Word Search Tips and Tricks

Ah, word searches, one of the all-time classic word games. In the days of simple games like Hangman and tic-tac-toe, word searches were the most entertaining games to play. What is excellent about Word Search puzzles is their simplicity.

What if we told you that there are actually quite a few strategic devices that you can use to get even faster at the game? Well, keep on reading to learn 4 tips that will help you solve Word Search puzzles even faster than you are now. 

How to Play Word Search

For those of you who don’t know the rules of Word Searches, don’t worry! It is extremely easy to learn. You are given a 10 X 10 square of jumbled letters. Within these jumbled letters are 12 words that you must find. The letters can be found either vertically, horizontally, diagonally, or even backward! It is up to you to find all 12 words and solve the Word Search.

In some of the variations, there are extra rules in order to increase the difficulty. For example, a timer may be added. In the extreme version, you are only given 2 minutes to find and highlight all 12 of the words.

Another variation is playing without the word list. For example, you may be given the topic of camping, but you won’t know which camping-specific words there are. You’ll have to guess if there are words such as ‘tent’, ‘campfire’, and ‘sleeping bag’ scrambled throughout the grid.

Tips & Tricks for Word Search Puzzles

While Word Search is thought to be a fairly simple and straightforward game, there are definitely a few strategies to increase your speed in these Word Search puzzles. We’ve compiled a few of our go-to tips & tricks to speed up your efficiency and turn you into a puzzle wizard.

Don’t forget the diagonals

Oftentimes beginners will solely focus on the rows and columns in the grid. However, unless you are playing on the beginner level, there will be words scattered throughout the grid in a diagonal direction. Keep an eye out for the diagonals, they can be sneaky. This is especially true if they are spelled both backward and diagonally!

Take it row by row

If you are looking for a specific word in the list, it is best to scan row by row. Simply look for the first letter of the word while scanning rows in order from top to bottom. When you find the first letter of the word, scan around to see if the second letter of the word is there as well. If not, keep on going row by row searching for it.

For example, if you are looking for the word ‘Armadillo’, you would begin to scan for the letter ‘A’. After you spot an 'A', look all around and see if there is an ‘R’ next to it in any direction.

Scan for doubles

Some words will have pairs of letters. For example, if you are looking for the word ‘Troops’, you can scan for pairs of Os. It will be easy for your brain to find double Os because they stand out to you in your brain when trying to search for them in a sea of mixed letters.

Pay attention to the genre

Every single Word Search puzzle has a topic. Superheroes, sports, music, it can be about pretty much anything. In the mode where the words you must search for are hidden, it is key to pay attention to the topic. For example, if the topic is music genres, you can probably assume that you should search for words like Rock, Country, and Folk.

Games Similar to Word Search

Word Search is not the only word game that we have here at Coolmath Games. We have tons of other options on our site! Read on to learn about a few of our favorite games that are similar to Word Search.

Word Race

Interested in taking your skills to the next level? Come play Word Race, our multiplayer word game that forces players to find words in a random grid of mixed-up letters. The longer word you create, the more points you earn. In order to win, you must earn more points than your opponents over a span of 3 rounds, each lasting for 1 minute.

Daily Jumble

Daily Jumble is one of the classic games from our Daily Games Playlist. In Daily Jumble, players must unscramble the words that are presented to them. These words will give you clues to solve the riddle that is presented to you on the right side of the screen. Be warned – this game requires some serious grammatical skills to win. 

So get out there and test out the strategies for our Word Search puzzles! You might be shocked by how much time you save with a few of these simple tricks.