What is Strands?
Strands is a word puzzle game by The New York Times, which blends many other famous word puzzle games like NYT Connections, Crossword, and even Spelling Bee.
In this game, you are given a word search grid within which you have to find words based on a given theme. The letters of the different Strands answers don't overlap with each other. The letters of each word need to be next to each other but the entire word is not limited in one direction.
Its beta release on March 4, 2024, was well received and it gained instant popularity. Since June 26, 2024, it was officially added to the NYT Games portfolio and is currently free to play.
The New York Times releases new Strands puzzles every day at midnight local time. It is Tracy Bennett, a puzzle editor, who edits Strands along with Wordle.
How to Play Strands?
Strands is a unique word puzzle that is a mix of other renowned word puzzles like Connections, Crosswords, and Spelling Bee.
You are given a 6*8 grid filled with letters at each spot, and a theme to help you find the Strands answers.
Below are the steps for playing Strands.
Search for the words related to the theme in the 6×8 grid.
- Drag or tap letters to create a word. If you choose to tap letters, double tap the last letter of the word to submit it.
When you find a word related to the theme, it will be marked blue, and will remain highlighted.
Eventually, you will find the Spangram, which will be marked yellow.
The game would also provide Strands hints after every three non-theme words you find in the grid.
- The game ends when you fill the board entirely with the Strands answers and none of the blue words and spangram overlap each other.
The Strands answers basically consists of all the theme words and the spangram.
What is the Spangram?
According to the New York Times, the Spangram describes the puzzle’s theme and touches two opposite sides of the board. Finding the spangram will allow you to understand what the other theme words could be and help you find the Strands answers.
As seen above, the spangram is easily distinguishable from the other words as its marked yellow. Unlike the theme words, the spangram can be two words.
In the above example, the spangram is CHEMISTRYLAB which is two words - CHEMISTRY and LAB. This spangram helps us understand that the remaining words could be items that you would find in a typical Chemistry laboratory. Finding this spangram has made it easier for us to understand what the other words could be.
The spangram itself is a Strands hint allowing you to understand the theme and finding the remaining words from the grid.
Where can I play Strands?
To play Strands, you need to simply visit The New York Times' games section. You don't need to create an account or take a subscription to play this game. Moreover, this game is playable on all devices with an active internet connection.
And if you're on this page, you already know the best place to find Strands hints and answers for today's game.
Using the Strands hints
Words that are not a part of the theme words will help you unlock some Strands hints for the game. Every three non-theme words unlocks one hint. These hints will help you find the Strands answer and finish the game.
When you use a hint, the grid shows you the letters for one of the theme words. It's up to you to decipher the order of the letters, and therefore, the word. If you're still unable to get it, you can use another Strands hint where a small animation will display the order of the letters for that word. To use 2 hints, you would need to find 6 non-theme words.
A popular strategy for finding the Strands answers is to find as many non-theme words as you can find. A word needs to have at least 4 letters to be considered valid. The grid is filled with multiple words helping you with a foundation in case you get stuck at a later part of the game.
Strands Hints that we provide
In case you are struggling with today's Strands answers, you can always use our Strands hints that you can find on this page. Here is how our Strands hints can help you:
Explanation of the Strands Theme
The given Strands theme is usually vague. It can have a lot of different interpretations pushing you towards the wrong path. Our first Strands hint describes the theme to you in detail so you can use this to understand what the Strands answers could be.
Starting Letters of each word
Seeing 48 letters and knowing that there are just 7-8 answers may make it very overwhelming about where to start. Our second Strands hint gives you the starting letter of each word. This will help you identify where you need to start on the grid instead of wasting your time trying to create a word from every letter. And as a bonus, we also share the number of letters of each word.
Location of each word
Most players start by looking for words at the edges of the grids. This is naturally one of the best places to start since it's less overwhelming to create words. But which edge do you start? Are there even words starting from these edges? We have already solved the puzzle so we can tell you exactly where each word on the grid begins from.
Can't I just use the Strands hints on the board? Why do I need to use your hints?
If you use one of the original Strands hints, everyone will know, and let's be honest, you don't want others to know that you used a hint, right? This is how your final results look like if you use a hint:
Those bulbs indicate that you have used a hint. Sharing this with everyone makes you look like you didn't understand the theme at all. Save yourself the embarrassment and use our hints to help you solve Strands easily. Share your Strands answers with your friends and family to show them who's the boss!
Found the Strands answer? Now what?
If you liked playing Strands, there are other word puzzle games that you would also enjoy. We have listed some of these Strands alternatives below:
- Wordle: It won't be wrong to say that Wordle is the original that led to all these other word puzzle games. It is a game where one must find a five-letter word within six guesses.
- Connections: It is another NYT word puzzle, where the players would have to make four groups of four words from a grid of sixteen words. Upon finding a group of four words, the game would reveal the category that the group belongs to.
- Spelling Bee: It is one of the most renowned word games, where the player must spell a word correctly. The level of difficulty increases as a player progresses in a game. However, they are sometimes provided with the word's definition.
- Sudoku: If you have enough word puzzles, then Sudoku can be quite a fresh breath of air. This is one of the classic number puzzles, where the player must fill the 9×9 grid with numbers between 1 to 9.
Other Word Games Answers, Hints, and Solvers
Do you also play Wordle? We've got today's Wordle answer along with hints to help you out. In fact, we have got answers for other NYT games as well. Check out:
