Strands

What is Strands?

Strands is the NYT word-search with a twist: every letter belongs to exactly one themed word, and one golden 'spangram' stretches across the whole board.

How to play Strands

Read the day's theme, then drag across letters to trace themed words. Every letter is used exactly once, so leftover letters tell you what's still hidden. Find the spangram — the long answer touching two sides of the grid — to anchor the rest.

Tips & strategy

• Hunt the spangram first; it usually reveals the theme's exact angle.
• Stuck words become hints after a few non-theme finds, so guessing real words is never wasted.
• Letters can bend in any direction including diagonals, so re-trace tricky corners.

Where to play

Play Strandsnytimes.com · free, new puzzle daily

Play here