Hints and Solutions for Strands: April 27, 2025
Explore insights and guidance for today’s Strands, themed “Sleep tight.” Uncover helpful clues, tips, and ultimately, the answers!
For quick access to our daily hints, consider bookmarking this page. Previous hints are also available in case you’re curious about past puzzles.
Below are some indirect hints regarding today’s Strands solutions. Continue scrolling cautiously to extract only the clues you need!
Clue for today’s Spangram
This evening deadline is often dreaded by children as it signals the day’s end.
Clue for the Theme Words
If restless at night, consider these items and practices that may assist.
Warning: Spoilers Ahead!
Revealing answers to today’s Strands puzzle.
What is the Spangram?
The spangram for today is BEDTIME.
What are the Theme Words?
The theme words include: MOUTHGUARD, MEDITATION, MELATONIN, MASK, EARPLUGS.
Take a look at the completed puzzle board:
Guide to Solving Today’s Strands
The process begins with scouting for sleep-related words, such as SLEEPY, TIRED, or CUDDLE.
The spangram has been identified: BEDTIME. 
MELATONIN can be found in the bottom left. 
Look for EARPLUGS, located at the bottom right.
MASK completes the lower section.
MEDITATION appears near the upper right.
Lastly, MOUTHGUARD is in the final spot.
Strands #420 “Sleep tight”
How to Engage with Strands
The Strands game can be located on the New York Times website and the NYT Games app.
Once you begin, a grid of letters will appear, accompanied by a hint indicating the puzzle’s theme—a phrase like “Better with age.” Your objective is to discover words hidden within the letter arrangement that align with this theme.
A Blend of Crossword and Word Search
Among the key words is the “spangram,” which clearly expresses the puzzle’s theme. For example, for the theme “Better with age,” the spangram is FERMENTED, reflecting items that improve over time. This word will stretch across the board horizontally or vertically, and recognizing it simplifies the rest of the puzzle.
In Strands, words can be formed in any direction (up, down, diagonal, left, or right), using each letter only once. There is a single correct solution for the puzzle. When a word is identified correctly (for instance, KOMBUCHA, MISO, or KIMCHI), it will be highlighted in blue.
If facing challenges, users can submit any non-theme words four letters or longer for a hint. After submitting three such words, the “Hint” button activates, allowing users to highlight one of the theme words with letters visible. However, the letters still need to be arranged correctly to form the intended word. If additional hints are requested for a word with a hint already available, the correct letter order will be disclosed.
Winning Strands
Strands allows continual attempts; there’s no mechanism for failure. When guesses are submitted, the outcome could either confirm a correct guess, provide credit towards a hint, or indicate an invalid word. There isn’t a limit to guesses or a ticking clock.
A victory is declared when all letters on the board are utilized, which includes identifying both the spangram and all theme words. As with other NYT games, upon completion, a shareable card will display your performance via blue dots for theme words found, a yellow dot for locating the spangram, and a lightbulb 
for words revealed through hints.
