Word Search Maker (Any Language)
Printable word searches from your own words, in any language and script.
How it works
Turn your own word list into a printable word search: grid size automatic or fixed, diagonal and backwards words optional, shared letters allowed or not. Works letter by letter in every script — accents, Cyrillic, Greek, Devanagari, Chinese and right-to-left Arabic — and adds an answer key with every word circled.
- Words are normalised (Unicode NFC, spaces and punctuation removed, optional capitals with the language’s rules, e.g. Turkish İ) and split into user-perceived characters (Unicode grapheme clusters, UAX #29): one character per cell.
- Longest words are placed first at random allowed positions (right and down, optionally the two diagonals and all reversed directions); shared letters are preferred when allowed. With automatic size the grid grows from about √(letters × 2) until every word fits.
- Empty cells get random letters taken from your words, so the filler matches the script. Any word that appears a second time by accident gets its filler letters redrawn, so each word can be found exactly once. Right-to-left word lists are mirrored so “forwards” reads right to left.
Chinese, Japanese and Korean grids print only characters in Printshop’s font subsets; missing characters are reported as a warning.
Sources
- Unicode Standard Annex #29: Unicode Text Segmentation (grapheme clusters) (Unicode Consortium)
- ISO 32000-1:2008 Document management — Portable document format (PDF 1.7) (Adobe / ISO)
- Noto Sans fonts (SIL Open Font License 1.1) (Google / Noto project)
Part of Printshop
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Printshop Printables studio
QR codes, calendars, labels, puzzles and posters — print-perfect PDFs in seconds.
Related tools
- Crossword Maker from Your Words and Clues – Criss-cross crosswords from your own words and clues, numbered, with an answer key.
- Sudoku Maker (4×4 to 16×16, with Answer Key) – Printable sudokus with one solution, graded by the solving techniques needed.
How to use the Word Search Maker (Any Language)
Hide your own words in a printable word search, in any script including Arabic and Devanagari, with diagonal and backwards options and an answer key.
What it is for
This tool turns your own word list into a printable word search: spelling words for a class, vocabulary in a new language, names for a party. There is no built-in dictionary — only your words go into the grid. You get a true-size PDF with the grid and a tick-off list, an answer page with every word circled, and SVG and PNG of the first page.
It works letter by letter in every script. Words are split into user-perceived characters (Unicode grapheme clusters), so an accented letter, a Devanagari syllable or a Chinese character fills one cell, and Arabic letters print in their isolated form, as Arabic word searches do.
Worked example
The default space list (12 words such as Planet, Galaxy, Astronaut and Telescope) with diagonals on (seed space-1) fits into a 12 × 12 grid. The table shows each word with its row, column and direction — for example Planet in row 4, column 5, running right, and Orbit starting in row 9 going up-right.
Ten German animals with backwards words allowed (seed wald) also need 12 × 12; Eichhörnchen is placed right to left from row 8, column 12, and the Ö stays one letter.
Eight Arabic words with diagonals off (seed ar-1) give a 7 × 7 grid marked right-to-left: the grid is mirrored, so "forwards" reads from right to left and the word list is right-aligned.
If you force a grid that is too small — 6 × 6 for Astronaut, Telescope, Planet and Moon — only Planet and Moon fit, and a warning lists the two words that were left out.
How to read the result
- size is the grid width and height; with size 0 it grows from about the square root of twice the letter count until every word fits (at most 30).
- words gives row and column of the first letter, counted from the top left of the printed grid, plus the direction (right, down, up-left …) and length.
- missing lists words that did not fit or were skipped (shorter than two letters).
- grid is the full letter grid, one array per row.
Tips and common mistakes
- Spaces, hyphens and apostrophes are dropped in the grid, but the list prints your words as typed.
- Capital letters follow the language you choose: Turkish "istanbul" becomes İSTANBUL, German ß becomes SS.
- Filler letters are drawn from your own words, so the grid stays in one script. Any word that appears a second time by accident gets its filler redrawn; if that fails, a warning asks you to try another seed.
- Turn off Words may share letters for younger children; turn on Backwards words for a harder puzzle.
- Chinese, Japanese and Korean grids can only print characters in Printshop's small font subsets; missing ones are named in a warning.
FAQ
Can I solve it on screen?
Yes. In Printshop press Play on screen…, then pick the first and last letter of a word with the mouse or the keyboard.
Why is the grid bigger than I expected?
Long words set a minimum size, and placing all words without overlaps may need more room. Allow shared letters to keep it compact.
How many words can I use?
Up to 60 words of 2 to 30 letters.
Guide last updated:
For scripts and AI agents
- JSON API:
POST https://printshopwordsearch.usefulweb.app/api/v1/calculate(same calculation as this page) - Interface description: OpenAPI 3.1 · AI guide: llms.txt
- MCP server (Streamable HTTP):
https://printshopwordsearch.usefulweb.app/mcp· tool nameprintshop_word_search
Example request
curl -s -X POST https://printshopwordsearch.usefulweb.app/api/v1/calculate \
-H 'content-type: application/json' \
-d '{"seed":"space-1"}'