Rivers of the UK and Ireland: Thames, Severn, Shannon and Clyde

Eight rivers of the British Isles and the cities they made. The Thames flows through London; the Severn is the longest river in Great Britain; the Trent crosses the Midlands; the Mersey reaches the sea at Liverpool; the Tyne at Newcastle; and the Clyde at Glasgow. The Shannon, in Ireland, is the longest of all, and there are several rivers called Avon.

Shannon has a double N. Avon and Severn share the only Vs.

Rivers of the United Kingdom and British Isles Vocabulary: 8 Words to Find

Words run across, up and down; 4 of the 8 read backwards. The longest word is Shannon, with 7 letters.

Avon: The name of several English rivers; it comes from an old Celtic word for "river".
Clyde: The river of Glasgow, Scotland, once famous for shipbuilding.
Mersey: The river of Liverpool, England.
Severn: The longest river in Great Britain, about 350 km.
Shannon: The longest river in Ireland and the British Isles.
Thames: The river of London, about 346 km long.
Trent: A major river of the English Midlands.
Tyne: The river of Newcastle, in northeast England.

How to Solve the Rivers of the United Kingdom and British Isles Word Search

"Clyde" has the only C, D and L and runs upward, like "Severn" and "Thames". "Shannon" is the longest word and runs down. "Tyne" is the only word that reads normally across, and "Avon" the only one that reads backwards.

How Long the Rivers of the United Kingdom and British Isles Word Search Takes

6 players have solved this puzzle on their first try, and they took a median of 42 seconds. Half of them finished between 40 seconds and 47 seconds. None of them needed a hint.

Times measured on Word Search Free, online play only, first attempt per player. Updated 2026-10-15.

UK Rivers Geography Activities

Match each river to its city.
Find the one river in the list that is not in the United Kingdom.
Look up the river nearest your school.