Word search is the puzzle type most buyers already know: a letter grid, a list of words to find, and straight lines through the letters. Puzzle Maker Pro ships six separate word-search generators, not one module with a skin switch. Each has its own menu entry and shop product. The sections below walk through turning a themed word list into print-ready pages on the classic square grid, plus the settings that change what actually lands on paper. If you are choosing which look fits a listing or book line, read Word Search Puzzles for Publishers first; it compares Standard, Hexagon, Zig-Zag, Image, Count, and Reverse without repeating that comparison here.
Six word-search generators
Each product below is real software you open from the puzzle list. Pick one generator per book or pack so the cover matches the interior.
| Generator | Shop product | Solver task |
|---|---|---|
| Standard | Standard Word Search | Find listed words in a square grid |
| Hexagon | Hexagon Word Search | Same find-the-list job on a honeycomb |
| Zig-Zag | Zig-Zag Word Search | Words bend along a path, grid filled edge to edge |
| Image | Image Word Search | Name pictures, then find those words |
| Count | Count Word Search | Count how many times a word appears |
| Reverse | Reverse Word Search | Place listed words into a mostly empty grid |
The walkthrough below uses Standard Word Search, the default square grid most people picture. Hexagon, Zig-Zag, Image, Count, and Reverse reuse many of the same ideas (word list, batch quantity, solution styling) but move controls to different tabs. Open that product from the puzzle list when you switch generators.
Open Standard Word Search and set the grid
In the desktop app, choose Standard Word Search from the puzzle-type list. The header holds your preset toolbar and Quantity. The control accepts 1 through 1000 puzzles per run (default 1); preview stays at one puzzle at a time. The main tabs are Puzzle, Grid, Options, Solution, Style, and Titles.
On Grid, leave Create Puzzle Using: Grid selected for a rectangle, or switch to Mask after you set a shape in the mask editor. Rows and Columns each run from 5 through 200; a new session defaults to 10×10. Words longer than the larger side are skipped, so a 15×15 cap fits vocabulary up to fifteen letters.
Shaped puzzles use the same Standard generator with Mask on the Grid tab. For full-page rectangular grids without masks, see also full-page word search puzzles.
Word list: the product is your list
On Puzzle → Words, paste one word per line or point at a .txt file. Optional #TITLE: and #DESCRIPTION: lines at the top set per-puzzle headings when you batch many lists. The AI… word-list assistant can draft lists to your grid size when you use your own AI provider API key (no charge through Puzzle Maker Pro) or when your account uses subscription AI credits.
Important for layout: Create exports the letter grid as the puzzle image (-W-P) and a separate used-words text file (-W-W.txt) for the word bank. The bank is not drawn on that puzzle JPG or PNG. You add the list on the finished page in your PDF tool, your page layout tool, or an Instant Puzzle Books layout. Instant Puzzle Books can place the bank for you; a bare image export will not.
Under Options → Word Options, Unlimited Words is on by default; turn it off to cap at 1–50 words (default cap 20). Use Filtered Words List rejects words from a blacklist file, which helps on classroom lists with banned terms.
Directions and difficulty on the grid
Still on Options, the Complexity block controls which lines words may use:
- Diagonals: off by default; turn on for the classic “any direction” book.
- Backwards: off by default; enable for adult books once readers know the rules.
- Kid’s Diagonal: only top-left to bottom-right diagonals when you want diagonals without every slant.
- Limit Diagonals: caps how many diagonal placements the engine attempts.
- Allow Overlapping Words: lets letters serve two words; disabled when No Shared Letters is chosen.
Algorithm chooses how aggressively the engine packs words: Default, Compact, No Shared Letters (no crossing letters), or Use All Words. Placement is partly random (the footer note on the tab warns that effects are hard to predict), so click Create again if one puzzle feels too sparse.
Hide Vowels blanks chosen vowels on the puzzle image only (default set AEIOUY). Chaotic Letters rotates letters on the puzzle page for a handwriting-challenge look. Random Characters / Use Hidden Word on the Solution tab fills leftover cells with random letters or spells a hidden phrase through unused cells, which works well for a bonus message on the last page of a pack.
Solution marks and keys
The Solution tab controls the answer page, not the puzzle grid. Use Lines (on by default) draws Circle capsules or straight Line marks over each word; pick Word Fill Color or Bold Print if you want found words to pop against filler letters. Capsule size runs 20–200% of the cell.
Every generated puzzle pairs one puzzle export with one solution export. For Etsy ZIPs, state both counts (“24 puzzles · 48 pages, keys included”). For KDP, a rear answer section keeps Look Inside spoiler-free; see the worked example below.
Style and titles on the printed page
Style sets canvas color, outer border, inner cell lines, and grid font. Defaults center on Arial at readable print size. Titles hosts Smart Titles tokens such as Word Set Title and Word Set Description (default description text Find all the words). Those headings feed Instant Puzzle Books and optional branding on the exported image when you turn branding on for the collection.
Exports and shop editions
From Create, Standard Word Search writes JPG, PNG, transparent PNG, SVG, and PDF. Batch many puzzles at once with Quantity, or assemble a full interior in Instant Puzzle Books (title page, table of contents, and solution cross-references at every tier). Open Puzzle Book Studio when you want live layout editing and multi-collection book projects on the tiers that include it.
The Standard Word Search shop page sells two variations today: Standard Word Search (entry) and Productivity Edition. The entry option covers themed lists, directions, shaped grids with Mask, and styled puzzle pages. Productivity Edition adds Time Saver batch creation for mixed sizes and lists in one project and Customer JSON when you enable JSON output in app settings. Customer JSON is a Productivity workflow export, not Online Play.
Every paid Puzzle Maker Pro edition lets you sell the finished books, worksheets, and packs you make to your own readers and customers. Productivity adds the right to sell or supply the generated puzzles to other publishers and sellers. Compare tiers on Puzzle Maker Pro Editions Explained. Evaluate the module with the demo; unlicensed Standard output is watermarked and preview runs one puzzle at a time.
Deeper first-run steps live in getting started with Standard Word Search and how word search works for solvers.
Worked example: 40-puzzle autumn paperback (KDP)
Goal. An 8.5×11 inch paperback, one puzzle per page, answers in back, autumn vocabulary for seasonal buyers on Amazon.
Settings. Rows/Columns 15×15. Word list of twenty autumn nouns; cap with Max Words 15 if you want faster solves. Turn Diagonals on, Backwards off for a friendly “school newsletter” difficulty. Algorithm Default, Use Lines with Circle capsules on solutions. Quantity 40 in one pass (or four passes of ten if you split themes). Export through Instant Puzzle Books with Smart Titles set to Word Set Title per list file.
Page math.
- Page 1: title
- Page 2: how to play (state which directions you turned on)
- Pages 3–4: table of contents (optional)
- Pages 5–44: 40 puzzle pages (grid plus word bank on each page you design)
- Pages 45–84: 40 solution pages in a rear section
Total 84 interior pages before blank padding for print signatures. In the Amazon description, say puzzles run pages 5–44 and solutions start on page 45 so Look Inside shoppers know keys sit past the preview.
Recommendation. Run Create again if a word drops; anything longer than fifteen letters will not fit. Keep one generator look in the book. If you also sell a hexagon pack, that is a second product with its own Hexagon Word Search generator, not a mid-book layout change.
Worked example: 24-puzzle Etsy pack (48 pages)
Goal. Instant download: one theme, keys in the ZIP.
Settings. 12×12 grid, twelve words, diagonals on, same Style preset for every puzzle, Quantity 24.
Page math. 24 puzzle sheets + 24 marked solution sheets = 48 pages in the PDF. Title the listing with both numbers. Pack sizing and preview photos are spelled out in Etsy word search printables.
Other puzzles you might like
When your buyer wants interlocking clues instead of hidden words, start with which crossword variation or Criss Cross vs Word Star.
Teachers selling single photocopier pages rather than ZIP packs should read TPT word search worksheets.
If word search is one chapter inside a mixed logic volume, logic puzzle books for KDP covers pacing and Look Inside across several mechanics.