Word Search Generator

How to make a printable word search

1. Enter one word or phrase per line, or import a UTF-8 .txt file. Review normalized duplicates and any line-specific errors.
2. Choose a title, grid width and height, directions and A4 or Letter portrait paper.
3. Generate the puzzle. Review the puzzle and answer-key previews, then download the two-page PDF: puzzle first, key second.
4. Use Print puzzle or Print answer key for separate sheets. For verification or another format, copy or download the plain text and complete JSON answer key.

A small example

CAT
DOG
ICE CREAM
ICE-CREAM

This list contains three distinct placement words: CAT, DOG and ICECREAM. The last line is reported as a normalized duplicate of ICE CREAM, whose original display label is retained. An 8 by 8 grid allows ICECREAM to fit along a row or column.

If CAT starts at row 2, column 3 going right, it occupies (2,3), (2,4) and (2,5). Coordinates in the text and JSON keys are 1-based: the top-left cell is (1,1). This is a placement example, not a promise that a random generation uses those particular cells.

Words, phrases and directions

Placement uses A-Z only. Lowercase ASCII letters become uppercase; ordinary spaces and hyphens are removed from the placement word. Original display labels remain in the word bank, with the normalized word shown when different. Digits, accents, tabs within labels and other characters are rejected with their source line; they are not silently discarded or transliterated. Blank lines are counted and ignored, and CRLF, LF and lone CR all separate entries.

Forward uses right and down. Diagonals adds down-right and down-left. Only All eight adds left, up and upward diagonals. Words are straight, never wrap or bend, and may cross only where their letters agree. The display list stays in input order; placement works from longest to shortest with randomized ties.

What the answer key includes

Every requested word must have a designated start, direction, length and full cell path. After filling empty cells, the tool scans every allowed direction for every requested word. The key outlines all distinct matching paths: solid outlines for designated placements and dashed outlines for additional occurrences. Letters are drawn over the outlines; the distinction does not depend on color.

A palindrome can match both ways along the same cells. Reverse-equivalent paths for that word count once. Other additional occurrences remain in the full key. The text and JSON exports provide coordinates as an alternative to visual outlines; JSON also includes the complete grid, original labels and placement records.

Successful placement does not mean each word appears only once. Random filler may also spell unrelated or unintended words. There is no dictionary or child-safe vocabulary filter: review a puzzle before sharing it and regenerate if needed.

Printable layout and limits

The SVG preview and vector PDF share one geometry model. The PDF embeds the locally bundled, licensed Liberation Sans font. The grid uses at least 10 pt letters, 36 pt margins and a word bank in up to three columns. Long labels wrap without clipping; combinations that cannot fit readably produce an error rather than a broken worksheet. Unsupported title glyphs, including emoji, also produce an error. Screen previews scale to your display; print size is set by the selected paper.

Limits are 100 KiB UTF-8 source, 2-40 distinct words, 60 characters per display label, 2-30 normalized letters, an 80-character title and 8-30 cells in each grid dimension. One puzzle is generated at a time. The search is bounded by 100 restarts, 50,000 candidate attempts and 5 seconds; failure identifies words unplaced in the best attempt and offers adjustments. No partial puzzle is exported.

For safe display and export, a key is limited to 5,000 matching paths and 100,000 total path cells. An unusually repetitive list that exceeds either limit is rejected, not silently shortened. Font loading has a separate 15-second timeout. Generation and PDF preparation run in a cancellable local worker; edits and changed settings discard outdated work and revoke old downloads.

Imports strictly decode UTF-8 and remove one leading file BOM. Invalid or oversized files preserve the previous draft. Clear, example loading and import offer one-step in-memory Undo. Clipboard denial leaves complete selectable text and download alternatives. Nothing is persisted in browser storage, put in URLs or included in tool-generated analytics or requests; refreshing clears drafts.

This tool does not look up definitions, create clues, solve uploaded puzzles, provide multilingual dictionaries or offer certified random draws. Print settings in your browser may add headers or scaling; use the PDF at actual size for the most predictable result.