Strands
Find the theme words hidden in a letter grid, then the spanning word that ties them together.
DleBox's guide
Strands is a New York Times word search with a second question sitting underneath. A theme is announced, and the grid holds words that fit it. You drag through adjacent letters to claim a word. When the theme words are found, one more word remains: the span, which uses every letter that was not part of the theme words and runs from one side of the grid to the other in the sense the puzzle means.
A hint, if you spend it, shows where a theme word starts. Hints are limited, and using them is a choice rather than a failure of the puzzle. The span is the part people miss when they treat Strands as an ordinary word search. Finding the theme words is not the end of the day.
This directory does not host the grid and does not publish the theme words or the span. The button opens the Times. We also do not keep a hint schedule. If you want a game where the letters are already arranged into a crossword, the Mini is the short one on this list. If you want groups of words with no grid, that is Connections.
Rules
- Theme words are traced through adjacent letters.
- The span is a separate word built from what remains.
- Hints show a starting letter and are limited.
- One puzzle is shared for the day.
- DleBox does not reveal the span.
Why we like it
- ✓ The theme gives you a direction before you start tracing.
- ✓ The span makes the leftover letters matter.
- ✓ A finished board is visible proof, not a color code.
Strands belongs with people who like a theme more than a hidden five-letter answer. The drag path has to be a real word, and the span has to account for what is left. That leftover is the reason it is listed separately from a plain word search.
Dragging through a letter that almost spells a theme word is the ordinary way to waste a minute. The span still has to be built from what you did not use. DleBox does not offer a blank grid or a place to practice that drag. The Times page is the whole toy. This entry only tells you there are two words to find, the theme set and the span, before you spend the hint.
About the game
Strands is published by The New York Times. DleBox did not make that game. This page names the maker and links over. It does not speak for them.
- Category:
- Words. Open the Words category.
- Updates:
- Once a day on the original site.
- Reset:
- This page does not state their timezone. The original game shows the day's puzzle.