While games like Wordle and Connections often steal the spotlight, Strands is quickly proving itself as a fun and challenging addition to The New York Times‘ growing collection of puzzles. Recently transitioning from beta, Strands has now become a permanent feature in the official NYT Games app, and with its unique gameplay, it’s likely to attract a wider audience. If you’re new to the game or looking for a refresher, here’s a breakdown of how Strands works and tips to improve your puzzle-solving skills.
How to Play Strands: A Quick Guide
- Discover Theme Words: Each day comes with a theme, and your job is to find words that connect to that topic. Simply drag or click the letters in order to spell out the word. To submit your guess, double-click the last letter. Theme words will turn blue and stay highlighted when you find them.
- Use Clue Words to Your Advantage: While the theme words are the ultimate goal, finding other words along the way is key. These “hint words” help you unlock more theme words. If you discover three words with at least four letters each, you’ll be rewarded with a clue – the letters of a theme word will light up. Struggling with the clue? No problem! Find three more hint words to reveal the theme word’s letters in order.
- Search for the Spangram: One of the most exciting aspects of Strands is the “spangram,” a special theme word that stretches across the entire puzzle. It’s often the key to solving the entire board, summarizing the day’s theme.
- Complete the Puzzle: Once you’ve uncovered all the theme words and the spangram, you will have used every letter on the board. Unlike some other puzzles, Strands doesn’t allow for overlapping words—each word fits neatly into the puzzle’s grid.
Today’s NYT Strands Hints
The theme for today’s Strands puzzle is: Coming up for air.
If that doesn’t quite get you there, here’s a little nudge: Creatures of the deep.
The Strategy
Your task is to discover words that align with the theme. If you’re having trouble, focus on finding any words you can. Once you find three words with four or more letters, Strands will reveal a theme word. These are the words I used, but any four-letter or longer words will do:
MOLE, MAMMAL, MAMMALS, PEAL, PEALS, MELD, MELDS, HOLD, MEAN, HELD, READ, REAL, MEAL, PEAS.
Today’s Strands Puzzle Answers
These answers are connected to the theme. The goal is to find all the theme words, including the spangram, which stretches across the entire puzzle. Once you find all of them, every letter will be used. Today’s answers are:
ORCA, SEAL, WALRUS, DOLPHIN, MANATEE, NARWHAL
Today’s Strands Spangram
Today’s Strands spangram is MARINE MAMMALS. To locate it, begin with the M in the bottom-right corner and work your way up.
