Cat Word Search Printable with Breeds, Wild Cats and an Answer Key

Press New puzzle for 16 words on cat breeds, coats, sounds and wild cats, then print it with its key.

Name Date

Cat Word Search

Find every word hidden in the grid. Words go across and down.

0 of 16 words found

EXLWOMFASICELRR

GUSHCATNIPOTCBS

WDPRQLATATYZMKR

HGHAIJIUMEOWHPC

ISYGHPLXECTIGER

SNNDAEOESCRATCH

KHXOFURDEIVIKKF

EWPLZTEOOMLWLRH

RCOLLARWMNENXSR

SLIONBOIRBLIYEA

PAWSUBHLISMAHDZ

AWEGSYGRDFOAETH

ESIBLMCNPERPOXW

AHAJTVAOCAGLTUW

AOMUTHYTMAEOONS

This grid is wider and taller than its box. Slide it to see every letter.To drag, hold the first letter for a moment, then slide.Keyboard: Tab to the grid, arrow keys to move, Enter on the first and last letter.

SiameseSIAMESE
RagdollRAGDOLL
SphynxSPHYNX
WhiskersWHISKERS
PawsPAWS
ClawsCLAWS
TailTAIL
FurFUR
TabbyTABBY
TuxedoTUXEDO
MeowMEOW
ScratchSCRATCH
CatnipCATNIP
CollarCOLLAR
LionLION
TigerTIGER

16 of 24 words from the Cat Favorites list.

Start from a list

Easy: words go across and down.

More options

Show clues, not words

Word list

Large print Lower-case letters Name and date line on paper

The puzzle changes as you go. See the puzzle

Answer key: Cat Word Search

EXLWOMFASICELRR

GUSHCATNIPOTCBS

WDPRQLATATYZMKR

HGHAIJIUMEOWHPC

ISYGHPLXECTIGER

SNNDAEOESCRATCH

KHXOFURDEIVIKKF

EWPLZTEOOMLWLRH

RCOLLARWMNENXSR

SLIONBOIRBLIYEA

PAWSUBHLISMAHDZ

AWEGSYGRDFOAETH

ESIBLMCNPERPOXW

AHAJTVAOCAGLTUW

AOMUTHYTMAEOONS

SIAMESE, RAGDOLL, SPHYNX, WHISKERS, PAWS, CLAWS, TAIL, FUR, TABBY, TUXEDO, MEOW, SCRATCH, CATNIP, COLLAR, LION, TIGER

Next step Hide your own cat's name in a custom puzzle Scramble the same cat words

All 120 words

Cat Breeds 22

Abyssinian A short-haired breed with a ticked coat, in which each hair has bands of color.
Bengal A spotted breed that began as a cross between the Asian leopard cat and house cats.
Birman A long-haired breed with white gloves on all four paws, first recognized in France in 1925.
Burmese Most of this breed descend from one female, Wong Mau, brought from Burma to America in 1930.
Chartreux A rare French breed with a water-resistant double coat, copper eyes and a well-known smile.
Cornish Rex A breed from Cornwall whose coat is only soft down hair, with no guard hairs.
Devon Rex A breed with tall ears and a short wavy coat that emerged in England in the late 1950s.
Egyptian Mau Few breeds of house cat have spots that arose naturally. This one does.
Korat A silver-tipped gray breed from Thailand with a heart-shaped head and green eyes.
Maine Coon A large breed with a long, dense coat. The US state it comes from named it the official state cat in 1985.
Manx A breed from the Isle of Man. A mutation shortens the tail, and many have none at all.

Show all 120 words (109 more)

Cat Breeds, continued

Ocicat A spotted breed named for its likeness to the ocelot, though it has no wild DNA.
Persian A long-haired breed with a round face and a small muzzle.
Ragdoll A blue-eyed breed from the 1960s, named for going limp when picked up.
Russian Blue A green-eyed breed with a short, dense double coat of gray that has a silver sheen.
Savannah A spotted hybrid of the African serval and the house cat.
Siamese A breed from Thailand, once called Siam, with blue almond-shaped eyes and dark points.
Siberian A centuries-old landrace from Russia. Its formal name adds the words Forest Cat.
Singapura Most breed associations count it as the lightest and shortest pedigreed breed.
Sphynx A nearly hairless breed. Its skin feels like soft chamois leather.
Tonkinese A breed made by crossing the Siamese with the Burmese.
Turkish Van Its pattern puts color only on the head and tail and leaves the rest of the coat white.

Cat Body and Coat 25

Bicolor White fur combined with fur of one other color.
Calico A three-color coat of black, orange and white, worn almost only by females.
Claws Retractable, and kept sharp inside a sheath of skin and fur until they are needed.
Colorpoint A pale body with a darker face, ears, feet and tail, as seen on the Siamese.
Dewclaw The first digit on each front foot, set high on the leg so it never touches the ground.
Ears Each one moves on its own, and together they pick up sounds as high as 79 kHz.
Eyes These work at one sixth of the light level that human sight needs.
Fur The soft coat of hair. The Sphynx breed is known for its lack of it.
Longhair A cat with a flowing coat. Vets and shelters write DLH for one that was never bred on purpose.
Mackerel The tabby pattern of thin stripes curving down the sides. It shares its name with a fish.
Nose Its leathery tip is called the rhinarium. It helps a cat find food and recognize other cats.
Orange A tabby color that is also called red or ginger.
Papillae The stiff keratin spines that cover the top of the tongue.
Paws Most cats have 18 toes spread over these four feet, 5 on each front one and 4 on each back one.
Pupil The dark slit in the eye. It opens wide in dim light.
Shorthair A cat with a close coat. Vets and shelters write DSH for one that was never bred on purpose.
Spine Extra vertebrae make this unusually flexible, which helps a falling cat twist in the air.
Tabby A coat pattern, not a breed, with an M-shaped mark on the forehead.
Tail About 30 cm long on a house cat, and used as a counterbalance during quick moves.
Tapetum A mirror-like layer behind the retina that bounces light back for better night vision.
Teeth An adult cat has 30 of them: 12 incisors, 4 canines, 10 premolars and 4 molars.
Tongue It is covered in backward-facing spines about 0.5 mm long that work like a hairbrush.
Tortie Short for tortoiseshell, a coat of two colors other than white, mixed or in patches.
Tuxedo A black coat with white limited to the face, paws, throat and chest.
Whiskers Sensitive hairs, also called vibrissae, that help a cat feel air currents and objects nearby.

Cat Sounds and Behavior 25

Blink Done slowly, it signals that a cat feels relaxed and trusting.
Bunting Butting or rubbing the head against a person or object to mark it.
Catnip A plant of the mint family. About two in three cats react to it; the rest do not.
Chirp An excited little noise that some cats make while watching or creeping up on prey.
Climb What a cat does to reach the high perches it is fond of.
Crepuscular Most active around dawn and dusk.
Groom To clean the coat by licking it, which cats spend a great deal of time doing.
Growl A low, guttural warning sound.
Hiss A warning sound made with the mouth held tensely open.
Hunt House cats do this alone, mostly near dawn and dusk.
Knead To push the front paws in and out against something soft, often called making biscuits.
Loaf A resting pose with the paws tucked under a body held low to the ground.
Meow Grown cats rarely make this call to each other. It is mostly used to get a person's attention.
Nap A short sleep. Cats sleep for 12 to 16 hours a day, more than most animals.
Play For kittens it looks like a chase after prey, and it builds body and brain skills.
Pounce To attack suddenly by leaping.
Prowl To rove about in a stealthy way, as if searching for prey.
Purr A soft, continuous, vibrating sound made with the mouth closed.
Reflex The righting one lets a falling cat turn to land on its feet. It appears at 3 to 4 weeks old.
Scent A smell. Cats leave theirs by rubbing glands on the cheeks and forehead against things.
Scratch Doing this on a rough surface sheds the worn outer layer of each claw.
Stalk To creep up on prey. Sheathed claws keep every step silent.
Territory An area that an animal defends against others of its own kind.
Trill Also called a chirrup, it sounds like a meow rolled on the tongue.
Yowl A long, loud cry, like a wail or a howl.

Cats and People 24

Adopt To give a home to an animal from a rescue group instead of buying one.
Ailurophile A cat lover, from the ancient Greek word ailouros.
Bastet An ancient Egyptian goddess, worshipped first as a lioness and later shown as a cat.
Carrier A small portable box or cage for taking a pet from place to place, usually with a handle on top.
Cat A small furry pet that purrs, and the only tamed member of the family Felidae.
Clowder A group of cats, also called a glaring.
Collar A band worn around the neck. One for a cat often carries a name tag and a bell.
Domestic Word for an animal kept by someone, as on a farm or at home. Its opposites are wild and feral.
Feline Of or relating to cats, from the Latin word feles.
Feral An unowned cat that lives outdoors, avoids people and does not let itself be touched.
Flap A small hinged panel in a door that lets a pet go in and out on its own.
Kibble Dry animal feed in pellet form.
Kitten A young cat. Its eyes stay closed for the first 7 to 10 days.
Litter The kittens born to one mother at one time, usually one to six.
Microchip An implant about the size of a large grain of rice, placed under the skin to identify a lost pet.
Moggy A British word for a cat that was never bred on purpose and belongs to no breed.
Mouser A cat kept to catch mice. Ships carried them for centuries to control rodents.
Pedigree The certificate from a breed registry that records an animal's known parents.
Pet An animal kept at home as a companion.
Queen The name for a female cat, shared with a ruler who wears a crown.
Shelter A place that houses lost, abandoned and surrendered animals.
Stray A tame animal that is lost or has no home and wanders at large.
Tom The name for a male cat.
Vet Short name for the medical professional who treats animals.

Wild Cats 24

Bobcat A member of the lynx genus, found from southern Canada to Oaxaca in Mexico.
Caracal A long-legged cat with tufted ears. Its name comes from Turkish words meaning black ear.
Carnivore A meat eater. Every member of the cat family is an obligate one.
Cheetah The fastest land animal, able to run at 93 to 104 km/h, with black tear marks on its face.
Cougar Also called puma or mountain lion, the most widespread wild land mammal in the Western Hemisphere.
Cub A young lion, born with dark spots that fade as it grows up.
Felidae The scientific name of the cat family, which has 41 living species.
Fishing Cat A wetland hunter of South and Southeast Asia that preys mostly on fish.
Jaguar No cat in the Americas is bigger, and only two kinds in the whole world are.
Kodkod The smallest cat native to the Americas, found mainly in central and southern Chile.
Lion A big cat of Africa and India that lives in groups. The adult male grows long hair around his head.
Lynx Any of four species with short tails and black ear tufts, named in Greek for their bright eyes.
Mane An adult male lion's long hair. It grows from the head down over the shoulders and the chest.
Manul Also called Pallas's cat. Its light gray coat is long and dense, and its round ears sit low on the sides of its head.
Ocelot A medium-sized spotted cat of the Americas that climbs, leaps and swims well.
Pride A group of lions, made up of related females, their young and one or a few adult males.
Roar A deep, loud, resonating call. Changes in the voice box and the hyoid bone make it possible.
Rosette A rose-like marking on the coat of a jaguar, a leopard or a snow leopard.
Sand Cat A small desert hunter. Thick fur under its paws guards the pads against the desert's extreme temperatures.
Serval An African cat with large ears. For its body size, no cat has longer legs.
Smilodon An extinct saber-toothed cat of the Americas. Despite a common nickname, it was no close relative of the tiger.
Snow Leopard A big cat of Asia's high mountains with thick whitish-gray fur, broad paws and a bushy tail.
Tiger An Asian big cat with orange fur and black, mostly vertical stripes.
Wildcat House cats are believed to descend from the African kind.

How this list was compiled: The 22 breed names are spelled as https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_cat_breeds spelled them on 2026-09-19. Clues state facts, never pet care or health advice. Each fact was checked that day against the word's English Wikipedia article (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ followed by the article name). The Catnip and Sand Cat clues were corrected on 2026-09-20. Licence: own work

How it works

This cat word search printable opens on 16 words a cat owner uses daily, Whiskers, Catnip and Meow among them, across and down only. Eight lists hold 120 words, from Tabby and Tuxedo to Snow Leopard and Smilodon.

Read the full guide

Five subjects: breeds, coats, sounds, people and wild cats

Cat Breeds holds 22 names, from Manx to Russian Blue. Cat Body and Coat runs from Whiskers and Papillae to the Calico and Tortie coats. Cat Sounds and Behavior, Cats and People, and Wild Cats complete the set. Easy Cat Words has 49 words of 3 to 5 letters, such as Paws, Meow and Lynx. Hard Cat Words has 28 of 8 to 11, up to Ailurophile.

The words cat people use

Cats and People holds 24 words owners and shelters use. Queen is a female cat, Tom a male, Moggy a cat of no breed. Easy Cat Words leans on Cat Sounds and Behavior: 18 of its 49 words, such as Purr, Hiss and Loaf, against two breeds, Manx and Korat.

Have pupils sort their words into breeds, coats and wild cats. Tabby and Tuxedo are the trap: coats, not breeds.
With Show clues, not words ticked, "A group of cats, also called a glaring" leads to Clowder.
Two-word names lose their gap in the grid, so look for SANDCAT and RUSSIANBLUE.

Questions and answers

Which breeds are in the cat word find?

Cat Breeds holds 22, from Abyssinian and Bengal to Tonkinese and Turkish Van, spelled as Wikipedia's List of cat breeds spells them. The full list below the tool gives a fact for each, such as where the tailless Manx comes from.

Why is Leopard missing from the Wild Cats list?

Snow Leopard is on it, and the last seven letters of SNOWLEOPARD spell Leopard, so the grid would hold the word twice. Leopard is in the animal word search, under Zoo Animals.

Can I add my own cat's name?

Yes. Type the name over any word in the list under the grid and the puzzle follows as you type. The names you type stay in this browser.

All 120 words

Cat Breeds 22

Cat Breeds, continued

Cat Body and Coat 25

Cat Sounds and Behavior 25

Cats and People 24

Wild Cats 24

How it works

Five subjects: breeds, coats, sounds, people and wild cats

The words cat people use

Questions and answers

More tools