Hard animal word search
Hippopotamus, armadillo and platypus are long names to spot in an eighteen by eighteen grid. Words run forwards, backwards and diagonally, which makes this one a real test for older kids and adults.
- Anteater
- Armadillo
- Buffalo
- Chameleon
- Cheetah
- Chimpanzee
- Crocodile
- Flamingo
- Gazelle
- Hippopotamus
- Jaguar
- Kangaroo
- Leopard
- Lynx
- Meerkat
- Moose
- Octopus
- Orangutan
- Platypus
- Porcupine
- Rhinoceros
- Salamander
- Sloth
- Squirrel
- Tapir
- Tortoise
- Walrus
- Wildebeest
This is the same puzzle as on the printable sheet. Every word you find turns green and is crossed off the list.
Make your own versionAnimals, extra hard
Name
| E | L | I | D | O | C | O | R | C | A | C | T | O | M | S | J | U | L |
| R | E | L | L | E | Z | A | G | N | D | U | R | W | A | E | A | L | E |
| N | L | O | D | A | A | I | A | E | E | W | I | L | M | Y | G | A | O |
| H | S | U | P | O | T | C | O | H | P | L | A | T | Y | P | U | S | P |
| A | R | M | A | D | I | L | L | O | D | M | L | L | S | P | A | E | A |
| T | E | X | H | M | O | O | S | E | A | D | Y | D | R | L | R | N | R |
| E | T | N | L | E | M | L | B | N | H | N | C | S | C | U | O | A | D |
| E | A | I | G | E | S | E | D | D | X | V | S | U | O | R | S | T | L |
| H | E | O | U | F | E | E | E | Z | N | A | P | M | I | H | C | U | H |
| C | T | R | P | S | R | S | L | R | L | O | T | A | R | N | S | G | L |
| R | N | N | T | O | I | E | O | D | K | S | T | T | T | O | T | N | N |
| A | A | T | A | O | R | K | A | N | G | A | R | O | O | E | E | A | W |
| G | E | L | T | R | E | C | R | R | P | H | T | P | P | L | T | R | C |
| E | O | R | I | R | R | O | U | R | H | I | N | O | C | E | R | O | S |
| X | O | U | I | E | S | E | I | P | H | E | I | P | O | M | R | N | L |
| T | Q | P | A | G | R | T | I | R | I | G | P | P | R | A | P | S | P |
| S | A | O | L | A | F | F | U | B | L | N | L | I | O | H | I | P | T |
| T | E | F | L | A | M | I | N | G | O | H | E | H | A | C | T | V | S |
Find these words
- Anteater
- Armadillo
- Buffalo
- Chameleon
- Cheetah
- Chimpanzee
- Crocodile
- Flamingo
- Gazelle
- Hippopotamus
- Jaguar
- Kangaroo
- Leopard
- Lynx
- Meerkat
- Moose
- Octopus
- Orangutan
- Platypus
- Porcupine
- Rhinoceros
- Salamander
- Sloth
- Squirrel
- Tapir
- Tortoise
- Walrus
- Wildebeest
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Scan for the answer key
Animals, extra hard
Try it here: drag a line across the letters.
All words found!
About this word search
Several names on this list travelled a long way before reaching English. Orangutan comes from Malay words for person of the forest, Armadillo is Spanish for little armoured one, and Porcupine goes back to old French words for a spiny pig. Older kids who like word origins will have plenty more to look up.
On this large board a name may run forwards or in reverse, along rows, columns or either diagonal. Start with letters that rarely turn up, such as the Z in Chimpanzee and Gazelle or the X in Lynx, then follow every possible line out from each one. Wildebeest and Hippopotamus stretch across most of the board, so they surface sooner than Moose or Sloth.
For a geography follow-up, have students match each animal to its continent. The answers for Moose and Lynx are closer to home than the rest.
Ways to use this word search
In the classroom
Print it as a task for early finishers, or to open a lesson on this topic. With the QR code on the sheet, students check their own answers.
At home and on the go
Pack a few printed sheets for the car, the train or a family vacation. A pen is all you need, no screen required.
Play together
Print the sheet twice and race each other. Whoever finds all the words first wins. Or play it online and see who is fastest.
Try it in Spanish too
The same theme also exists in Spanish, French, German and Italian, each with its own word list in that language. Handy if you are learning a language: you already know the topic, now just the words.
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Is your theme missing? Type your own words into the word search maker. You get a grid with the answer key straight away, in the size you want.
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