Variations
What prints with the starting settings
| Paper | US Letter — 215.9 × 279.4 mm (8.5 × 11 in) |
|---|---|
| Grid | 15 × 15 letters |
| Words hidden | 18 of 18 |
| Margins | 1/2″ |
| Line weight | 0.18 mm (bold 0.35 mm) |
| Print setting | Scale 100% / Actual size |
A ready-made sports puzzle
This printable has 18 words hidden across, down and diagonally in a 15 × 15 grid, with the word list underneath and an answer page at the back of the PDF. It suits any time of year. Long words such as basketball and volleyball are hard to hide in a small grid, which is why this puzzle uses 15 squares across.
Warm-up, match day or extra time
Easy, for kids lays every sport across or down. The default adds diagonals, and Hard sends long words such as BASKETBALL and VOLLEYBALL backwards, a real test for older solvers. With 18 sports from archery to rugby, it suits a PE lesson, a rainy sports day or the weeks around a big tournament.
Ideas for using it
- Use it in PE on a rainy day, then let students pick a sport to try.
- Ask players to circle the sports played with a ball in one colour.
- Replace the list with your club’s team names for an end-of-season puzzle.
Printing tips
Print at 100% on Letter or A4. For a team, add the players’ names or your club’s sport words to the list before printing, and hand the puzzles out on the bus to a match. The word search maker builds a puzzle from any list.
More word search maker sheets
Frequently asked questions
Is there an answer key?
Yes. Page 2 of the PDF shows the same grid with every sport highlighted.
Which sports are in the puzzle?
Archery, baseball, basketball, bowling, boxing, cycling, diving, fencing, football, golf, hockey, rowing, rugby, skiing, soccer, swimming, tennis and volleyball.
Why are football and soccer both included?
Because they mean different games in different countries: soccer in the US is football in the UK, while American football is its own sport. Keep or remove either to suit your class.
Can I make a puzzle for my own team?
Yes. Replace the list with your players' names or your sport's vocabulary, such as positions and rules, and print.
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