How it works
The first grid of this Ireland word search has Dublin, Galway, Shannon, Shamrock, Bog and 11 more favorites. Ten lists go deeper: towns, counties, the map, landmarks, wildlife, legends, music and sport, food, symbols, and words English took from Irish.
Read the full guide
31 of the 32 counties, and the one left out
Counties and Provinces of Ireland has the four provinces and 31 of the 32 traditional counties. Westmeath is left out: the letters MEATH would sit inside it, and a pupil who ringed them there would be marked wrong. Eleven of the names, Cork and Galway among them, are in Irish Cities and Towns too, because a city or town shares the name.
English words that came from Ireland
Words from Ireland holds words pupils already use. Galore is from the Irish go leor, and Bog from the Irish for soft. Boycott was the surname of a land agent in Mayo in the 1880s. Drumlin and Esker, two words from the map, are Irish too.
- Irish accents are dropped in the grid: Bodhran, Ceili, Dail and Tir na nOg are spelled with plain letters.
- The clues for Belfast, Derry, the Giant's Causeway and six of the counties say they are in Northern Ireland; Derry's gives its other name, Londonderry.
- Easy Ireland runs to 55 words, because so many counties and rivers are short: Mayo, Cork, Suir, Nore.
Questions and answers
Is this the same as a St. Patrick's Day word search?
No. This one is about the island: its counties, rivers, landmarks, wildlife and legends. Parade and holiday words such as Green, Lucky and Rainbow are on the St. Patrick's Day word search, which shares some place and music words with this page.
Can I print the Ireland word search as a fact quiz?
Yes. Open More options and tick Show clues, not words: a fact stands in for each word, so Shannon becomes the longest river in Ireland. Print or save as PDF gives the sheet, then the answer key on its own page.
Is the leprechaun in the Ireland word search?
Yes, in the opening grid and in Irish Myths and Legends, beside Banshee, Pooka, Merrow, Finn McCool, Cuchulainn and the Children of Lir. The Salmon in that list is the one whose taste made Fionn wise.