About this puzzle
February 14 has a stranger history than the card aisle suggests. It's named for a Roman-era saint we know little about, it got its romantic reputation from a Chaucer poem, and the lacy cards came from a Massachusetts businesswoman in the 1840s. This puzzle gathers the words that tell that story, along with the familiar ones: Rose, Chocolate, Kiss, and Hug.
We kept the list friendly, so it works for a second-grade class party as easily as for a couple trading puzzles over coffee. Friendship is on it too, since in Finland the day is about friends rather than sweethearts. Pass it out alongside the card exchange, or keep a printed copy tucked in a valentine for someone who likes puzzles.
The 30 words in this puzzle
Every word, with a short note. Handy for teaching the vocabulary before or after solving.
In every version (12)
- Arrow
- In the Roman poet Ovid's stories, Cupid had golden arrows that made people fall in love and lead-tipped ones that made them run away.
- Candy Heart
- Conversation hearts trace back to the 1860s, when Daniel Chase built a machine that printed short messages on candy lozenges.
- Card
- Esther Howland of Worcester, Massachusetts, began selling lace-trimmed valentines in the late 1840s and is often called the Mother of the American Valentine.
- Chocolate
- The British chocolate maker Richard Cadbury began selling chocolates in decorated boxes in the 1860s, including heart-shaped ones made for Valentine's Day.
- Cupid
- Cupid is the Roman god of love, usually shown as a winged child with a bow. He is the son of Venus, and his Greek counterpart is Eros.
- Hug
- The word hug appeared in English in the 1500s and may come from an Old Norse word meaning to comfort. It's a short word that is easy to miss in a grid.
- Kiss
- Writing an X to mean a kiss at the end of a letter dates back at least to the 1700s, which is why XOXO shows up on so many valentines.
- Pink
- Pink, a softer mix of red and white, often stands for sweetness and friendship. It shows up on valentine cards, cupcake frosting, and candy hearts.
- Red
- Red is the classic Valentine's Day color, the shade of roses and paper hearts. People have long linked it with strong feelings, from love to excitement.
- Rose
- The red rose has been tied to love since ancient times, when it was linked to the goddesses Aphrodite and Venus. A dozen red roses remains the classic Valentine's gift.
- Teddy Bear
- Stuffed bears holding hearts are a favorite Valentine's gift. Teddy bears got their name from President Theodore Roosevelt, whose nickname was Teddy.
- Valentine
- Several early Christian martyrs named Valentine are recorded, and historians aren't sure which one the holiday honors. Today a valentine also means a card or a sweetheart.
Added in Medium and Hard (8)
- Be Mine
- Be Mine is one of the classic short messages stamped on conversation hearts, along with phrases like Kiss Me and True Love.
- February
- Valentine's Day falls on February 14. February is the shortest month of the year, with 28 days, or 29 in a leap year.
- Friendship
- In Finland, February 14 is called Ystävänpäivä, or Friend's Day, and it celebrates friends more than romantic partners.
- Kindness
- Many schools use Valentine's week to celebrate kindness. Random Acts of Kindness Day, observed in the United States on February 17, falls just a few days later.
- Love Letter
- Handwritten love letters were the original valentines. People traded verses and notes on February 14 long before printed cards existed.
- Lovebirds
- Lovebirds are small African parrots that form strong pair bonds and often sit pressed close together, which is how they earned their name.
- Mailbox
- Many classrooms decorate shoeboxes or paper bags as valentine mailboxes, so students can drop in a card for every classmate before the party.
- Sweetheart
- Sweetheart has been used as a loving name since around 1300, back in Middle English, and it is still a favorite word on valentine cards.
Added in Hard (10)
- Admirer
- Unsigned cards from a secret admirer were a popular Victorian tradition, and plenty of people still send one anonymously each February.
- Bouquet
- Bouquet is a French word that once meant a small wood or clump of trees. In the Victorian era, people used flower choices in a bouquet to send coded messages.
- Chaucer
- Geoffrey Chaucer was an English poet of the 1300s, best known for The Canterbury Tales. His poem about birds choosing mates on Saint Valentine's Day helped tie the holiday to love.
- Cherub
- The chubby winged babies on many valentines are often called cherubs. The look comes from Renaissance paintings of winged children called putti, which resemble Cupid.
- Crush
- A crush is a strong, usually secret liking for someone. The word has been used this way in English since the late 1800s.
- Juliet
- Juliet is the heroine of Shakespeare's play Romeo and Juliet, set in Verona, Italy. Volunteers in Verona answer thousands of letters written to her every year.
- Lace
- Victorian valentines were often trimmed with paper lace, a delicate cut-paper decoration that is still used on homemade cards today.
- Lupercalia
- Lupercalia was an ancient Roman festival held in mid-February. Some writers link it to Valentine's Day, but historians debate whether there is any real connection.
- Poem
- Geoffrey Chaucer's poem Parlement of Foules, from the 1380s, is the earliest known writing to connect Saint Valentine's Day with romantic love.
- Romance
- Romance first described medieval stories of knights and quests written in languages that grew from Latin. Those tales of courtly love gave the word its modern meaning.
A few facts to share while you solve
- One of the oldest surviving valentines is a poem by Charles, Duke of Orléans, written to his wife while he was held prisoner in England after the Battle of Agincourt in 1415.
- In Japan, women traditionally give chocolate on February 14, and men return the favor a month later on White Day, March 14.
- Thousands of letters addressed to Juliet arrive in Verona, Italy, every year, and volunteers with the Juliet Club answer them.
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 | 11 × 11 | The 12 most familiar words, reading forward across and down. |
| Medium | 20 | 15 × 15 | Twenty words across, down and diagonally. No backwards words. |
| Hard | 30 | 16 × 16 | Every word, in all eight directions including backwards, with look-alike filler letters. |
| Large print | 12 | 10 × 10 | The 12 most familiar words on a small grid with big letters. No backwards words. |
Hard and large print versions
Hard valentine's day word search: all 30 words on a 16 × 16 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 valentine's day word search: the 12 most familiar words on a 10 × 10 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 Valentine's Day word search good for a classroom party?
Yes. The words are kind and school-appropriate, with friendship words like Hug and Friendship alongside Cupid and candy hearts. Easy mode works for early readers, and the word notes give older students a little history of where cards, roses, and conversation hearts came from.
Who was Saint Valentine?
Historians aren't sure. Early records mention at least two martyrs named Valentine who were killed in the Roman era, and their stories later blended together. The romantic side of the holiday came much later, in the late 1300s, with poets like Geoffrey Chaucer.
Is there an answer key for this valentine's day 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 30 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.
