Word Search Help

Find hidden words in the grid by selecting letters in a straight line—horizontal, vertical, or diagonal. Mark all words to win.

How to Play

1. Start a game – Choose a difficulty and category, then click Start game.
2. Select letters – Click and drag from the first letter to the last letter of a word, or click the start cell then click the end cell. Letters must form a straight line (horizontal, vertical, or diagonal).
3. Match a word – When your selection spells one of the words in the list, it is marked as found and stays highlighted.
4. Win – Find every word in the list to complete the puzzle.

Words can be placed forward or backward; select in either direction.

Difficulty Levels

• Easy – 10×10 grid, 5–8 words. Horizontal and vertical only. Good for learning.
• Medium – 12×12 grid, 8–12 words. Adds diagonal directions.
• Hard – 15×15 grid, 12–18 words. Diagonals and reversed words; more words and a larger grid.

Categories

• Animals – Cats, dogs, birds, and more.
• Countries – Nations and regions.
• Programming – Code-related terms.
• Space – Planets, stars, and astronomy.
• Mixed – General vocabulary.

Scoring

• Base points – Easy 100, Medium 200, Hard 400.
• Time bonus – Up to +2 points per second for finishing under 2 minutes.
• Hint penalty – Using Hint costs 25 points.

Your best score for each difficulty is saved in your browser.

Tips

• Use Hint to reveal one random unfound word (with a score penalty).
• Toggle Grid lines on or off for clearer reading.
• Start with obvious words (e.g. short or unique letters) to get clues for the rest.
• Words can run in any of the eight directions; try selecting in reverse if it doesn’t match at first.