There are two countries in the British Isles: the UK and the Republic of Ireland. But in one of these countries there are 4 more countries: Scotland, Northern Ireland, Wales and England. No wonder it confuses students from all over the world.

The confusion can be clarified with this puzzle. Students are simply asked to fill the gaps with the place-names for the various parts of the British Isles. They can then see for themselves the constituent countries.

By the way ‘Great Britain‘ is not a country, it is an island, the largest island in the British Isles, and the name ‘great’ does not mean ‘fantastic’, it means ‘big’, referring to the size of the island, which is the 8th largest island in the world, and the island of Ireland is the 20th largest.

This puzzle is for elementary – intermediate level students and can last about 10-20 minutes.

British Isles puzzle click here for free downloadable pdf sheets, including answer key.

Please find a snapshot of this puzzle below.