of a word elsewhere, but a copy that happens to be formed by overlapping words may still occur.
- Every press of "Generate puzzle" makes a different layout and the same puzzle cannot be recreated later, so save it as a PNG or print it if you want to keep it.
- Accented letters and other characters each use one cell.
Glossary
Word search
A puzzle in which you find listed words hidden in a grid of letters. Each word runs in a straight line (across, down or diagonally), and solvers circle or highlight each one they find.
Backwards placement
A word written against the reading direction, such as right to left or bottom to top. It is harder to spot, so it is used only on Hard.
Filler letters
The random letters that fill the cells left over after the words are placed. They are chosen from the same kind of characters as your words.
FAQ
Can I use words in Japanese or other languages?
Yes. Latin letters, hiragana, katakana, kanji and other characters all work. For Latin letters, hiragana or katakana the empty cells are filled with the same kind of characters; otherwise they are filled with characters taken from your words. Letters are converted to upper case and full-width letters to half-width.
Why were some words not placed?
A word longer than the grid cannot be placed, and a small grid crowded with words can run out of room. Increase the grid size or use fewer or shorter words. Words that could not be placed are named in the message shown after generation.
How do I print a worksheet and an answer key?
Print with "Show answer" off, then tick it and print again to get the answer key of the same puzzle. Do not press "Generate puzzle" between the two prints, because that creates a different layout.
Can a word appear in more than one place?
The filler letters are re-rolled to avoid creating an extra copy of any word. A copy that happens to be formed by overlapping words can still occur in rare cases; press "Generate puzzle" again if you want a different layout.
Can it make crosswords?
This tool makes word search puzzles only. For crosswords, use the separate Crossword Generator, which builds a puzzle from your answers and clues.
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