For easy access to daily hints for Strands, consider bookmarking this resource. This page also archives previous hints, allowing you to catch up on any puzzles you may have missed.

This post features subtle clues for today’s Strands challenges. Continue scrolling to uncover the spangram and the complete answers. Take your time and extract only the hints you find valuable!

Spangram Hint for Today’s Strands Challenge

This term encompasses various non-meat edible items derived from cows, ranging from everyday essentials to gourmet treats.

Hints for Today’s Theme Words

These are some examples of products containing lactose.

Caution: Spoilers Ahead!

Answers for today’s Strands puzzle will be revealed shortly.

What is the Spangram for Today?

The spangram for today is DAIRYPRODUCTS.

Which Theme Words Appear in Today’s Strands?

The words that fit the theme are: GELATO, YOGURT, CUSTARD, MILK, CHEESE, and BUTTER.

Below is what the completed puzzle looks like:

Credit: Strands/NYT

Steps to Solve Today’s Strands

The challenge revolves around identifying dairy-related words such as “cheese” and “milk,” alongside other delectable products derived from cows.

The term CHEESE is located on the right edge. 🔵

MILK occupies the top right corner. 🔵

BUTTER stretches down towards the right corner. 🔵

Following these, I spot the spangram DAIRYPRODUCTS, which intersects the previously identified words. 🟡

In the bottom left corner lies CUSTARD. 🔵

Above CUSTARD is YOGURT. 🔵

Finally, GELATO completes the list. 🔵

Strands #326
“Udderly delicious”
🔵🔵🔵🟡
🔵🔵🔵

Playing Strands: A Quick Guide

The Strands game is available on the New York Times website and the NYT Games app. When starting the game, the player is presented with a board of letters and a clue suggesting the puzzle’s theme—usually presented as a phrase, like “Better with age.” The goal is to discover the hidden words within the board that correspond to the theme.

Where Crossword Meets Word Search

The primary word to seek is the “spangram,” which directly signifies the puzzle’s theme. For example, in a puzzle themed “Better with age,” the spangram is FERMENTED, referring to items that improve over time. The spangram spans the complete board either horizontally or vertically. When identified, it will be highlighted in yellow, simplifying the remainder of the puzzle.

In Strands, words can be arranged in any direction (upwards, downwards, horizontally, or diagonally), with each letter used once only. The solution is unique. Upon identifying a word (like KOMBUCHA, MISO, or KIMCHI), it will be marked in blue.

If you’re having difficulties with the puzzle, you may submit up to three non-theme words (minimum of four letters) to receive a hint. Once three have been submitted, the “Hint” button will activate; pressing it will highlight all letters of one theme word. You still must arrange the highlighted letters to form the correct word. Using another hint before solving an already hinted word will reveal its letter order.

Winning in Strands

Unlike other games such as Connections or Wordle, Strands does not allow for failure. When submitting guesses, players will either find a valid answer, receive hint credits, or observe the word shaking as an indicator of invalid submission (either too short or incorrect). There’s no limit on guesses, nor is there a time constraint.

Victory is achieved when all letters on the board have been correctly employed, encompassing both the spangram and all theme words. Like other NYT games, once you solve the puzzle, a shareable card displaying your performance will appear: blue dots 🔵 mark theme words found, a yellow dot 🟡 shows the discovery of the spangram, and a lightbulb 💡 indicates words for which hints were received.