Strands is a fresh addition to the New York Times’ daily puzzle lineup, offering a more challenging twist on the classic word search. With sharp eyes and a bit of strategy, you can master this puzzle!
Like other NYT games such as Wordle, Connections, and the Mini Crossword, Strands can sometimes be tricky. If you’re feeling stuck and need help with today’s puzzle, check out the hints and solutions below.
How to Play NYT Strands
In each Strands puzzle, your mission is to uncover hidden “theme words” within a grid of letters. You find words by dragging or tapping the letters, then double-tap the final letter to lock in your guess. When you get a theme word right, the letters will turn blue and become unselectable.
Even non-theme words are helpful! For every three valid words you find that are at least four letters long, you earn a hint—revealing some letters from one of the theme words, which you’ll then need to unscramble.
Every letter in the grid is used only once, and there’s no overlap between words. You’ll need to use all the letters to find the theme words.
A special word, called the spangram, ties directly into the puzzle’s theme and stretches across two opposite sides of the board. Finding this word will help you solve the puzzle faster.
Hint for Today’s NYT Strands Puzzle
Today’s theme is “A way with words”.
Here’s a helpful clue: linguistic formats and tools.
Today’s NYT Strands Answers
If you’re still having trouble, here’s the spangram to get you started:
POETRY
And here are the rest of the theme words:
- METER
- RHYME
- VERSE
- SYNTAX
- DICTION
- STANZA
- SCANSION
Good luck, and remember that each puzzle is a chance to sharpen your skills!