New Jersey Word Search Printable

Find Trenton, Cape May, Boardwalk, Goldfinch and Garden State in a New Jersey puzzle that prints with its answer key.

Name Date

New Jersey Word Search

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

0 of 16 words found

PGHNKAYLNDSPABW

BOGOOIZENEWARKN

OLROTDNRRVIOLET

ADCWICOAROYOTBS

RFABDKPNXIKGIUR

DIPLGARDENSTATE

WNEULLIGHTHOUSE

ACMEDRNXHIFSHQD

LHABUTCBAORMOIA

KMYENREDOAKTNLH

SATRENTONSIFEAS

FCYRSHOBOKENYUJ

DMFYJJNHVRRABET

ATLANTICCITYECW

SANDYHOOKELBEHG

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.

TrentonTRENTON
NewarkNEWARK
PrincetonPRINCETON
Atlantic CityATLANTIC CITY
Cape MayCAPE MAY
HobokenHOBOKEN
BoardwalkBOARDWALK
LighthouseLIGHTHOUSE
Sandy HookSANDY HOOK
DunesDUNES
GoldfinchGOLDFINCH
VioletVIOLET
Red OakRED OAK
HoneybeeHONEYBEE
BlueberryBLUEBERRY
Garden StateGARDEN STATE

16 of 28 words from the New Jersey Favorites list.

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Answer key: New Jersey Word Search

PGHNKAYLNDSPABW

BOGOOIZENEWARKN

OLROTDNRRVIOLET

ADCWICOAROYOTBS

RFABDKPNXIKGIUR

DIPLGARDENSTATE

WNEULLIGHTHOUSE

ACMEDRNXHIFSHQD

LHABUTCBAORMOIA

KMYENREDOAKTNLH

SATRENTONSIFEAS

FCYRSHOBOKENYUJ

DMFYJJNHVRRABET

ATLANTICCITYECW

SANDYHOOKELBEHG

TRENTON, NEWARK, PRINCETON, ATLANTIC CITY, CAPE MAY, HOBOKEN, BOARDWALK, LIGHTHOUSE, SANDY HOOK, DUNES, GOLDFINCH, VIOLET, RED OAK, HONEYBEE, BLUEBERRY, GARDEN STATE

Next step Make a puzzle from your own town and shore words Scramble the New Jersey towns and rivers

All 217 words

New Jersey Cities and Towns 36

Asbury Park Shore city with a boardwalk and a well-known music scene.
Atlantic City Seaside resort known for its boardwalk and beaches.
Bayonne Peninsula city between Newark Bay and Upper New York Bay.
Bordentown Town on the Delaware where Clara Barton started a free public school.
Brigantine Island city just north of Atlantic City.
Burlington Old Delaware River city that was the capital of West Jersey.
Camden City on the Delaware across from Philadelphia, home of a battleship museum.
Cape May Resort at the southern tip of the state, full of painted Victorian houses.
Clinton Town with a red mill beside a waterfall.
Elizabeth Port city named for the wife of Sir George Carteret.
Fort Lee Town on the Palisades at the George Washington Bridge, an early home of moviemaking.
Freehold Town near the Monmouth battlefield.
Glassboro Town that grew up around glassworks and took its name from them.
Hackensack Seat of Bergen County, on the river of the same name.
Haddonfield Town where the bones of the state dinosaur were dug up in 1858.
Hammonton Town that calls itself the Blueberry Capital of the World.
Hoboken Small, crowded city on the Hudson, a short ferry ride from Manhattan.

Show all 217 words (200 more)

New Jersey Cities and Towns, continued

Jersey City Place on the Hudson facing Lower Manhattan.
Lambertville Old river town on the Delaware, across from New Hope, Pennsylvania.
Long Branch Shore city that was a summer retreat of presidents in the 1800s.
Margate Shore town with Lucy, a building shaped like an elephant.
Menlo Park Place where Thomas Edison built his invention laboratory in 1876.
Morristown Town where George Washington's army spent two winters of the Revolution.
New Brunswick City on the Raritan, home of Rutgers University.
Newark Largest city, with a busy seaport and airport.
Ocean City Family beach resort on a barrier island.
Paterson City built around the Great Falls of the Passaic, once called the Silk City.
Perth Amboy Port town on Raritan Bay that was the capital of East Jersey.
Point Pleasant Shore town beside the Manasquan Inlet.
Princeton University town; its college was founded in 1746.
Red Bank Town on the Navesink River in Monmouth County.
Stone Harbor Small resort on a barrier island with a bird sanctuary.
Toms River Town near the shore that is the seat of Ocean County.
Trenton State capital on the Delaware River.
West Orange Town where Edison's later laboratory is now a national historical park.
Wildwood Shore resort with wide beaches and motels in the style of the 1950s.

Jersey Shore 29

Absecon Tall lighthouse that stands in Atlantic City.
Arcade Hall of games on a boardwalk.
Barnegat Bay and inlet with a tall red-and-white lighthouse nicknamed Old Barney.
Barrier Island Long, narrow strip of sand that shields the mainland from the sea.
Beach Tag Badge a visitor buys to use many of the state's bathing spots.
Boardwalk Wooden walkway along the beach, lined with shops and rides.
Cape May Diamond Clear quartz pebble found on the beach and polished to look like a gem.
Carousel Ride of painted horses that turns to music.
Crabbing Catching blue crabs with a baited line or trap.
Dunes Hills of sand piled up by the wind behind a beach.
Ferris Wheel Big turning ride on the amusement piers.
Gull Bold gray and white bird that steals food from picnics.
Inlet Narrow opening where the sea flows between two islands into a bay.
Island Beach State park on a wild strip of dunes between the ocean and the bay.
Jetty Wall of rocks built out into the sea to protect a beach or inlet.
Lifeguard Trained swimmer who watches over bathers.
Lighthouse Tower with a bright lamp that guides ships along the coast.
Navesink River and hills at the north end of the coast.
Nor'easter Coastal storm with strong winds from the northeast.
Pier Platform built out over the water.
Rip Current Strong, narrow flow of water moving away from the beach.
Salt Marsh Grassy tidal wetland behind the barrier islands.
Salt Water Taffy Chewy seaside candy that became famous in Atlantic City.
Sandcastle Beach sculpture made with a pail and shovel.
Sandpiper Small shorebird that runs along the edge of the waves.
Sandy Hook Spit of sand at the north end of the coast, with a very old lighthouse.
Seashell Hard cover left behind by a sea animal.
Surf Waves breaking on the beach.
Twin Lights Double-towered lighthouse on the Navesink Highlands.

New Jersey Rivers, Ridges and Pinelands 26

Aquifer Underground layer of water; a vast one lies beneath the Pine Barrens.
Batsto Restored iron-making village in the Pine Barrens.
Cedar Swamp Dark, wet woods of Atlantic white evergreens in the Pine Barrens.
Coastal Plain Flat, sandy lowland that makes up the southern part of the state.
Delaware River that forms the western border and widens into a bay in the south.
Great Falls Waterfall on the Passaic in Paterson that powered early factories.
Great Swamp Wildlife refuge of marsh and woods in Morris County.
High Point Top of the state, with a tall stone monument, on Kittatinny Mountain.
Highlands Region of rocky ridges and reservoirs across the north.
Hopatcong Big lake in the northern hills, on the line between Morris and Sussex counties.
Hudson River on the northeast border, with New York City on the far bank.
Kittatinny Long mountain ridge of the northwest, part of the Appalachians.
Meadowlands Wide tidal marshes along the Hackensack River.
Morris Canal Waterway that carried coal boats across the northern hills, lifting them on inclined planes.
Mullica River that drains the heart of the Pinelands to Great Bay.
Musconetcong River of the northwest hills that joins the Delaware at Riegelsville.
Palisades Line of steep cliffs along the Hudson.
Passaic River that drops over the Great Falls at Paterson.
Piedmont Rolling land between the Highlands and the coastal plain.
Pine Barrens Huge sandy forest across the south, also called the Pinelands.
Ramapo Wooded hills on the New York border.
Raritan River that crosses the middle of the state to a bay near Perth Amboy.
Sunfish Pond Glacial lake high on Kittatinny Mountain, reached only on foot.
Watchung Three low ridges of old lava west of Newark.
Water Gap Notch where the Delaware cuts through the mountains.
Wawayanda State park with a mountain lake near the New York line.

New Jersey State Symbols 22

Battleship The official ship is one, the USS New Jersey, now a museum in Camden.
Blueberry Official fruit, first cultivated at Whitesbog.
Bog Turtle Official reptile, one of the smallest of its kind in North America, with an orange patch by each ear.
Brook Trout Official fish, a native that needs clean, cold water.
Buff Yellowish tan, the official color of the state flag.
Ceres Roman goddess of grain on the state seal, holding a horn of plenty.
Franklinite Official mineral, black, named for Benjamin Franklin.
Garden State Nickname, for the vegetables and fruit grown here.
Goldfinch Official bird, the eastern kind, with bright yellow feathers and black wings.
Hadrosaurus Official dinosaur, found at Haddonfield in 1858.
Honeybee Official bug, proposed by schoolchildren from Hamilton Township.
Horse Official animal, whose head tops the state seal.
Jersey Blue Dark shade paired with buff, chosen by George Washington for the state's regiments.
Knobbed Whelk Official shell, the spiral home of a large sea snail.
Liberty Figure on the state seal holding a staff with a cap; also the first word of the motto.
Meerwald The A. J. ___, an oyster schooner built in 1928, is the official tall ship.
Prosperity Last word of the state motto.
Red Oak Official tree, a hardwood with pointed leaves that turn scarlet in autumn.
Square Dance Official American folk step of the state since 1983.
Streptomyces Official microbe, found in the state's soil in 1916 and later used to make an antibiotic.
Three Plows Farm tools on the shield of the seal, for the state's farming tradition.
Violet Official flower, found in fields, lawns and meadows.

New Jersey History 30

Alice Paul Leader of the fight for women's right to vote, born in Mount Laurel.
Carteret Sir George ___, an early owner of the colony, who came from the island of Jersey.
Clara Barton Teacher who opened a free school in Bordentown and later founded the American Red Cross.
Cleveland Grover ___, president born in Caldwell.
Constitution New Jersey came third among the states to approve the national one, in 1787.
Crossroads The state is called this, for all the armies that marched across it in the Revolution.
Diner Roadside restaurant, often shaped like a railroad car, that the state is known for.
Durham Boat Heavy cargo craft that carried the army across the Delaware.
East Jersey Half of the colony owned by Sir George Carteret when it was split in two in 1676.
Einstein Albert ___, physicist who lived and worked in Princeton.
Ellis Island Place in the harbor where millions of immigrants arrived; part of it lies in this state.
Hessians German soldiers hired by the British, surprised at Trenton.
Holland Tunnel Road under the Hudson to Manhattan, named for its chief engineer.
Jockey Hollow Camp near Morristown where the Continental Army lived through a bitter winter.
Lenape Native people of the region, also called the Delaware.
Livingston William ___, governor of the state during the Revolution.
Molly Pitcher Heroine said to have carried water to soldiers and helped fire a cannon at Monmouth.
Monmouth Battle fought on a very hot June day near Freehold.
Nassau Hall Princeton building where the Continental Congress met for a time.
New Netherland Dutch colony that included the first European settlements along the Hudson.
New Sweden Colony founded on the Delaware in 1638.
Old Barracks Stone building in Trenton that housed soldiers in the 1700s, now a museum.
Parkway The Garden State ___, a toll road that runs along the shore.
Revolution War for independence, much of it fought across this state.
Robeson Paul ___, singer, actor and activist born in Princeton.
Turnpike Toll highway that runs the length of the state.
Washington General who crossed the icy Delaware on Christmas night to attack Trenton.
West Jersey Half of the colony owned by a group of Quakers when it was split in two in 1676.
Whitman Walt ___, poet who spent his last years in Camden.
Wilson Woodrow ___, governor of the state who became president.

New Jersey Inventions and Industry 21

Baseball Bat-and-ball sport; an early organized game was played at Hoboken's Elysian Fields.
Drive-In Outdoor movie theater for cars, an idea patented by a Camden man.
Edison Thomas ___, inventor who worked at Menlo Park and West Orange; a township has his name.
Football College teams from Rutgers and Princeton met in New Brunswick for an early game of it.
Glass Bottles and window panes were made in South Jersey from colonial times.
Iron Metal smelted from bog ore in Pine Barrens furnaces.
Laboratory Workshop for experiments; Edison's at Menlo Park was called an invention factory.
Light Bulb Electric lamp that Edison made practical at Menlo Park.
Locomotive Railroad engine, once built in the factories of Paterson.
Movie Camera Edison's team built an early one, and a studio called the Black Maria, in West Orange.
Phonograph Edison's machine that could record sound and play it back.
Pottery Trenton was famous for it, from dishes to bathroom fixtures.
Roebling Family of engineers in Trenton whose wire rope held up great bridges.
Silk Fine cloth woven in the mills of Paterson.
Steamboat Colonel John Stevens of Hoboken built early ones and ran a steam ferry to Manhattan.
Submarine John Holland, a schoolteacher in Paterson, designed early ones.
Telegraph Message system that Morse and Vail demonstrated at an ironworks in Morristown.
Transistor Tiny electronic switch invented at a laboratory in Murray Hill.
Vail Alfred ___, who helped Samuel Morse build the telegraph at Speedwell.
Whitesbog Village in the Pine Barrens where the cultivated blueberry was developed.
Zinc Metal mined at Franklin and Sterling Hill, where the ore glows under ultraviolet light.

Garden State Farms and Food 12

Cranberry Bog Flooded field in the Pine Barrens where tart red fruit is grown.
Eggplant Purple vegetable that the state grows in large amounts.
Farm Stand Roadside table selling vegetables straight from the field.
Greenhouse Glass building for growing flowers and plants, a big farm business here.
Italian Hot Dog Newark sandwich of fried franks, peppers and potatoes in pizza bread.
Orchard Field of fruit trees.
Oysters Shellfish once dredged from Delaware Bay by schooners.
Peach Fuzzy summer fruit of the state's orchards.
Pork Roll Sliced breakfast meat that comes from Trenton, served on a bun with egg and cheese.
Rutgers Tomato Well-known variety developed at the state university.
Sweet Corn Summer crop eaten on the cob.
Tomato Pie Trenton-style pizza on which the cheese goes down first and the sauce on top.

New Jersey Wildlife and Plants 41

Bald Eagle White-headed bird of prey that has returned to the state's rivers.
Bayberry Dune shrub whose waxy berries were made into candles.
Beach Plum Shrub of the dunes with small purple fruit made into jam.
Beachgrass Tough plant whose roots hold dunes in place.
Black Bear Large mammal of the wooded northwest.
Black Skimmer Seabird that flies with its lower bill slicing the water.
Blue Crab Swimming shellfish with bright claws, caught in the bays.
Bluefish Fast, sharp-toothed fish that chases bait near shore.
Brant Small dark goose that winters on the coastal bays.
Cattail Marsh plant with a brown, sausage-shaped seed head.
Chipmunk Small striped rodent that stuffs its cheeks with seeds.
Cordgrass Tall plant that covers the salt marshes.
Deer The white-tailed kind is common in woods and suburbs.
Dogwood Small tree with showy white bracts in spring.
Dolphin Bottlenose ones swim along the coast in summer.
Egret White wading bird of the marshes.
Fluke Summer flounder, a flat fish with both eyes on one side.
Greenhead Biting fly of the salt marshes in midsummer.
Hawk Bird of prey; watchers gather at Cape May to see them migrate in fall.
Heron Tall wading bird that stands still in shallow water to hunt.
Holly Evergreen with prickly leaves and red berries.
Horseshoe Crab Armored sea animal that lays its eggs on Delaware Bay beaches each spring.
Laughing Gull Black-headed seabird whose call sounds like a chuckle.
Monarch Butterfly that gathers at Cape May each fall on its way to Mexico.
Mountain Laurel Evergreen shrub with clusters of pink and white blossoms.
Osprey Fish hawk that nests on platforms over the salt marsh.
Oystercatcher Shorebird with a long orange bill for opening shellfish.
Peregrine Falcon that nests on bridges and tall buildings.
Pine Snake Large pale reptile of the sandy woods in the south of the state.
Piping Plover Small sand-colored shorebird that nests on beaches.
Pitch Pine Tough tree of the sandy south that can sprout again after fire.
Red Fox Rust-colored hunter with a white-tipped tail.
Red Knot Shorebird that stops on Delaware Bay to eat the eggs of horseshoe crabs on a very long migration.
Skunk Cabbage Early spring plant of wet woods with a strong smell.
Striped Bass Silver game fish with dark lines along its sides, a prize of surf anglers.
Swallowtail Large butterfly with tail-like points on its wings.
Terrapin The diamondback kind is a turtle of the salt marshes.
Tree Frog The Pine Barrens kind is emerald green with a plum-colored band along each side.
Tulip Tree Tall, straight hardwood with cup-shaped flowers.
Warbler Small, colorful songbird that passes through in spring and fall.
White Cedar Swamp tree of the Pine Barrens with scale-like evergreen leaves.

How this list was compiled: Own work. Words and names about the state of New Jersey for grades 2 to 8: eight themed lists (cities and towns; the Jersey Shore; rivers, ridges and Pinelands; state symbols; history; inventions and industry; farms and food; wildlife and plants), New Jersey Favorites, an easy list of every word of 3 to 5 letters and a hard list of every word of 8 letters or more. Entries have 3 to 14 letters, and inside one list no word sits inside another, forwards or backwards. The grid keeps only the letters A to Z, so Salt Water Taffy is hidden as SALTWATERTAFFY and Drive-In as DRIVEIN. Clues are our own wording; no clue repeats a word of four letters or more from its own entry. No brand, team or living person is listed, so the official state dog, a registered name, is left out; the people named are figures of the state's past. The official symbols follow the State of New Jersey's Symbols page (https://www.nj.gov/nj/about/symbols/), read 12 October 2026. Places, people, animals and plants were checked the same day against the English Wikipedia article for each entry (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Jersey, license CC BY-SA 4.0). Dates and records were checked in a second work: Store norske leksikon (https://snl.no/New_Jersey) for the capital and the largest city, the colonies of 1638 and 1676, the Constitution in 1787, Princeton in 1746, Edison at Menlo Park in 1876 and High Point, and the National Park Service page on Ellis Island. Where no second work gave a date or a record, the clue leaves it out. Unofficial and not affiliated with the State of New Jersey; an educational puzzle, so check an official source before you rely on a fact. Licence: own work

How it works

This New Jersey word search opens with Newark, Princeton, Atlantic City, Hoboken, Sandy Hook, Lighthouse, Violet and nine more favorites. Eight lists go further: cities, Jersey Shore, rivers and Pinelands, state symbols, history, inventions, farm and food words, and wildlife.

Read the full guide

A Jersey Shore puzzle for the last week of school

Jersey Shore has Boardwalk, Salt Water Taffy, Ferris Wheel, Carousel and Arcade for the pier, and Dunes, Jetty, Inlet and Barrier Island for the map. Beach Tag will be new to pupils from other states.

Inventions, each with its town

New Jersey Inventions and Industry puts Light Bulb, Phonograph and Movie Camera beside Edison, then Telegraph, Submarine, Transistor and Drive-In. The clues name the towns: Menlo Park, West Orange, Morristown, Paterson, Murray Hill and Camden.

Easy New Jersey has the 23 words of 3 to 5 letters: Buff, Pier, Surf, Gull, Dunes, Jetty, Diner, Horse, Ceres and more.
Buff and Jersey Blue are the colors of the state flag, chosen by George Washington for the state's regiments.

Questions and answers

Is the New Jersey word search printable with answers?

Yes. Print or save as PDF gives the puzzle with a Name and Date line, and the answer key follows on its own page. Every list on the page is free to print as often as you like.

Is the Jersey Shore in the puzzle?

Yes. Boardwalk, Lighthouse, Sandy Hook and Dunes are in the opening grid with Atlantic City and Cape May. The Jersey Shore list has 29 words, from Barnegat and Twin Lights to Sandcastle and Seashell.

Does it cover New Jersey in the American Revolution?

New Jersey History has Washington, Durham Boat, Hessians, Monmouth, Molly Pitcher, Jockey Hollow, Old Barracks and Crossroads, a name the state earned in that war, each with a one-line clue.

Is the state bird in the grid?

Goldfinch is in the opening grid with Violet, Red Oak, Honeybee and Blueberry. New Jersey State Symbols adds Horse, Brook Trout, Bog Turtle, Knobbed Whelk, Hadrosaurus, Franklinite and the tall ship Meerwald.

All 217 words

New Jersey Cities and Towns 36

New Jersey Cities and Towns, continued

Jersey Shore 29

New Jersey Rivers, Ridges and Pinelands 26

New Jersey State Symbols 22

New Jersey History 30

New Jersey Inventions and Industry 21

Garden State Farms and Food 12

New Jersey Wildlife and Plants 41

How it works

A Jersey Shore puzzle for the last week of school

Inventions, each with its town

Questions and answers

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