Printable collection · 6 puzzles

Printable Insects & Bugs Word Searches

Print one for yourself, or one sheet for two: race a brother or sister, a partner or a classmate to circle each word first.

Ants, Bees, Beetles and Butterflies each get a sheet in these printable insects and bugs word searches, six in all. Insects covers the body and the main groups, from Thorax to Dragonfly, and Ladybugs has its own sheet too. Each of the others stays with one kind of insect and its nests, food and names.

Ladybugs has the shortest words, 6.6 letters a word, with Red, Dome, Spots and Wish. Butterflies is the longest at 8.0 and has just two words of five letters or fewer, Egg and Silk, beside Swallowtail and Lepidoptera. Beetles carries seven multi-word entries such as Stag Beetle and Dung Beetle, and Ants has five, from Fire Ant to Formic Acid.

A stack of printed word searches, the top one mid-game: two players' names, words circled in blue and red and crossed off the list, its answer key behind it

Insects & Bugs Word Search Printables

All 6 sheets print as one-page PDFs on Letter or A4, each with its own answer key, at three levels. They are free, with no account or email. Pick a level and every sheet below switches to it.

Medium

12×12 grid
15 words
8 directions, a few backwards

Print all 6:

PDF Answer keys

Insects
Print this: PDF Answer key
Butterflies
Print this: PDF Answer key
Bees
Print this: PDF Answer key
Ants
Print this: PDF Answer key
Ladybugs
Print this: PDF Answer key
Beetles
Print this: PDF Answer key

Want a fresh grid? Open a sheet and press Generate new puzzle: a new puzzle from the same words, as many times as you like.

Battle a Friend on Paper

Print one sheet and sit side by side, each with a different color pen. When you spot a word, circle it in the grid and cross it off the list in your color. A word belongs to whoever circles it first. When the list is done, count your color: the most words wins. Check any word you doubt against the answer key.