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New to word search? The list on the page names every hidden word. Draw a line from the first letter of a word to its last, or tap both ends, and the word is circled in ink and struck off the list.
How to play Word Search
Word search in one sentence: find every word of the list hidden in the letter grid and circle it with one line. Below is a real hard puzzle from the game, step by step, and then every rule in detail.
Play Word Search →A ManyPlay browser walkthrough · Checked . Screenshots below show the actual game. Illustrated catalog covers are presentation artwork. Who publishes these games?
Verified opening-board solution
The rules you need
- Every word of the list is hidden once, in a straight line.
- Easy grids hide words across and down; medium adds the diagonals.
- Hard grids use all 8 directions, backwards too.
- The line must cover the word exactly, from either end.
- Hint marks the first letter of a word; hints are unlimited.
Worked example: a hard word search, step by step
Here is the real hard puzzle No. 578458 with the theme Music, opened in the game: a 12 × 15 grid and 16 words, among them SAXOPHONE, CHOIR, UKULELE and ORCHESTRA.
Start with a rare letter
The grid has only a few X letters, and one word of the list holds one: SAXOPHONE. From an X, check the eight letters around it. The word turns up running backwards along a diagonal, from the S in the bottom right corner up to the E. One drag from S to E circles it.
Start with a rare letter — actual result Read the columns from the bottom up
On a hard grid words also run upwards. Reading one column from the bottom gives C, H, O, I, R: CHOIR stands upright, read upwards. A drag from C to R circles it, and the counter shows 2 of 16.
Read the columns from the bottom up — actual result Finish the list
The long words come next, ORCHESTRA and CONDUCTOR, then the short ones, which are easier to spot once the long ones are circled. When the last of the 16 words is circled, the page is stamped Solved, with the time and the bonus word CHORD that was hidden in the grid but not on the list.
Finish the list — actual result
Why this sequence works
Rare letters such as Q, X, Z and J appear only a few times, so they lead straight to the words that hold them. On hard puzzles a word may run in any of 8 directions, so every row, column and diagonal has to be read both ways, and filler letters often repeat the letters of the hidden words to tempt false starts.
Mistakes to avoid
- Reading only from left to right on a hard grid misses the words that run backwards or upwards.
- A line one letter too long or too short does not count: start and end exactly on the word.
Questions about this board
Can words cross in a word search?
Yes. Words may cross and share a letter, so one letter can belong to two words.
What is the bonus word?
One more word of the theme hides in the grid but not on the list. You do not need it to win; it is there for sharp eyes.
Does the game keep score?
No. The top bar shows your time, which starts with your first move, and how many words you have found. Your progress is saved in this browser.
Other modes and further play
The menu also has today's issue, easy, medium and hard puzzles, kids and large print, your own words and printing with an answer key. This example checks one hard puzzle in the browser build, not every theme or language.
Report a changed rule or control. Browser and Android editions can differ; the checked date describes this walkthrough, not a new game release.
Word search rules in detail
A word search is a grid of letters next to a list of words on one theme. Every word of the list is hidden in the grid once, in a straight line, and your goal is to find them all.
The grid and the list
Each puzzle is a rectangular grid of letters next to a list of words from one theme, such as Animals, Kitchen or Weather. Every word of the list is hidden in the grid exactly once, in a straight line. Your goal is to find them all. The other letters are fillers that belong to no word.
How to mark a word
To mark a word, draw a line with your finger or the mouse from its first letter to its last. If dragging feels awkward, tap the first letter, then the last. On a computer you can also move with the arrow keys and press Enter on the first and the last letter. You may select a word from either end, but the line must cover the word exactly: a line that runs one letter too far does not count. A found word is circled in ink and struck off the list.
Directions on each level
Where words can run depends on the level. Easy puzzles (8 × 10 grid, 8 words) hide words only across and down. Medium puzzles, the default (10 × 13 grid, 12 words), add both diagonals, still read from left to right. Hard puzzles (12 × 15 grid, 16 words) use all 8 directions, so words also run right to left, bottom to top and backwards along the diagonals, and the filler letters often repeat the letters of the hidden words. In every level words may cross and share a letter.
Hints and the bonus word
Stuck? Press Hint and a pencil marks the first letter of a word you have not found yet; press again to move to the next word, or tap a word in the list to get the hint for that word. Hints are unlimited.
One more word of the theme hides in the grid but not in the list: the bonus word, marked with a star. You do not need it to win; it is there for sharp eyes.
Solved, time and progress
When every word of the list is found, the puzzle is stamped Solved. There is no score: the top bar shows your time, which starts with your first move, and how many words you have found. Your progress is saved in this browser.
Explanation checked 2026-11-11. Studio page text docs/page/content/en/game.md (spec 04, git-house-morn/wordsearch dad47a3), checked against src/game/config.js (grids 7×9 to 12×15, 6 to 16 words, directions per preset, 3 to 15 own words) and the build in the browser 2026-11-11