A Vampire Joke Hidden in a Vampire Word Search

Everything a classic movie vampire loves and fears is hidden here: the coffin, the castle and the velvet cape, the bat wings and the midnight hour, and the garlic, the wooden stake and the sunlight that send him running.

Find all twelve and the remaining letters spell out a vampire joke. In the old legends a vampire casts no reflection in a mirror. Real vampire bats do exist: they live in Mexico, Central and South America, and feed on the blood of animals, often while they sleep.

How the hidden message works

In this puzzle, every letter that is not part of a word belongs to a secret message of 52 letters. Find all 12 words first. Then read the letters that are left over, starting at the top left and going row by row from left to right, and write them down in order. Online, the message lights up on the grid the moment you find the last word. On the printable PDF there is a blank space for each letter, and the answer key shows the full message.

Vampire Joke Vocabulary: 12 Words to Find

Words run across, up and down, and diagonally; 6 of the 12 read backwards. The longest word is Wooden Stake, with 11 letters.

Nocturnal: Active at night and asleep during the day, like bats and owls.
Immortal: Never dying. Vampires in stories are immortal.
Midnight: 12 o'clock at night, the "witching hour" of ghost stories.
Sunlight: The light of the sun. In stories it destroys vampires.
Garlic: A strong-smelling bulb used in cooking. In legend, it keeps vampires away.
Coffin: The long box a body is buried in. Vampires in stories sleep in one during the day.
Castle: A large stone building with thick walls and towers, built long ago to keep its owners safe.
Reflection: The image you see in a mirror. In legend, vampires have none.
Wooden Stake: A pointed stick of wood. In legend, driving one through a vampire's heart destroys it.
Crimson: A deep, rich red color, the color of blood.
Bat Wings: Leathery wings stretched over long finger bones. In stories, vampires can turn into bats.
Velvet Cape: A long cloak of soft velvet, the classic look of a movie vampire.

How to Solve the Vampire Joke Hidden Message Word Search

Three two-word answers ("wooden stake", "bat wings", "velvet cape") are hidden without spaces. "Wooden stake" is the longest answer, eleven letters. Three words start with C: coffin, castle and crimson.

Vampire Joke Activities for Kids

Ask students to sort the words into what vampires love and what they fear.
Pair it with the Coffin Shaped and Dracula puzzles for a vampire week.
Ask kids to invent another vampire joke using the words.