20 words are hidden in the letters, or ten short ones for a first try. Tap the first letter of a word, then its last letter.
The 20 words
whale shark dolphin octopus crab seal turtle jellyfish starfish lobster shrimp squid eel clam oyster seahorse stingray walrus otter orca
Twenty sea creatures, among them the whale, dolphin, octopus and seahorse, with shelled ones like the crab, clam and oyster. There are 20 words and 117 letters to find. The longest word is "jellyfish", at 9 letters. No word on the list uses V, X and Z.
The words by length
| Length | How many | Words |
|---|---|---|
| 3 letters | 1 | eel |
| 4 letters | 4 | crab seal clam orca |
| 5 letters | 4 | whale shark squid otter |
| 6 letters | 4 | turtle shrimp oyster walrus |
| 7 letters | 3 | dolphin octopus lobster |
| 8 letters | 3 | starfish seahorse stingray |
| 9 letters | 1 | jellyfish |
A shorter puzzle of ten
Choose "10 short words" beside the heading for a smaller grid with these ten: whale, shark, crab, seal, turtle, squid, eel, clam, otter and orca. None has more than 6 letters. On a phone the full puzzle takes twelve of the 20, so the letters stay big enough to tap.
Hints for this puzzle
- Start with the longest words. Jellyfish, starfish and seahorse take up the most room, so they are the easiest to spot.
- 7 words start with S. When you find an S, check it for shark, seal, starfish, shrimp, squid, seahorse and stingray.
- 4 words start with O. When you find an O, check it for octopus, oyster, otter and orca.
- Look for doubled letters. Two of the same letter side by side stand out in a grid: jellyfish, eel and otter.
Play it or print it
On the screen, tap the first letter of a word and then its last letter, and the word is crossed off the list. Easy hides words across and down, Medium adds corner to corner, and Hard adds backwards. Press Print for two pages, the puzzle and its answer key, and "New puzzle" for the same words in new places. The word search maker page explains how each grid is made and kept clean.
Pack it for a beach day or pair it with an aquarium visit. Draw a wavy line on the back, then write the animals that come up for air above it and the rest below.
The same words on bingo cards and flash cards
The bingo card generator deals these words onto cards, each one a different mix, and the flash cards page prints them eight to a sheet.
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Questions
What words are in the ocean animals word search?
Whale, shark, dolphin, octopus, crab, seal, turtle, jellyfish, starfish, lobster, shrimp, squid, eel, clam, oyster, seahorse, stingray, walrus, otter and orca.
Is there an easier ocean animals word search?
Yes. Choose "10 short words" for a smaller puzzle with whale, shark, crab, seal, turtle, squid, eel, clam, otter and orca. On Easy, words only run across and down.
Can I print it with an answer key?
Yes. Press Print for two pages: the puzzle and its answer key. Each press of "New puzzle" makes a different sheet.
Is the ocean animals word search free?
Yes. There are no ads and nothing to sign up for.