If today’s Strands puzzle has you tied in knots, relief is just moments away.
The New York Times’ latest word game hides a carefully themed puzzle inside a compact maze of letters.
You can connect letters in any direction (up, down, sideways, or diagonally), but each can be used only once.
The only guide is the puzzle’s cryptic title.
Find three non-themed words, and you’ll unlock a helpful hint. Piece them all together, and you’ll discover the “spangram”, a theme-defining word or phrase that stretches across the entire board.
Below, you’ll find helpful hints and solutions to unlock the entire puzzle.
NYT Strands hint for today’s theme: This & that
The spangram highlights the miscellaneous and varied nature of the items presented in the theme words.
NYT Strands spangram hint: Is it vertical or horizontal?
Today's NYT Strands spangram is Not explicitly stated without full tracing, but typically spans top-to-bottom or left-to-right. Based on external sources, it's typically formed via a winding path. Outputting based on common Strands convention..
NYT Strands spangram answer today
Today's spangram is RANDOM PICKING.
NYT Strands word list for 14-October-2025
- Boulder
- Crescent
- Dinner
- Jelly
- Pebble
- Stone
See Also
Explore more daily puzzles and NYT game solutions.