Word 1 of 10: SPECIMEN
Use the arrow keys to move between letters. Press Enter or Space on the first letter of a word, then again on the last letter. Press Escape to cancel.
A few of the words
- STREAK
- Rubbing a mineral across an unglazed porcelain tile shows its streak color, which often differs from the stone itself. Hematite looks silvery-black but leaves a reddish-brown line.Find this word in the grid to read its note.
- QUARTZ
- Quartz sits at 7 on the Mohs hardness scale, which is why it holds up so well in a creek bed and shows up in nearly every collector's bucket.Find this word in the grid to read its note.
- GEODE
- A geode looks like an ordinary lumpy rock outside. The crystals only show once someone cracks it open, and that's half the thrill.Find this word in the grid to read its note.
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rockhounding word search
Rockhounding: a free online word search
A free rockhounding word search for anyone who's ever pocketed a pretty stone from a creek bed. Print it or play it right here, no sign-up.
About Rockhounding
Lake Superior agates, banded red and orange, turn up on the gravel beaches near Grand Marais, Minnesota, and Minnesota made one its state gemstone in 1969. Rockhounds work creek beds the same way, bucket in one hand and a pan in the other, hoping for agate or the odd flake of gold in the sediment. Arkansas has a quartz crystal belt around Mount Ida, where diggers have sifted the red clay for generations. A plain gray lump can hold crystals, and the only way to know is to crack it. Most of the fun is the walk home, pockets heavy, with something to wash off in the kitchen sink.
How to play
- 1Find a word.Tap its first letter, then tap along to its last. The trail fills in and finishes itself when it spells a word. Or press the first letter and drag.
- 2Words run in straight lines.Across and down, and on the harder difficulties diagonally and backwards.
- 3It marks itself.Each word you find takes on its own soft color on the grid and is crossed off the list.
- 4Choose a difficulty.The level you pick sets those directions and how much the word list helps, never the grid size. Tap the A buttons at the top to enlarge the letters, or pinch the grid.
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