65 Rebus Puzzles for Kids With Answers: Can Your Family Crack Them All?
These 65 rebus puzzles for kids turn everyday words and pictures into secret codes your family can crack at the kitchen table, in the car or in the classroom. We sorted them into easy, medium and hard levels, put the answers right after each level, and bundled everything into a free printable PDF for ages 5 to 12.
A rebus hides a word or saying in plain sight. Sometimes it's a picture plus a word, like a bee plus LIEVE. Sometimes it's where a word sits, like HEAD stacked over HEELS. We designed every one of these puzzles ourselves, so you won't find this exact set anywhere else, and kids get that wonderful "I got it!" moment again and again.
Key Takeaways
What's Inside: 65 original rebus puzzles for kids: 22 easy, 22 medium and 21 hard.
Best For: Ages 5 to 12. Easy picture puzzles work for early readers, and the hard ones stump grown-ups too.
Answers: Every level ends with an answer key that explains how each puzzle works.
Printable: Download all 65 puzzles plus an answer key in one free printable rebus puzzle PDF.
Supplies: Just a pencil, or nothing at all if you're solving out loud.
Scroll through the puzzle cards, shout out your guesses, then check the answers under each level. No peeking until everyone has had a turn!
What Is a Rebus Puzzle?
A rebus puzzle uses pictures, letters, numbers and the way words are arranged to stand for a word or a familiar phrase. When you see the word STAND sitting on top of the letter I, you read it as "I understand," because the I is under STAND.
Rebus puzzles are great brain workouts for kids. They build vocabulary, spelling and flexible thinking, and they teach kids common sayings in a way that sticks. Best of all, they feel like a game, not homework.
How to Solve Rebus Puzzles: 6 Clues to Look For
Stuck? Walk your kids through these clues. Saying what you see out loud is the secret to most rebus puzzles.
Position: Is a word over, under, inside or between something else? Over, under, in and between are often part of the answer.
Size: A giant word might mean "big," and a tiny word might mean "small" or "little."
Direction: Words written backward, upside down, sideways, climbing or falling are clues too.
Repetition: Two of something can mean "double," "pair" or "twice." Three can mean "tri."
Sounds Like: Say it out loud. A bee plus LIEVE sounds like "believe," and the letter C can stand for "sea."
Numbers and Letters: 2 can mean "to," 4 can mean "for," U can mean "you" and B4 can mean "before."
Parent Tip: Start with the easy round even if your kids are older. Once they learn to look for position and sound-alikes, the medium and hard puzzles click much faster.
Easy Rebus Puzzles for Kids (1–22)
These picture puzzles are perfect for kids ages 5 to 8 and early readers. Each one adds two pictures or words together to make a brand-new word.
Easy Rebus Answers (No Peeking!)
1. Believe: A bee plus LIEVE sounds like be-lieve.
2. Sunflower: Sun plus flower.
3. Starfish: Star plus fish.
4. Firework: Fire plus WORK.
5. Rainbow: A rain cloud plus a bow (the ribbon kind) makes rainbow.
6. Butterfly: Butter plus FLY.
7. Popcorn: POP plus corn.
8. Snowman: Snow plus a man.
9. Horseshoe: Horse plus a shoe.
10. Football: Foot plus a ball.
11. Ice cream: An eye plus SCREAM sounds like "I scream," and "I scream" sounds like ice cream.
12. Moonlight: Moon plus a light.
13. Doorbell: Door plus a bell.
14. Handbag: Hand plus a bag.
15. Cowboy: Cow plus a boy.
16. Cupcake: Cup plus cake.
17. Watermelon: Water plus melon.
18. Toothbrush: Tooth plus a brush.
19. Bedtime: Bed plus a clock that tells the time.
20. Hot dog: HOT plus a dog.
21. Today: 2 sounds like "to," so 2 plus DAY is today.
22. Keyboard: Key plus BOARD.
Parent Tip: Little ones who can't read yet can still play. Read the word part out loud and let them name the pictures, then help them blend the two together.
Medium Rebus Puzzles for Kids (23–44)
Now the words start moving around. In this round, kids ages 7 and up look at where each word sits, how big it is and which way it's pointing.
Medium Rebus Answers (No Peeking!)
23. I understand: The I is under STAND.
24. Head over heels: HEAD sits over HEELS.
25. Man overboard: MAN is over BOARD.
26. Eggs over easy: EGGS sits over EASY.
27. Once upon a time: ONCE is sitting upon TIME.
28. Touchdown: TOUCH is written going down.
29. Tricycle: CYCLE is written three times, and "tri" means three, so it's tri-cycle.
30. Long underwear: LONG is under WEAR.
31. Jack-in-the-box: JACK is inside a box.
32. Bigfoot: A really big FOOT.
33. It's a small world: The word world is written very small.
34. Falling star: The letters of STAR are falling down.
35. Go for it: GO is followed by four ITs. "Four" sounds like "for," so GO FOUR IT becomes go for it.
36. Time after time: TIME comes after TIME.
37. Double trouble: TROUBLE is written twice, and two of something is double, so it's double trouble.
38. Top secret: SECRET is at the top of the box.
39. Backpack: PACK is written backward, so it's back-pack.
40. Growing up: The letters of GROWING climb up.
41. Upside down: The word UPSIDE is turned upside down.
42. Round trip: TRIP goes around in a circle.
43. Crossroads: Two ROADS cross each other.
44. Breakfast: The word FAST is broken into two pieces. A broken FAST is a break-fast.
Parent Tip: Turn the medium round into a team game. Split into two teams, show one card at a time and give a point to whoever solves it first. Kids love being the official answer checker.
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Feeling confident? The hard round is where the real puzzle pros (and plenty of parents) start scratching their heads.
Hard Rebus Puzzles for Kids (45–65)
These tricky ones are made for kids ages 9 to 12, tweens and the whole family. Many of them hide a common saying, so they're a sneaky way to learn new expressions too.
Hard Rebus Answers (No Peeking!)
45. Paradise: Two DICE make a "pair of dice." Say it fast, "pair-a-dice," and it sounds like paradise.
46. Travel overseas: The letter C sounds like "sea." TRAVEL is written over a row of Cs (seas), so it's travel overseas.
47. One in a million: The number 1 is inside MILLION.
48. Hole in one: HOLE is inside ONE.
49. Just between you and me: JUST sits between YOU and ME.
50. Hand in hand: HAND is inside HAND.
51. Read between the lines: READ is between two lines.
52. History repeats itself: HISTORY is written once and then again, so history repeats itself.
53. Fish out of water: FISH is outside the WATER box.
54. Misunderstood: MIS is under STOOD.
55. Once in a blue moon: ONCE is inside a blue MOON.
56. Two peas in a pod: The word POD is split open, and two PEAS sit inside it: two peas in a pod.
57. Forgive and forget: 4 sounds like "for," so it's for-give and for-get.
58. One step forward, two steps back: STEP is written forward one time. Then STEPS is written backward (SPETS) two times: one step forward, two steps back.
59. Mind over matter: MIND is over MATTER.
60. Sleeping on the job: SLEEPING is lying on top of JOB.
61. You're under arrest: YOU'RE is under ARREST.
62. Under the weather: ME is under the WEATHER.
63. Skating on thin ice: SKATING sits on a very thin ICE.
64. A big fish in a small pond: FISH is written big, and it sits inside the word POND, which is written small: a big fish in a small pond.
65. Look before you leap: B4 means "before" and U means "you."
Parent Tip: When a saying is new to your child, talk about what it means after you solve it. "Under the weather" and "once in a blue moon" make great dinner-table conversation starters.
Download Our Free Printable Rebus Puzzle Pack (PDF)
Want all 65 puzzles on paper? Our free printable PDF has a cover page with solving tips, six pages of puzzle cards sorted by level, and a full answer key at the back. Print the whole pack or just the level your kids need.
The pack is free for personal and classroom use, so teachers, scout leaders and homeschool families are welcome to print copies for their groups.
Fun Ways to Play Rebus Puzzles With Kids
Rebus puzzles are easy to fit into a busy week. Here are a few of our favorite ways to play.
Restaurant Wait: Pull up the puzzles on your phone while you wait for food. They beat handing over a tablet.
Road Trip Game: Read the clues out loud for older kids, like "the word HEAD is sitting on top of the word HEELS," and let them solve it in their heads.
Classroom Warm-Up: Teachers can project one puzzle a day as a morning brain starter.
Make Your Own: Once kids get the hang of it, challenge them to invent a rebus for their name, a favorite food or your family's street.
Puzzle Party: Print the PDF, cut out the cards and hide them around the house for a rebus scavenger hunt.
Parent Tip: For even more screen-free fun, pair these puzzles with our 55 kid-friendly riddles with answers and our list of fun indoor activities for families in Los Angeles.
Takeaway
With 65 rebus puzzles for kids in three levels, there's something here for every age, from first graders matching a bee with LIEVE to tweens untangling "a big fish in a small pond." Solve them together, keep score, or print the free PDF for a rainy day. No matter how you play, these little word puzzles bring big laughs and lots of proud "I got it!" moments. Let us know which puzzle stumped your family the longest!
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a rebus puzzle for kids?
A rebus puzzle uses pictures, letters, numbers and the position of words to stand for a word or phrase. For example, STAND written over the letter I means "I understand." Kids solve it by saying what they see out loud and looking for clues like over, under, inside and backward.
What age are rebus puzzles good for?
Easy picture rebus puzzles work for kids around ages 5 to 7, especially early readers. Medium puzzles fit ages 7 to 10, and hard puzzles with common sayings are best for ages 9 to 12, tweens and adults. Younger kids can join in with a grown-up reading the words.
How do you solve a rebus puzzle?
Look at what you see, then say it out loud. Notice where words sit, how big or small they are, which way they face and how many times they repeat. Also listen for sound-alikes, like 4 for "for," U for "you" and C for "sea."
Are these rebus puzzles free to print?
Yes. All 65 rebus puzzles and the answer key are in a free printable PDF you can download on this page. The pack is for personal and classroom use, so parents, teachers and homeschool families can print copies for their kids. Please don't resell it or post the file elsewhere.
Are rebus puzzles good for kids' learning?
Yes. Rebus puzzles build vocabulary, spelling, phonics and creative problem-solving. Hard puzzles also introduce idioms like "once in a blue moon" and "under the weather," which helps kids understand everyday language. Because they feel like a game, kids happily practice without it feeling like schoolwork.
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