Free Printable Word Searches About Quilting

A quilting puzzle of block, batting and binding words that prints with its answer key.

Name Date

Quilting Word Search

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

0 of 15 words found

EMEBCTLAQNFANMZ

CFSWBLOCKAOTIKB

ATTHIMBLEUEUFUO

LOGCABINNKHSXLR

INCSPPATCHWORKD

CRDTPERBATTINGE

OCDILTNBACKINGR

BASTINGNAHOSJLK

CFFCQOLTWUHHBRR

PRKHUPADMREALPC

PEPIEABDTNZETCA

IWSIRTEGSDFFETG

ESRMTEMPLATEEQH

CBHFTNRSCSRJKJD

EFCOPPINWHEELLI

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.

BattingBATTING
BackingBACKING
BlockBLOCK
BorderBORDER
PatchworkPATCHWORK
PiecePIECE
AppliquéAPPLIQUÉ
TemplateTEMPLATE
Log cabinLOG CABIN
Churn dashCHURN DASH
PinwheelPINWHEEL
StitchSTITCH
ThimbleTHIMBLE
BastingBASTING
CalicoCALICO

15 of 27 words from the Quilting list.

Invent a quilt block of your own. Write its name and what it would look like.

Start from a list

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Word list

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

The puzzle changes as you go. See the puzzle

Answer key: Quilting Word Search

EMEBCTLAQNFANMZ

CFSWBLOCKAOTIKB

ATTHIMBLEUEUFUO

LOGCABINNKHSXLR

INCSPPATCHWORKD

CRDTPERBATTINGE

OCDILTNBACKINGR

BASTINGNAHOSJLK

CFFCQOLTWUHHBRR

PRKHUPADMREALPC

PEPIEABDTNZETCA

IWSIRTEGSDFFETG

ESRMTEMPLATEEQH

CBHFTNRSCSRJKJD

EFCOPPINWHEELLI

BATTING, BACKING, BLOCK, BORDER, PATCHWORK, PIECE, APPLIQUÉ, TEMPLATE, LOG CABIN, CHURN DASH, PINWHEEL, STITCH, THIMBLE, BASTING, CALICO

Next step Print the sewing word search Make a word search from your own quilting words

All 139 words

Parts of a Quilt 16

Backing The plain cloth on the underside.
Batting The soft filling in the middle, also called wadding.
Binding The narrow strip folded over the raw outer edge to finish it.
Block One square unit of the design, sewn from several pieces and repeated.
Border A band of cloth that frames the whole design.
Edge The outer rim of anything flat.
Filling What is stuffed between two cloths, such as cotton or wool.
Lattice A crisscross of strips with open spaces between them.
Layer One of the sheets stacked to make something thicker.
Lining The cloth on the inside or underside; a 1915 book uses this word for the back.
Motif A single shape or picture that repeats in a design.
Quilt A bedcover of three layers held together by lines of small stitches.
Sandwich Any stack with one thing between two others; the three parts make one before they are sewn.
Sashing Strips of cloth sewn between the squares to set them apart.
Seam The line where two cut shapes are sewn together.
Top The decorated upper layer, the one that shows on the bed.

Show all 139 words (123 more)

Cutting and Piecing 20

Appliqué A cut shape sewn on top of a larger cloth; the name is a French word for put on.
Checkerboard Dark and light squares taking turns, as on a game table.
Diamond A four-sided shape that stands on one of its tips.
Foundation A sheet of thin fabric or newspaper that small bits are sewn onto to keep them steady.
Grid Evenly spaced crossing lines; most square designs are drawn on one.
Hexagon A six-sided shape, like one cell made by bees.
Layout The way finished squares are arranged before they are joined.
Paper piecing Sewing cloth shapes onto a printed sheet that is torn away afterward.
Patchwork Small bits of cloth sewn side by side into one large design.
Piece To sew cut shapes of cloth together, one beside the next.
Point The sharp tip of a triangle or a star.
Press To flatten a seam with a hot iron.
Rectangle A shape with four right angles and two sides longer than the others.
Rotary cutter A handle with a round rolling blade; the first one came out in 1979.
Square The outline of most units of a design: all sides the same length, every corner a right one.
Strip A long, narrow cut of cloth.
Symmetry Balance in a design: fold it down the middle and the two sides agree.
Template A stiff shape to trace around, so every cut comes out the same size.
Tessellation Shapes that cover a flat surface with no gaps and no overlaps.
Triangle The three-sided shape made by cutting a square from corner to corner.

Block Names 26

Bear's paw Also the footprint of a big forest animal.
Broken dish Also a plate that fell and cracked.
Cake stand Also a footed plate that shows off a dessert.
Churn dash Built on a grid of three by three, with triangles and rectangles in place of some plain squares.
Crossed canoes Also two paddled boats laid in an X.
Evening star Also the bright planet seen in the west after sunset.
Feather star A pointed design that a 1915 book praises for its lightness.
Flower basket Also a woven carrier full of blooms.
Four patch A simple square that, a 1915 book says, many learned to sew on.
Hen and chickens Also a mother bird beside her brood.
Honeycomb Also the six-sided wax cells of a hive.
Log cabin Strips set around a small center square, by tradition red for the hearth.
Maple leaf Also the foliage of the tree tapped for syrup.
Nine patch Three rows of three squares; often the first design a child learns to sew.
Ocean waves Also the rolling swells of the sea.
Pine tree Also an evergreen that grows needles and cones.
Pinwheel Also a paper toy that whirls on a stick.
Rising sun Also the sight in the east at daybreak.
Shoo fly Each of its corner squares is split into a light triangle and a dark one.
Snowball Also a packed handful of winter white, ready to throw.
Storm at sea Also wild weather over open water.
Sunburst Also a flash of rays breaking through clouds.
Tulip A spring flower from a bulb; sewn on a bride's quilt, it stood for love.
Wedding ring Interlocking circles pieced from small arcs, often made to mark a marriage.
Wild goose chase Also a saying for a hopeless search.
Windmill Also a tower whose sails turn to grind grain.

Quilting the Layers 22

Basting Long loose stitches that hold everything still until the real sewing is done.
Betweens The small, strong needles made for sewing the layers by hand.
Chalk A soft white stick; a coated cord snapped on the cloth leaves a straight line.
Diagonal Slanting from corner to corner; a 1915 book calls lines like this the simplest pattern.
Echo Lines that repeat the outline of a shape again and again, like ripples.
Fan A thing waved to cool the face; a 1915 book lists a pattern of lines by this name.
Frame Wooden bars that hold the work stretched tight while several people sew.
Knot A tight loop that keeps a strand from pulling out.
Longarm A big machine that is moved across layers held on rollers.
Medallion A large round or oval ornament in a design.
Needle A slim steel tool whose hole is called an eye.
Pantograph A line design laid under clear plastic for a machine operator to follow.
Pineapple A spiky tropical fruit; a 1915 book calls its pattern of lines very popular.
Rope A twisted cord; a 1915 book lists a pattern of lines by this name.
Safety pin A bent wire clasp with a covered tip; large ones hold the layers for machine sewing.
Stipple A close pattern sewn over the background so the main design stands out.
Stitch The single loop of thread left in cloth each time the needle goes in and out.
Thimble Worn on the finger that pushes the needle, so the steel does not prick it.
Thread A fine twisted strand of cotton, polyester or nylon.
Tied Fastened with short lengths of knotted yarn instead of lines of sewing.
Trapunto Stuffed work from Italy: extra padding raises parts of the design.
Yarn A thick soft strand, also used for knitting.

Fabric and Color 17

Brocade Rich cloth woven with a raised design.
Calico Cotton cloth printed with a repeating design, often of flowers.
Contrast What a pale cloth and a deep one show when they sit side by side.
Cotton A soft white fiber from a plant, spun and woven into cloth.
Dye To color cloth by soaking it.
Fabric Cloth of any kind.
Fat quarter Half a yard of cloth cut in two across its width, so each part is short and wide.
Homespun Plain, coarse cloth that a family wove from its own yarn.
Hue Another word for a color, such as green or orange.
Indigo A deep blue dye from a plant.
Palette The range of colors picked for one project; a painter's mixing board has the same name.
Print Cloth with a design stamped on it in color.
Remnant The short end left over from a roll of cloth.
Solid Cloth of one plain color.
Swatch A small sample of cloth.
Turkey red A bright, lasting color for cotton, first dyed with the root of the madder plant.
Value An artist's word for the lightness or darkness of a color.

Kinds of Quilts 19

Bedspread The decorative cover laid over the blankets.
Boutis From Provence in France: stuffed work whose name means stuffing.
Comforter A thick bedcover whose layers may be held by knots of yarn.
Counterpane An old word for a bedspread, from the Latin for stitched quilt.
Coverlet Another word for a bedspread.
Crazy With patches of odd shapes and fancy embroidery, like the cracks in old pottery glaze.
Crib A small bed with barred sides; little covers are sewn to fit it.
Heirloom Something precious that passes from grandparents to parents to children.
Kantha From Bangladesh and India: layers of worn saris joined with running stitches.
Keepsake A thing held on to because of who gave it or what it recalls.
Pictorial Showing a scene with people or things, not a repeated shape.
Ralli From Pakistan and India; its name comes from a word that means to mix or to connect.
Sampler Needlework that shows off many different stitched designs.
Sashiko From Japan: the name means little stabs, and the stitches are white on deep blue.
Signature A person's own written name; one kind is covered with many of them.
Story A tale; one kind tells it in pictures and sewn words.
Tivaevae From the Cook Islands: made by women for ceremonial occasions and given as gifts.
Wall hanging A flat decoration, such as a tapestry or a small quilt, put up in a room for show.
Wholecloth With a top cut from one length of fabric, so the lines of sewing are the design.

The Quilting Bee 19

Auction A sale where the highest bid wins.
Bee A gathering of neighbors to finish one job together.
Blue ribbon The first prize at a show; a 1915 book tells of quilts entered to win one.
Circle A ring of people, or a round shape.
County fair A yearly rural festival where handiwork is shown and judged.
Feast A large meal for many guests.
Frolic A merry time; an old name for a work party of this kind.
Fundraiser A sale, show or dinner put on to bring in money for a good cause.
Gift Something given freely; many of these bedcovers are made to be one.
Guild A club of people who share a craft.
Handmade Not produced in a factory.
Hobby Something done for pleasure in spare time.
Museum A building where treasured works are kept and shown.
Neighbor Someone who lives nearby.
Patience Calm steadiness through slow, careful work.
Raffle A drawing of numbered tickets for a prize, often held to raise money.
Swap To give one thing and get another in return.
Tradition A custom handed down from older people to younger ones.
Upcycle To turn old or leftover material into something better.

How this list was compiled: Own work: the word list and every clue were written for this page. Spellings and meanings were checked on 12 October 2026 in The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (https://www.ahdictionary.com/) and in Wiktionary (https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/sashing and the entries for the other words). Quilting terms and facts were checked the same day against these English Wikipedia articles: Quilt (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quilt), Quilting, Patchwork, Quilting bee, Longarm quilting, Foundation piecing, Rotary cutter, Trapunto quilting, Sashiko, Signature quilt, Tessellation, Turkey red and Yard (for the fat quarter). The block names and the facts dated 1915 are from Quilts: Their Story and How to Make Them by Marie D. Webster (1915), read the same day at Project Gutenberg (https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/24682). Licence: own work

How it works

Patchwork, Batting, Block, Binding, Thimble and Stitch are on the list these free printable word searches about quilting open on. Seven themed lists run from the layers of a quilt to the quilting bee, and every word has a clue.

Read the full guide

Seven lists, from the layers to the bee

Parts of a Quilt has Top, Backing and Sashing. Cutting and Piecing has Appliqué, Template and Tessellation. Block Names has Log cabin, Shoo fly and Wild goose chase. Quilting the Layers has Basting, Betweens and Trapunto. Fabric and Color has Calico, Fat quarter and Turkey red. Kinds of Quilts has Sampler, Wholecloth and Sashiko, and The Quilting Bee has Guild, Frolic and Blue ribbon.

Four words with a history

Quilt goes back to the Latin culcita, a mattress, and counterpane to the Latin for stitched quilt. Sashiko is Japanese for little stabs. The short needles made for quilting by hand are called betweens.

For a math lesson, Cutting and Piecing makes a puzzle of shape words such as Hexagon, Symmetry, Tessellation and Checkerboard.
Nine patch, three rows of three squares, is often the first block a child is taught to make.

Questions and answers

Are these word searches about quilting free to print?

Yes, with no sign-up. Print or save as PDF makes two pages on Letter or A4: the puzzle with a name and date line and a block to invent in writing, then the answer key.

What words are in the quilting word search?

139 words and phrases, from Top and Bee to Wild goose chase and Hen and chickens. The opening list mixes the layers, block names and the tools of hand quilting.

Which list has the quilt block names?

Block Names, with 26 entries such as Log cabin, Nine patch, Churn dash and Bear's paw. A clue that starts with Also gives the everyday meaning of the name, as the paper toy does for Pinwheel.

What is a quilting bee?

A social gathering where a group finishes a quilt together. Bee was a common word in colonial America for shared work, and older names were quilting frolic and quilting feast. Source: Wikipedia, Quilting bee, read 12 October 2026.

Is there an easy quilting word search for kids?

Short and Easy has 12 words of 3 to 5 letters, such as Quilt, Top, Block, Seam, Knot and Bee. Machine parts, stitches and garment words are on the sewing word search.

All 139 words

Parts of a Quilt 16

Cutting and Piecing 20

Block Names 26

Quilting the Layers 22

Fabric and Color 17

Kinds of Quilts 19

The Quilting Bee 19

How it works

Seven lists, from the layers to the bee

Four words with a history

Questions and answers

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