Word search tips: how to find hidden words faster
Updated · Applies to Word Search in MindGlyph and to the puzzle type in general.
The fastest way to solve a word search is to stop reading the grid and start scanning it for something specific: the rarest letter in each word (Q, Z, X, J, K), or the first two letters as a pair. Take the longest words first because they have the fewest possible positions, sweep the grid in one fixed direction at a time, and check the backwards and diagonal runs deliberately, because that is where the last two words always hide.
Scan for a letter, not for a word
The eye cannot search a grid for a seven-letter word; it can only search for one shape at a time. A word search is solved faster by choosing the most distinctive letter in a word and scanning for that letter alone. In QUARTZ the letter Q appears once or twice in the whole grid, so finding QUARTZ is a matter of finding a Q and looking eight directions from it. Words without a rare letter are found by scanning for their first two letters as a pair — TH for THUNDER, PL for PLANET — which occurs far less often than either letter on its own.
Long words first, short words last
A long word has fewer places it can fit. In a 12×12 grid a nine-letter word can only start from a limited band of cells in each direction, and it has more distinctive letter pairs to spot. Short words like ART or TEN appear as fragments all over the grid and are best left until the end, when the remaining unclaimed letters make them stand out.
Sweep, do not wander
Random looking finds words by luck. A fixed sweep finds them by method: read every row left to right, then right to left; every column top to bottom, then bottom to top; then the diagonals. Most solvers skip the reverse and diagonal sweeps because forward reading is a lifelong habit, and that is exactly why puzzle makers hide the hardest words backwards on a diagonal.
Splitting the grid into quadrants helps concentration on a large board: exhaust one quarter before moving to the next, and mark the found words as you go so the unclaimed letters visibly thin out.
Playing against a clock
In a timed word search the order of work matters more than in a printed one. Claim the words you spot instantly, then switch to the rare-letter method for the rest. In MindGlyph the grid saves mid-puzzle and coins can buy extra time when the clock is against you; the daily grid is shared by every player, so a slow solve still counts toward the streak and daily goal.
Word Search tips, in order
- Hunt the rarest letter. Q, Z, X, J, K, V and W are scarce in filler letters. Find the letter, then look eight directions.
- Scan for a two-letter pair. The first two letters of a word occur together far less often than either letter alone.
- Take the long words first. They have the fewest possible positions and the most distinctive shapes.
- Sweep in a fixed order. Rows both ways, columns both ways, then both diagonal directions. The last words are almost always backwards or diagonal.
- Look for double letters. LL, EE, OO, SS, TT stand out in a grid. A word containing one is found by scanning for the pair.
- Mark as you go. Every claimed word removes noise; the final short words show up in the letters left over.
Practise it
Word Search is one of the nine games in MindGlyph, free on Android and iOS. How Word Search works in the app — including a new shared puzzle every day and an archive of every past one.
Questions about Word Search strategy
Can words in a word search go backwards?
Yes, in most word searches including MindGlyph's. Words run horizontally, vertically and diagonally, and in reverse in every one of those directions.
Which words should I look for first?
The longest ones and any word containing a rare letter such as Q, Z, X or J. Both are located by a single scan rather than a full read of the grid.
Why can I never find the last word?
Because the last word is usually hidden backwards or on a diagonal, and forward reading habits skip both. Sweep the grid in reverse and along both diagonals deliberately.