How many planets are hidden across the puzzles on this page?

All eight. Saturn is in the default list, Mars, Earth and Venus are in the easy puzzle, and Mercury, Jupiter, Neptune and Uranus are in the challenge.

What is the difference between a meteor and an asteroid?

An asteroid is a rocky body orbiting the Sun. A meteor is the streak of light you see when a small piece of space rock burns up in Earth's atmosphere.

Is the Moon a planet?

No. The Moon is a natural satellite of Earth. It is in the default list with the other space words.

What is the longest word in the space challenge?

Constellation, with 13 letters. Solar system and Milky Way are also long once their spaces are removed.

Free · No sign-up · 24 ready-made topics

Space Word Search

A space word search with 10 words from galaxy to moon, plus two fixed printable puzzles. Between the three puzzles on this page you can find all eight planets of the solar system.

Words (one per line, or comma separated)

Or start from a topic:

Grid size

Difficulty

Puzzle title

Subtitle (optional)

Two printable space puzzles

These two puzzles are fixed: the grid is the same every time, so you can print identical sheets for a class or a party. Each has a word list, a Show answers button, a Print button and a printable answer key. Download both as a PDF (with answer keys)

Space Word Search 1: Planets and Stars

Easy 10 x 10 grid · 8 words · 4 to 5 letters

A 10 x 10 puzzle for beginners. Eight short words, hidden across, down and diagonally down to the right only.

Name: ____________________ Date: ______________

FXAIAEARTHTVCMOONUXZGOSAANMXBOOEFPPRSSPNGIFHAVSHMCSZGMTCEPIIUTSINTENNPRYAHHTGAUAEPRROOOMHSVQSBALIENN

ALIENEARTHMARSMOONSHIPSPACESTARVENUS

Space Word Search 1: Planets and Stars: answer key

FXAIAEARTHTVCMOONUXZGOSAANMXBOOEFPPRSSPNGIFHAVSHMCSZGMTCEPIIUTSINTENNPRYAHHTGAUAEPRROOOMHSVQSBALIENN

ALIEN: row 10, column 5, across to the right
EARTH: row 1, column 6, across to the right
MARS: row 2, column 4, diagonally down and to the right
MOON: row 2, column 4, across to the right
SHIP: row 4, column 7, diagonally down and to the right
SPACE: row 3, column 3, diagonally down and to the right
STAR: row 6, column 1, diagonally down and to the right
VENUS: row 5, column 6, diagonally down and to the right

Space Word Search 2: Space Challenge

Hard 15 x 15 grid · 16 words · 6 to 13 letters · 11 hidden backwards or upwards

A 15 x 15 puzzle with sixteen longer words, hidden in every direction, including backwards and up.

Name: ____________________ Date: ______________

RHSRMDTNEQIUYISPYAIIBEEPNUPLOYRRTEXOSPOEITMSJEUEUHSUTCSCSDUHTCLGAOJUSGOLTPMIRLNRNBNECPKEEIPEIBDAOELNGFTRLUMTEZOVRERASDNKJOEVWRRITFYACOYNOITALLETSNOCVWFAWSFDEIRYAEAAAFWAVGFGAXOELYWYSUNARULAUEOLRCIQTILMOAESREVINUOTYESPILCEPLCAS

ASTRONAUTCONSTELLATIONCOSMOSECLIPSEGRAVITYJUPITERMERCURYMILKY WAYNEPTUNEQUASARSATELLITESOLAR SYSTEMSUPERNOVATELESCOPEUNIVERSEURANUS

Space Word Search 2: Space Challenge: answer key

ASTRONAUT: row 11, column 11, diagonally up and to the left
CONSTELLATION: row 10, column 13, across to the left
COSMOS: row 6, column 10, diagonally up and to the right
ECLIPSE: row 15, column 10, across to the left
GRAVITY: row 5, column 4, diagonally down and to the right
JUPITER: row 9, column 1, up
MERCURY: row 8, column 2, up
MILKY WAY: row 5, column 15, down
NEPTUNE: row 1, column 8, down
QUASAR: row 14, column 1, diagonally up and to the right
SATELLITE: row 1, column 3, down
SOLAR SYSTEM: row 15, column 5, diagonally up and to the right
SUPERNOVA: row 3, column 14, down
TELESCOPE: row 9, column 9, up
UNIVERSE: row 14, column 15, across to the left
URANUS: row 13, column 6, across to the left

About this space word search

Space is a topic that children return to again and again, and a word search is a gentle way to build the vocabulary. The default list covers things you can see, such as the moon and meteors, and things you need a telescope for, such as a nebula, along with the words for how it all moves: orbit, asteroid, comet and galaxy.

This page has a small hook. The default list contains Saturn, the easy puzzle hides Mars, Earth and Venus, and the challenge puzzle hides Mercury, Jupiter, Neptune and Uranus. Together that is all eight planets of the solar system, so students can tick them off in order from the Sun as they go. The challenge adds longer terms such as constellation, supernova, telescope and astronaut, and a few that are fun to say, like quasar and cosmos.

For a science lesson, ask students to sort the words into things that orbit (planet, moon, comet, asteroid), things that are very far away (galaxy, nebula, quasar) and things people build (rocket, telescope, satellite). The generator lets you replace the list with a unit on the moon, rockets or the planets one at a time.

Word notes

Galaxy: a huge collection of stars, gas and dust; ours is the Milky Way.
Nebula: a cloud of gas and dust in space, where new stars can form.
Comet: an icy body that grows a glowing tail when it passes close to the Sun.
Asteroid: a rocky body that orbits the Sun; many lie in a belt between Mars and Jupiter.
Meteor: the streak of light seen when a small piece of space rock burns up in the atmosphere, often called a shooting star.
Orbit: the curved path of one object around another, such as the Moon around Earth.
Saturn: the sixth planet from the Sun, known for its bright rings.

Vocabulary tip

Meteor, asteroid and comet are easy to mix up. A quick rule: an asteroid is rock in space, a comet is ice that grows a tail, and a meteor is the flash you see when a small piece enters our atmosphere.

Difficulty guide

Generator (default list). The 10 words run from 4 letters (moon) to 8 letters (asteroid), 5.8 letters on average and 58 letters in all, which fills about 30% of the default 14 x 14 grid. On the default Medium setting, words can run in five directions. Choose Easy for across, down and diagonal-right only, or Hard to add backwards and upwards.
Easy puzzle. 8 words of 4 to 5 letters in a 10 x 10 grid, with nothing hidden backwards or upwards.
Challenge puzzle. 16 words of 6 to 13 letters in a 15 x 15 grid, with 11 of them hidden backwards or upwards. Constellation is the longest word in the challenge at 13 letters, and four planet names (Mercury, Jupiter, Neptune and Uranus) hide in the same grid, so a solver has to keep them straight.

Ways to use it

Find the planets first and put them in order from the Sun on the back of the sheet.
Pair the puzzle with a night-sky observation: ask students to pick the three words they could actually see outside tonight.
To use your own list, edit the words in the box at the top of the page and press Generate puzzle, or press New layout, same words for a fresh grid. Print it with Show answers ticked to add a separate answer page.

How many planets are hidden across the puzzles on this page?: All eight. Saturn is in the default list, Mars, Earth and Venus are in the easy puzzle, and Mercury, Jupiter, Neptune and Uranus are in the challenge.
What is the difference between a meteor and an asteroid?: An asteroid is a rocky body orbiting the Sun. A meteor is the streak of light you see when a small piece of space rock burns up in Earth's atmosphere.
Is the Moon a planet?: No. The Moon is a natural satellite of Earth. It is in the default list with the other space words.
What is the longest word in the space challenge?: Constellation, with 13 letters. Solar system and Milky Way are also long once their spaces are removed.