About this puzzle
This puzzle is about American football, the game of downs, yards, and helmets. (If you're after the other football, the one with goalkeepers and offside traps, soccer has its own puzzle.) The list runs from scoring plays like touchdown, field goal, and safety to positions such as quarterback, linebacker, and wide receiver, plus the culture around the game: tailgates, halftime, the gridiron, and the Super Bowl.
It is a natural fit for a Super Bowl party kids' table, a fall classroom during football season, or a youth team's end-of-season gathering. Easy sticks to the words every young fan knows, while Hard adds deeper cuts like scrimmage and Hail Mary. The notes fill in details that even longtime viewers sometimes miss, like why a safety is worth two points or how deaf players at Gallaudet are credited with inventing the huddle.
The 31 words in this puzzle
Every word, with a short note. Handy for teaching the vocabulary before or after solving.
In every version (12)
- End Zone
- Each end zone is 10 yards deep, at either end of the 100-yard field. Carrying or catching the ball there scores a touchdown.
- Field Goal
- A field goal is worth three points. In the NFL, the goalposts sit at the back of the end zone, so a kick travels about 17 yards farther than the line of scrimmage suggests.
- Fumble
- A fumble happens when a ball carrier loses possession before the play is over. Either team can recover it, which makes loose balls some of the most chaotic moments in a game.
- Halftime
- Halftime is the break between the second and third quarters, when teams rest and adjust their plans. At the Super Bowl, the break runs longer to make room for a big musical show.
- Helmet
- Early players wore soft leather helmets or none at all. The NFL made helmets mandatory in 1943, and hard plastic shells became standard in the following decades.
- Huddle
- The huddle is widely credited to Gallaudet University, a college for deaf students, in the 1890s. Players gathered close so opponents couldn't read their sign language.
- Kickoff
- A kickoff starts each half and restarts play after most scores. The kicking team sends the ball deep, and the receiving team tries to return it upfield.
- Punt
- On fourth down, a team that doesn't want to risk losing the ball usually punts, dropping it and kicking it before it hits the ground to push the opponent back.
- Referee
- The referee is the head official on the field and wears a white cap. Officials wear black-and-white striped shirts, which is why fans sometimes call them zebras.
- Super Bowl
- The Super Bowl decides the NFL champion. The first one was played in January 1967, and Kansas City owner Lamar Hunt is credited with the name, inspired by a toy Super Ball.
- Tackle
- Tackling means bringing the ball carrier to the ground to end the play. Tackle is also the name of a position on both the offensive and defensive lines.
- Touchdown
- A touchdown is worth six points. It counts the moment the ball, in a player's possession, breaks the plane of the opponent's goal line.
Added in Medium and Hard (8)
- First Down
- The offense gets four tries, called downs, to move the ball 10 yards. Reaching that mark earns a new first down and a fresh set of four tries.
- Interception
- An interception is a forward pass caught by a defender, instantly flipping possession. Fans and players often shorten it to a pick.
- Linebacker
- Linebackers line up behind the defensive linemen. They stop runs, cover receivers, and sometimes rush the quarterback, so they need both size and speed.
- Penalty
- When officials see a rule violation, they throw a yellow flag. Penalties usually cost the guilty team yards, and some also give the other team an automatic first down.
- Quarterback
- The quarterback takes the snap, calls plays in the huddle, and usually decides whether to hand off, run, or pass. It is often considered the hardest position to play.
- Sack
- A sack is tackling the quarterback behind the line of scrimmage before he can throw. Defensive end Deacon Jones popularized the word, and the NFL made it an official stat in 1982.
- Snap
- Every play from scrimmage starts with the snap, when the center hands or tosses the ball backward between his legs to the quarterback or another backfield player.
- Tailgate
- Tailgating means a pregame party in the stadium parking lot, often served from the lowered tailgate of a pickup truck. Grills, team colors, and lawn games are standard.
Added in Hard (11)
- Blitz
- A blitz sends extra defenders, usually linebackers or defensive backs, rushing at the quarterback. The term comes from the German word blitz, meaning lightning.
- Defense
- The defense tries to stop the offense from scoring and to take the ball away. Defensive linemen, linebackers, cornerbacks, and safeties all work together on every play.
- Goalpost
- NFL goalposts are bright yellow and shaped like a Y, with a crossbar 10 feet off the ground. A field goal must sail above the crossbar and between the two uprights.
- Gridiron
- Gridiron is a nickname for the football field. Early fields were marked with lines in both directions, so they looked like a gridiron, an old metal cooking grate.
- Hail Mary
- A Hail Mary is a long, last-second pass thrown toward the end zone in hope of a miracle catch. Quarterback Roger Staubach made the name famous after a 1975 playoff win.
- Offense
- The offense is the team with the ball, trying to move it down the field and score. Its players include the quarterback, running backs, receivers, and offensive linemen.
- Pigskin
- Pigskin is an old nickname for the football. Early balls were sometimes made from inflated pig bladders, but modern footballs are made from cowhide leather.
- Running Back
- A running back lines up behind or beside the quarterback and mostly carries the ball on handoffs. Good running backs also catch short passes and help block.
- Safety
- Safety names both a deep defensive position and a scoring play. The play is worth two points, most often awarded when an offensive ball carrier is tackled in his own end zone.
- Scrimmage
- The line of scrimmage is the imaginary line across the field where the ball sits before each play. Neither team may cross it until the ball is snapped.
- Wide Receiver
- Wide receivers line up near the sidelines and run planned routes to get open for passes. Speed, sure hands, and precise footwork are what separate great ones.
A few facts to share while you solve
- The first college football game was played on November 6, 1869, between Rutgers and Princeton. It looked more like soccer than modern football, and players could not carry or throw the ball.
- The forward pass became legal in 1906, part of safety reforms that followed President Theodore Roosevelt's push to make the game less violent.
- A regulation field is 120 yards long when you include both end zones, and 53 and one-third yards wide.
Four versions of this puzzle
Pick a version with the buttons above the grid. Each one has its own grid and answer key, and your progress on each is saved separately in this browser.
| Version | Words | Grid | Directions |
|---|---|---|---|
| Easy | 12 | 12 × 12 | The 12 most familiar words, reading forward across and down. |
| Medium | 20 | 15 × 15 | Twenty words across, down and diagonally. No backwards words. |
| Hard | 31 | 17 × 17 | Every word, in all eight directions including backwards, with look-alike filler letters. |
| Large print | 12 | 11 × 11 | The 12 most familiar words on a small grid with big letters. No backwards words. |
Hard and large print versions
Hard football word search: all 31 words on a 17 × 17 grid, hidden forward, backward, up, down and along both diagonals, with filler letters borrowed from the word list. Print it without the word list for an extra challenge. Play the hard version, or see all hard word searches.
Large print football word search: the 12 most familiar words on a 11 × 11 grid, printed with big letters and a big word list, and no backwards words. Play the large print version, or see all large print word searches.
Printing this word search
Press Print / PDF above the puzzle. You get a clean one-page sheet with the title, the grid, a word list with tick boxes, and optional name and date lines. The answer key prints on a second page. Prefer a file? Download it as a PDF or an image to print later or drop into a worksheet. Whatever version is showing on screen is the one that prints, and the large print version prints with bigger letters.
How to play online
- Find a word from the list in the grid. Scanning for its first letter is the quickest way.
- Drag across the word from its first letter to its last. On a phone, you can also tap the first letter, then the last.
- Found words get highlighted and crossed off. Stuck? Hint circles the first letter of a word you haven’t found.
Read the full guide to solving word searches, with tips that make big grids much faster.
Questions and answers
Is this American football or soccer?
This puzzle is about American football, with words like touchdown, quarterback, and Super Bowl. If you're looking for the game most of the world calls football, try the soccer word search, which includes words like offside, goalkeeper, and red card.
Is the football word search good for a Super Bowl party?
It is a good fit for the kids' table or for guests who don't follow every play. Printing a stack before kickoff gives younger fans something to do during the long breaks, and reading the word notes aloud can teach newcomers enough vocabulary to follow the game.
What age is this football puzzle for?
The vocabulary suits kids from about eight up, especially those who play flag or tackle football. Younger children can try Easy, which uses 12 short, familiar words. Medium adds positions like quarterback and linebacker, and Hard brings in the full list, including scrimmage, pigskin, and wide receiver.
Is there an answer key for this football word search?
Yes. Choose Print / PDF above the puzzle and keep “Add an answer key page” ticked. The key prints on its own page, with every word highlighted. While playing online, Show answers outlines any words you haven’t found yet.
Can I print copies for my class or group?
Yes. Every puzzle on BetterWordSearch is free to print for personal, classroom, library and homeschool use. Print as many copies as you need. To change the words or make several different versions of the grid, use the word search maker.
What changes between Easy, Medium, Hard and Large print?
Easy hides the 12 most familiar words, reading left to right and top to bottom. Medium uses 20 words and adds diagonals. Hard hides all 31 words in every direction, including backwards, with look-alike filler letters. Large print uses the same words as Easy on a small grid and prints with big letters.
