Pirate Crossword Puzzle Printable

Print an easy criss-cross pirate crossword for Talk Like a Pirate Day, with a word bank and an answer key.

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Pirate Crossword

Read each clue and write the answer in the squares that start at its number, one letter in each square.

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Word bank

  • Anchor
  • Compass
  • Hook
  • Island
  • Map
  • Oar
  • Palm
  • Parrot
  • Plank
  • Treasure

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Answer key: Pirate Crossword

1MA2P3PA4AA5ISLAND6CRMC7OAR8PHMOLOP9TREASUREANS10HOOKS

Across 1 MAP · 5 ISLAND · 7 OAR · 9 TREASURE · 10 HOOK

Down 2 PALM · 3 PARROT · 4 ANCHOR · 6 COMPASS · 8 PLANK

Next step Print the ocean crosswordFind ocean words in a word search

All 176 clues

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Parts of a Ship 32

  • Anchor Heavy iron thing dropped to the sea floor to keep a ship in place
  • Barrel Fat cask with hoops around it
  • Bilge Lowest part inside a ship, where water collects
  • Bow Pointed end of a ship, the part that arrives first
  • Bowsprit Long pole that sticks out over the front of a sailing ship
  • Brig Two-masted ship; also a ship's jail
  • Cabin A private room on a ship
  • Cannon Big gun that fires round shot
  • Capstan Upright drum that sailors turn to wind in a heavy rope
  • Crow's nest Small open shelter high above the sails, for keeping watch
  • Deck The crew mops this part of the ship
  • Figurehead Carved decoration on the prow
  • Galleon Large three-masted sailing ship, square rigged
  • Galley Where the ship's meals are made
  • Gangplank Board used as a bridge between a ship and the dock
  • Hammock Swinging bed made of canvas
  • Hatch Opening that leads down through the floor of a ship
  • Helm The steering gear of a ship: 'take the ___'
  • Hold Belly of a ship, where the goods are stowed
  • Hull The body or frame of a ship
  • Keel Backbone beam running under a ship from end to end
  • Mast The sails hang from this tall post
  • Oar You pull on it to row a boat
  • Plank Long, thick board; in pirate tales a prisoner is made to walk it
  • Porthole Circular pane of glass set in a ship's side
  • Rigging The network of lines and chains that works the canvas
  • Rudder Steering vane below the waterline
  • Schooner Vessel rigged with at least two tall spars
  • Sloop Single-masted sailing boat
  • Stern The after end of a ship
  • Tiller Bar the steersman pushes to turn a small boat
  • Wheel The steersman turns it to guide the ship

The Crew 23

  • Bosun Short for boatswain, who sees to the lines, sails and cables
  • Buccaneer Seaman who cruised the Spanish Main in the 17th century
  • Captain The boss of a ship
  • Carpenter Sailor who looks after all of a ship's woodwork
  • Castaway Sailor who has lost his ship in a wreck
  • Cook The one who feeds the whole crew
  • Cooper Maker and mender of wooden casks
  • Corsair Old word for a pirate, and for the pirate's ship
  • Gunner One who works the big guns
  • Helmsman Crew member who steers
  • Landlubber Someone who knows nothing of ships or the sea
  • Lookout Sailor who keeps watch for danger
  • Mate First ___: the officer just under the ship's boss
  • Mutineer Sailor who joins a rising against the ship's officers
  • Navigator Officer whose job is finding the way
  • Parrot Bird of many colors that learns to talk
  • Privateer Raider licensed by a letter of marque
  • Quartermaster Officer who attends to the steering and the signals
  • Rogue Unprincipled, deceitful person
  • Scallywag Badly behaved, good-for-nothing fellow
  • Sea dog Sailor with many years afloat
  • Stowaway Hidden traveler who pays no fare
  • Swashbuckler Daring adventurer with showy swordplay

Treasure 25

  • Booty Goods seized by piracy
  • Cargo A vessel's load of freight
  • Chest Large box with a rounded lid
  • Crown It sits on a royal head
  • Diamond Glittering, glass-like stone made of carbon
  • Doubloon Former Spanish coin made of the yellow metal
  • Emerald Highly valued clear green stone
  • Gem Precious stone; also anything highly prized
  • Goblet Footed, stemmed vessel to drink from
  • Gold Yellow metal worth a great deal
  • Hoard Secret stockpile
  • Ingot Solid block of metal, shaped like a brick
  • Jewel Stone that costs a lot and is worn for show
  • Key What you turn to undo a padlock
  • Loot Goods taken by force
  • Map Paper that leads the way to buried riches
  • Pearl Shiny little ball made inside a shellfish
  • Piece of eight Old Spanish silver coin, the peso
  • Plunder To rob a place of everything, by force
  • Ransom Money paid to set a prisoner free
  • Ring Round band of metal for a finger
  • Ruby Deep red precious stone
  • Shovel Hand tool for moving earth; you dig with it
  • Spoils What the winners of a fight carry off
  • Treasure Money and other riches, gathered in one place

Sea and Shore 25

  • Beach Sand or little stones next to the ocean
  • Breeze Mild movement of air
  • Cave Big hollow in the rock
  • Coast The rim of a country, facing the ocean
  • Cove Small inlet whose high cliffs shelter vessels from the wind
  • Crab Ten-legged animal; its front two legs are claws
  • Fog Cloud that forms close to the surface and cuts off the view
  • Gale Wind of force 7 to 9 on the Beaufort scale
  • Gull White, often dark-backed seabird with long, pointed wings
  • Harbor Sheltered anchorage beside the land
  • Island Land in the middle of the sea
  • Kraken Giant sea monster of legend
  • Lagoon Shallows behind a bar, apart from the deeper sea
  • Palm Tree of hot lands with all its leaves at the top
  • Reef Chain of coral or stones lying at or near the surface of the water
  • Sandbar Long ridge of sand raised by the motion of the sea
  • Shark Fish that hunts other sea animals
  • Shoal Sandbank that makes the water shallow
  • Shore The land you see from a boat
  • Squall Sudden, windy burst of bad weather
  • Storm Very bad weather
  • Tide Regular change in sea level, pulled by the moon and sun
  • Wave Moving hump on top of the sea
  • Whale Huge sea mammal
  • Whirlpool Swirling body of water

Finding the Way 25

  • Aboard Into or within a vessel, as in the call 'All ___'
  • Adrift Carried along by the sea, neither rowed nor steered
  • Aft Toward the back of a ship
  • Aloft High up among the sails, far above the ship's floor
  • Amidships In the middle of a ship
  • Ashore On the land, not on the ship
  • Astern Behind a ship
  • Chart Sheet showing depths and hazards, for finding the way at sea
  • Compass It shows north, south, east and west
  • Current Stream within the sea, always moving the same way
  • Doldrums Belt of calms near the equator where sailing ships sit still
  • Fathom Measure of depth, about the span of two outstretched arms
  • Fore Toward the front of a ship
  • Horizon Far-off line where ocean and heavens appear to touch
  • Knot Speed measure used at sea and in the air
  • League Old measure of distance: three nautical miles
  • Leeward On the side sheltered from the wind
  • Lighthouse Beacon building that shows sailors where danger lies
  • Overboard Past the rail and down into the sea
  • Port The left side of a ship
  • Sextant Navigational tool that measures angles to find latitude and longitude
  • Spyglass Little telescope a sailor can carry
  • Starboard Right-hand half of a vessel
  • Voyage Lengthy trip across the ocean
  • Windward Toward the direction the wind blows from

Pirate Talk 23

  • Ahoy Shout used to hail a ship
  • Arr Growl said in imitation of a pirate
  • Avast 'Cease' and 'desist', in one nautical word
  • Aye Sailor's yes to an order
  • Batten ___ down: to fasten everything tight before bad weather
  • Belay Secure a line around a pin; as a command, cease
  • Hearties 'Me ___': an old sailor's greeting to his fellows
  • Heave Pull hard on a rope
  • Hoist Raise high, as a sail
  • Hornswoggle To trick or cheat
  • Lad A boy or young man
  • Maroon To put someone off the ship in a lonely place and sail away
  • Matey What a stage pirate calls a fellow sailor
  • Mutiny Rebellion of a crew against its officers
  • Parley Conference with the foe
  • Savvy To understand; also shrewd and well-informed
  • Scurvy Low and worthless, as in 'you ___ knave'
  • Shanty Rhythmic tune for hauling together
  • Swab A mop for a ship's floor; also to clean with one
  • Thar 'There', in the old cry '___ she blows'
  • Timbers 'Shiver my ___': a stage pirate's cry of surprise
  • Ye You, in old-fashioned talk
  • Yo-ho-ho Cry of the pirates in old songs and stories

Flags and Gear 23

  • Bandana Colorful kerchief used as headgear
  • Beard Whiskers on the jaw and neck
  • Bell On a ship it is struck every half hour to tell the time
  • Boots Footwear that covers part of the leg
  • Bottle A note can travel across the sea in this glass thing
  • Bucket You carry water in it by the handle
  • Buckle Fastener with a hinged tongue
  • Cannonball Round shot fired from a big gun
  • Crossbones Two thighbones laid across each other on a pirate banner
  • Cutlass Short sword with a curved blade, once used by sailors
  • Earring Jewelry worn on the ear
  • Eyepatch Cover worn over one eye
  • Flag Cloth with a sign on it, flown as a signal
  • Hardtack Hard ship's biscuit of flour and water
  • Hook Bent rod for catching or hanging things
  • Hourglass Timer in which sand runs between two glass bulbs
  • Jolly Roger The pirates' black banner, by its nickname
  • Log Book in which a ship's progress is written down
  • Net Web of string for catching fish
  • Peg leg Tapered wooden prop that is strapped on to walk with
  • Sash Strip of fabric wound about the middle
  • Skull Bony head shown on a pirate banner
  • Tricorn Three-cornered headgear

How this list was compiled: Clues written for this site in seven sets: parts of a ship, the crew, treasure, sea and shore, finding the way, pirate talk, and flags and gear. Every meaning was checked in Wiktionary (en.wiktionary.org), and the whale and sea chart clues also follow English Wikipedia (en.wikipedia.org, CC BY-SA 4.0). No real pirate and no film or book character is an answer. No clue was copied from a published puzzle. Licence: own work

How it works

This pirate crossword puzzle, printable on Letter or A4, opens on 10 easy words, among them Treasure, Map, Anchor, Parrot, Plank, Compass and Island. It is a vocabulary crossword of ship, sea and treasure words.

Read the full guide

Seven sets, from the keel to the Jolly Roger

Parts of a Ship has Rudder, Capstan and Bowsprit. The Crew has Bosun, Cooper and Stowaway. Treasure has Doubloon, Ingot and Piece of eight. Sea and Shore has Lagoon, Squall and Kraken. Finding the Way has Sextant, Fathom and Starboard. Pirate Talk has Avast, Belay and Hornswoggle. Flags and Gear has Cutlass, Tricorn and Hardtack.

Sailors' words and stage pirate words

Most answers are words sailors use: a Fathom measures depth, a Knot measures speed and the Galley is the kitchen. Arr, Matey and Timbers belong to the pirate of stage and story, and their clues say so.

Questions and answers

Is there a pirate crossword for kindergarten, printable with a word bank?

Easy Pirate Words is the gentlest set: short answers such as Map, Oar and Hook, with a word bank under the clues. Most kindergartners will need a grown-up to read the clues aloud. That is our judgment, not a published standard.

When is Talk Like a Pirate Day?

September 19, every year. For the day, Pirate Talk has Ahoy, Avast, Aye, Savvy and Yo-ho-ho.

What do port and starboard mean?

Port is the left-hand side of a ship and starboard the right-hand side, for someone on board who is facing forward. Both are answers in Finding the Way.

Does the pirate crossword puzzle print with an answer key?

Yes. Print gives the puzzle, the clues and the word bank, and the answer key follows on a sheet of its own. It is free, with no sign-up.

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