Words
Word Finder online
Race to spot hidden words in a shared grid of scrambled letters. First to find a word claims it; most words in 3 minutes wins.
Word Finder guide
A word search race: one shared grid, hidden words, and the first to spot each word claims it.
What is Word Finder?
Word Finder is a word search game: words from a list are hidden in a grid of letters and you mark each one by selecting it from first letter to last. On DD Games it is a race, online with 2 to 6 players on one shared grid, or solo practice and races against 1 to 3 bots.
Word search is usually a quiet pencil puzzle. Word Finder turns it into a race: everyone looks at the same grid, and the moment one player finds a word it is highlighted in their colour and struck off the list for everyone else.
There are three sizes. Easy is an 8x8 grid with 6 words that read left to right or top to bottom, Medium a 10x10 grid with 8 words including diagonals, and Hard a 12x12 grid with 10 words hidden in all eight directions, backwards too. Each word in the list shows its category as a clue.
On your own, practise against the 3-minute clock or race 1 to 3 bots on Easy, Medium, Hard or Auto. There is also a separate Daily Word Search with a new themed grid every day.
How to play Word Finder
- Choose Singleplayer to practise alone or race 1 to 3 bots, or Online to race 2 to 6 players on the same grid.
- Pick a difficulty: Easy (8x8, 6 words), Medium (10x10, 8 words) or Hard (12x12, 10 words). Online, the host picks it and starts the round.
- Find a word from the list in the grid and drag from its first letter to its last in a straight line. You can also tap the first letter and then the last, or use the arrow keys and Enter.
- The first player to find a word claims it: it is highlighted in their colour and struck off the list.
- The round ends when every word is found or after 3 minutes. Whoever found the most words wins.
Rules
- Easy words run left to right or top to bottom, Medium adds diagonals, and Hard hides words in all 8 directions, including backwards.
- A word counts when you select exactly its first and last letters; selecting from the last letter back to the first works too.
- Each word can only be claimed once, by whoever finds it first.
- Words with a space, such as ICE CREAM, are hidden without the space.
- Every word counts the same, whatever its length.
- Online, the host picks the difficulty before the round starts. If the top count is shared at the end, the round is a draw.
Tips and strategy
- Scan for rare letters such as Q, Z, X, J or K; they quickly give a word away.
- Use the category next to each word as a clue to what you are looking for.
- Go for short words first while others hunt for long ones; every word counts the same.
- Look for double letters like LL or EE, which stand out in a grid.
- On Hard, read each line both ways: the grid is built to include backwards and diagonal words.
Questions
How do you play word search online with friends?
Choose Online in Word Finder, create a room and share the code with up to five friends. Everyone searches the same grid and the first to find each word claims it.
How many players can play Word Finder?
Two to six players online on one shared grid. In Singleplayer you can practise alone or race 1 to 3 bots on Easy, Medium, Hard or Auto.
How long is a Word Finder round?
A round lasts up to 3 minutes and ends early as soon as every word in the list has been found.
Can words be backwards or diagonal?
On Medium, words can run diagonally. On Hard they can run in all eight directions, including backwards, and Hard grids are built to mix in diagonal and backwards words.
What happens if two players find the same number of words?
If the top count is shared when the round ends, the round is a draw.
Is there a daily word search?
Yes. The Daily Word Search has a new themed grid every day with a timer and a daily leaderboard.
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