Big Print Word Search

About Big Print Word Search

Big Print Word Search is the first game from Big Print Games, a small independent site that makes classic puzzles larger and easier to read. It is aimed at people who hold puzzle books at arm's length, including older players and people with low vision, and at activity leaders who print copies for a group at a library, senior center or care home.

Each day the home page features one puzzle for everyone. A regular puzzle has twelve words hidden in a 12 by 12 grid, all on one theme, with a short scene that sets it up: an attic with rafter beams and a forgotten box, a wash day on the laundry line, a game of dominoes. On Mondays there is also a gentle puzzle with eight words on a 10 by 10 grid. Words run across, down and on a slant.

The page is built for comfort first. Letters are large by default, and buttons above the grid make them larger still; there is a high contrast display and an optional timer. You can take a word by dragging across it, by tapping its first and last letter, or with the keyboard, and the grid works with a screen reader. Progress is kept on your own device, so a half-finished grid waits for you.

Nothing expires. More than 400 puzzles sit in an archive grouped by theme, such as Home and Comfort, Hobbies, and Outdoors and Nature. Any of them can be printed as a two-page PDF in US Letter or A4, and the site says copies are free to photocopy for a group. Everything is free and needs no account, no app and no email address.

How to play Big Print Word Search

1. Open the word search page and choose Play on today's featured puzzle.
2. Set the letter size with A, A+ or A++, and turn on high contrast or the timer if you want them.
3. Find a word from the list in the grid; it may run across, down or on a slant.
4. Drag from its first letter to its last, or tap the first letter and then the last.
5. Keep going until all the words in the list are found; the counter above the grid shows how many are left.
6. To solve on paper instead, choose Print this puzzle or download the PDF, which puts the answer key on its own sheet.

Screenshots

Tips

• On a phone, use the two-tap method for words that run straight up or down, since swiping that way scrolls the page.
• The theme blurb above the grid hints at the words, so read it before you start looking.
• Several answers are two words run together, such as BARE BULB, so look for them without the space.
• If you have missed a few days, browse the theme pages: every earlier puzzle can still be played.
• The Hint button names a word you have not found yet and lights up its first letter.

Questions