🧩 Rebus Puzzles
Picture words and word tricks from easy to really hard. Can you read what the puzzle is saying?
How to play
- Pick a puzzle set. Picture Words is the easiest; stars open the harder sets.
- Choose how to play: pick from four answers, or type it yourself.
- Look at where the words sit. Over, under, big, small, backward, crossed out: all of it is a clue.
- Say the puzzle out loud. Many rebus puzzles only click when you hear them.
- Stuck? A hint removes a wrong answer or shows the first letters.
- Win up to 3 stars for each set and mode. Every answer is explained.
Free rebus puzzles to play online
Rebus Puzzles is a free word and picture game with nearly 140 puzzles, from sums of little pictures for young kids to sayings that will make grown-ups stop and stare. Each puzzle hides a word or phrase, and the way it is drawn is the clue. It plays in your web browser with no download, on computers, tablets and phones. Every puzzle and answer is also listed further down this page, so you can use them in class or at the dinner table.
What is a rebus puzzle?
A rebus is a puzzle that uses pictures, letters, numbers and their position to stand for words. The word comes from Latin and means, roughly, "by things", because things stand in for the words. A picture of a bee and a leaf says "belief". The word STAND written above the letter I says "I understand", because I is under STAND. People have enjoyed rebus puzzles for hundreds of years, in coats of arms, letters, children's books and newspapers, and they are still popular on classroom whiteboards and on TV game shows.
How to solve a rebus puzzle
Start by saying exactly what you see, out loud. If you see MAN above a line and BOARD below it, say "man over board" and the answer pops out. Then check these clues one by one. Position: is one word over, under, in, between, before or after another? Size: a huge word might mean big, and a tiny one small. Direction: a word running down the page might mean down, and a word written backward might mean back. Colour: a red word might start with red. Sounds: 4 can mean for, 2 can mean to or too, the letter U can mean you and C can mean see. Marks: a crossed-out word might mean cross. Most puzzles use just one or two of these tricks, and once you know them you will start spotting them everywhere.
Four sets, easy to really hard
Picture Words adds emoji together to build a word, like a star and a fish for starfish. It is a great place to start for kids from about six. Word Tricks teaches the main tricks, one at a time: words that are big, small, coloured, crossed out or running uphill. Tricky Phrases hides whole sayings such as "once upon a time" and "reading between the lines". Really Hard saves the sneakiest puzzles for last, such as the alphabet with one letter missing. Stars from the earlier sets open the later ones.
Pick or type: two ways to play
In Pick the answer mode you choose from four answers, which is best for younger players and for learning the tricks. In Type it mode there are no choices, so you really have to crack the puzzle yourself. Spelling does not have to be perfect, and small words such as "a" and "the" at the start do not matter. Hints cost half the points, and streaks of right answers add bonus points. Each round deals puzzles you have not seen yet first, so you keep meeting new ones.
Rebus puzzles for kids and for class
Rebus puzzles are good practice for reading, spelling, sound patterns and flexible thinking, because they make children look at words in a new way. They work well as a warm-up at the start of a lesson, a quick group challenge or a rainy-day activity at home. Use the print buttons above the lists below to make a worksheet, with or without the answers. Everything on the page is free to use with your own class or family.
Picture rebus puzzles with answers
☀️ + 🌼
Answer: Sunflower. Sun plus flower.
🌧️ + 🎀
Answer: Rainbow. Rain plus bow.
⭐ + 🐟
Answer: Starfish. Star plus fish.
🌶️ + 🐶
Answer: Hot dog. Hot plus dog.
📖 + 🐛
Answer: Bookworm. Book plus worm.
🧈 + 🪰
Answer: Butterfly. Butter plus fly.
🦶 + ⚽
Answer: Football. Foot plus ball.
🧺 + ⚽
Answer: Basketball. Basket plus ball.
❄️ + ⚽
Answer: Snowball. Snow plus ball.
❄️ + 👨
Answer: Snowman. Snow plus man.
🔥 + 🪰
Answer: Firefly. Fire plus fly.
🌙 + 💡
Answer: Moonlight. Moon plus light.
☀️ + 👓
Answer: Sunglasses. Sun plus glasses.
🍳 + 🎂
Answer: Pancake. Pan plus cake.
🍎 + 🥧
Answer: Apple pie. Apple plus pie.
👁️ + ❤️ + 🐑
Answer: I love you. Eye sounds like I, and a ewe (a female sheep) sounds like you.
🐝 + 🍃
Answer: Belief. Bee plus leaf sounds like belief.
🐝 + 4️⃣
Answer: Before. Bee plus four sounds like before.
💧 + 🍈
Answer: Watermelon. Water plus melon.
👂 + 💍
Answer: Earring. Ear plus ring.
🚪 + 🔔
Answer: Doorbell. Door plus bell.
🐎 + 👞
Answer: Horseshoe. Horse plus shoe.
🐎 + 🪰
Answer: Horsefly. Horse plus fly.
🐟 + 🪝
Answer: Fishhook. Fish plus hook.
🔑 + 🛹
Answer: Keyboard. Key plus board.
🛏️ + 🕐
Answer: Bedtime. Bed plus time.
🐄 + 👦
Answer: Cowboy. Cow plus boy.
🐱 + 🐟
Answer: Catfish. Cat plus fish.
🐶 + 🏠
Answer: Doghouse. Dog plus house.
🌳 + 🏠
Answer: Treehouse. Tree plus house.
💧 + 🍂
Answer: Waterfall. Water plus fall, another word for autumn.
🌧️ + 🧥
Answer: Raincoat. Rain plus coat.
🌧️ + 💧
Answer: Raindrop. Rain plus drop.
🥚 + 🐚
Answer: Eggshell. Egg plus shell.
🌊 + 🐚
Answer: Seashell. Sea plus shell.
🌊 + 🐴
Answer: Seahorse. Sea plus horse.
🌊 + 🌿
Answer: Seaweed. Sea plus weed.
🖐️ + 👜
Answer: Handbag. Hand plus bag.
🧠 + ⛈️
Answer: Brainstorm. Brain plus storm.
👁️ + ⚽
Answer: Eyeball. Eye plus ball.
🎵 + 📦
Answer: Music box. Music plus box.
✉️ + 📦
Answer: Mailbox. Mail plus box.
🌽 + 🐶
Answer: Corn dog. Corn plus dog.
🏠 + 🪰
Answer: Housefly. House plus fly.
Easy rebus puzzles with answers
STAND
I
Answer: I understand. I is under STAND.
MAN
BOARD
Answer: Man overboard. MAN is over BOARD.
READING
Answer: Reading between the lines. The word READING sits between two lines.
HEAD
HEELS
Answer: Head over heels. HEAD is over HEELS.
TOWN
Answer: Downtown. TOWN runs down the page.
CAKE
Answer: Upside-down cake. CAKE is upside down.
CYCLE CYCLE CYCLE
Answer: Tricycle. Three cycles make a tricycle.
SAFETY 1ST
Answer: Safety first. 1ST reads as first.
ME
WORLD
Answer: On top of the world. ME is on top of WORLD.
TALK
Answer: Small talk. The word TALK is small.
DEAL
Answer: Big deal. The word DEAL is big.
SHOT
Answer: Big shot. The word SHOT is big.
WORLD
Answer: Small world. The word WORLD is small.
FOOT
Answer: Bigfoot. The word FOOT is big.
PRINT
Answer: Small print. The word PRINT is small.
SIDE SIDE
Answer: Side by side. One SIDE beside another.
BACK KCAB
Answer: Back to back. Two BACKs meet at their backs.
H1LE
Answer: Hole in one. The 1 is in the word HOLE.
TOUCH
Answer: Touchdown. TOUCH goes down.
HILL
Answer: Downhill. HILL goes down.
LOAD
Answer: Download. LOAD goes down.
STAIRS
Answer: Downstairs. STAIRS go down.
STAIRS
Answer: Upstairs. STAIRS go up.
HILL
Answer: Uphill. HILL goes up.
LOAD
Answer: Upload. LOAD goes up.
DRAWKCAB
Answer: Backward. The word is written backward.
WEAR
LONG
Answer: Long underwear. LONG is under WEAR.
1 3 5 7 9
Answer: Odd numbers. They are all odd numbers.
2 4 6 8
Answer: Even numbers. They are all even numbers.
MIND
MATTER
Answer: Mind over matter. MIND is over MATTER.
HERRING
Answer: Red herring. HERRING is red.
MOON
Answer: Blue moon. MOON is blue.
HOUSE
Answer: Greenhouse. HOUSE is green.
CARPET
Answer: Red carpet. CARPET is red.
THUMB
Answer: Green thumb. THUMB is green.
BERRY
Answer: Blueberry. BERRY is blue.
HANDED
Answer: Red-handed. HANDED is red.
GO 4 IT
Answer: Go for it. 4 sounds like for.
ONE 4 ALL
Answer: One for all. 4 sounds like for.
2 LATE
Answer: Too late. 2 sounds like too.
4 EVER
Answer: Forever. 4 sounds like for.
GR8
Answer: Great. GR plus 8 sounds like great.
L8R
Answer: Later. L plus 8 plus R sounds like later.
1 DERFUL
Answer: Wonderful. 1 sounds like won.
2 MORROW
Answer: Tomorrow. 2 sounds like to.
C U L8R
Answer: See you later. C sounds like see, U like you.
I C U
Answer: I see you. Say the letters out loud.
E Z
Answer: Easy. Say the two letters out loud.
Tricky rebus puzzles with answers
MILL1ON
Answer: One in a million. The 1 is in the word MILLION.
OM.D.Ph.D.B.A.
Answer: Three degrees below zero. Three college degrees sit below a zero.
C C C C C C C
Answer: Seven seas. Seven Cs sound like seven seas.
BAN ANA
Answer: Banana split. The word BANANA is split in two.
YOU JUST ME
Answer: Just between you and me. JUST is between YOU and ME.
AGE BEAUTY
Answer: Age before beauty. AGE comes before BEAUTY.
ARREST
YOU'RE
Answer: You're under arrest. YOU'RE is under ARREST.
THINK
Answer: Think outside the box. THINK is outside the box.
JACK
Answer: Jack in the box. JACK is in a box.
KNEE
LIGHTS
Answer: Neon lights. KNEE on LIGHTS sounds like neon lights.
ROADS
Answer: Crossroads. ROADS is crossed out.
WORD
Answer: Crossword. WORD is crossed out.
BOW
Answer: Crossbow. BOW is crossed out.
WALK
Answer: Crosswalk. WALK is crossed out.
CHI MADE IN NA
Answer: Made in China. MADE IN is in the word CHINA.
EGGS
EASY
Answer: Eggs over easy. EGGS is over EASY.
STOOD
MIS
Answer: Misunderstood. MIS is under STOOD.
BRIDGE
WATER
Answer: Water under the bridge. WATER is under BRIDGE.
ONCE
TIME
Answer: Once upon a time. ONCE is upon TIME.
NOON GOOD
Answer: Good afternoon. GOOD comes after NOON.
GETTINGITALL
Answer: Getting it all together. The words are all pushed together.
WORK
TIME
Answer: Work overtime. WORK is over TIME.
XQZ ME
Answer: Excuse me. Say the letters out loud.
ANOTHER ONE
Answer: One after another. ONE comes after ANOTHER.
BUSINESS PLEASURE
Answer: Business before pleasure. BUSINESS comes before PLEASURE.
THE WEATHER
I FEEL
Answer: I feel under the weather. I FEEL is under THE WEATHER.
BELT
HITTING
Answer: Hitting below the belt. HITTING is below BELT.
1 KNIGHT
Answer: One night. KNIGHT sounds like night.
GOOD KNIGHT
Answer: Good night. KNIGHT sounds like night.
LOOK U LEAP
Answer: Look before you leap. LOOK comes before U (you), then LEAP.
ME REPEAT
Answer: Repeat after me. REPEAT comes after ME.
Hard rebus puzzles with answers
ABCDEFGHIJKMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ
Answer: Noel. Look closely: the alphabet has no L.
HIJKLMNO
Answer: Water. The letters run from H to O: H2O.
GEG
Answer: Scrambled egg. The letters of EGG are scrambled.
WHEATHER
Answer: A bad spell of weather. WEATHER is spelled badly.
DKI
Answer: Mixed-up kid. The letters of KID are mixed up.
ESROH RIDING
Answer: Horseback riding. HORSE is written backward.
SYMPHON
Answer: Unfinished symphony. The last letter of SYMPHONY is missing, so it is unfinished.
BUC.KET
Answer: A drop in the bucket. A little dot, or drop, is in the word BUCKET.
DICE DICE
Answer: Paradise. A pair of dice sounds like paradise.
NAFISH NAFISH
Answer: Tuna fish. Two NA fish sounds like tuna fish.
EVERY RIGHT THING
Answer: Right in the middle of everything. RIGHT is in the middle of EVERYTHING.
ERIF
Answer: Backfire. FIRE is written backward.
DEEF
Answer: Feedback. FEED is written backward.
MIRROR
Answer: Mirror image. The word MIRROR is drawn the way a mirror would show it.
PAINS G R O W I N G
Answer: Growing pains. The word GROWING is growing next to PAINS.
More brain games
Love word puzzles? Try Word Riddles, Cryptogram or Word Connections. For number thinking, try Riddle Realm. Every puzzle and quiz is on the Brain Games page.
Free and safe
Rebus Puzzles is free to play, with no download, no sign-up and nothing to buy. There is no chat, and your stars are saved only on your own device. See the Parents & Safety page for more.
Frequently asked questions
What is a rebus puzzle?
A rebus is a puzzle that uses pictures, letters, numbers and their position to stand for words or sayings. For example, MAN written above BOARD means man overboard.
How do you solve rebus puzzles?
Say what you see out loud, then look at position, size, direction, colour and sounds. Words over, under or inside each other are the most common clues.
Where can I find rebus puzzles with answers?
Every puzzle in this game is listed with its answer on this page. Tap a puzzle in the list to see the answer and why it works.
Can I print these rebus puzzles?
Yes. The print buttons above the lists make a worksheet, with or without the answers, free for home or classroom use.
What age are these puzzles for?
Picture Words suits children from about six. Word Tricks suits about eight and up, and Tricky Phrases and Really Hard will challenge older kids and adults.
Is Rebus Puzzles free?
Yes. It is free to play in the browser with no download, no account and nothing to buy.