The shared words of faith, in one grid
Across the world, billions of people follow a faith, and many share the same ideas. This puzzle gathers words common to religious life — PRAYER, WORSHIP and FAITH — the places people gather, from the TEMPLE and CHURCH to the MOSQUE and SYNAGOGUE, and the things they hold SACRED, from a lit CANDLE to a festival of PEACE.
Each puzzle pulls a fresh selection from the list, so the words change every time you play — a gentle introduction on Easy, and a longer-word challenge once the diagonals and backwards words appear on Hard. One round a backwards PILGRIM is tucked along the bottom; the next a diagonal SCRIPTURE stretches clean across the middle.
A respectful fit for RE topics
Religious education is part of the curriculum almost everywhere, and a word search is a gentle, inclusive way to build the vocabulary. The grid keeps to ideas shared across many faiths — the SPIRIT and the SACRED, a HYMN and a BLESSING, a RITUAL or a FESTIVAL, the journey of a PILGRIM to a SHRINE, and the hope of PEACE — so it pairs well with a topic on world religions or places of worship.
Different faiths, shared threads
One of the most useful things RE teaches is that the world's religions, for all their differences, share some remarkable family resemblances. Almost every faith has a special place to gather (a CHURCH, MOSQUE, TEMPLE or SYNAGOGUE), a SACRED book or SCRIPTURE, regular PRAYER or WORSHIP, a calendar of FESTIVALS, and teachings about kindness, fairness and living a good life. Spotting those shared threads is what makes a 'world religions' topic so eye-opening.
The differences are just as interesting, and worth meeting with respect and curiosity rather than judgement. Some faiths picture one God, others many, and some focus less on gods than on how to live well; a PILGRIM might travel to Mecca, the Ganges or Jerusalem; and a HYMN, a chant and a silent meditation are all ways of reaching for the same sense of the HOLY. Because more than eight in ten people worldwide identify with a religion, understanding the basics is really about understanding other people — which is exactly why RE keeps to gentle, shared language like the words in this grid.
Pick a faith or build your own
The sub-topics below go deeper — Bible stories, world religions, Christianity, saints and the Nativity, plus many more — each with its own puzzle and printable pack, so you can match the lesson. Or use Make Your Own to build a grid from the key terms in your current RE unit and print a pack for the class.
Frequently asked questions
What's in the religion word search?
Words shared across many faiths — prayer, worship and faith, places of gathering from the temple and church to the mosque and synagogue, and things held sacred, from a lit candle to a festival of peace. Sub-topics cover Bible stories, world religions, Christianity, saints and the Nativity.
Is it tied to one religion or several?
The main grid stays to vocabulary common across many faiths, so it suits a 'world religions' or 'places of worship' topic. The sub-topics go deeper where a lesson needs it.
Is it appropriate for RE lessons?
Yes — it uses respectful, widely shared language, and a word search is a gentle, inclusive way to build the vocabulary. Print a pack for the class or pick the sub-topic that matches your lesson.