Looking for help with today’s New York Times Strands puzzle? You’ve come to the right place. Whether you’re stuck on a tricky clue, trying to spot the spangram, or just need a little nudge to get going, this daily guide offers hints, clues, and full answers to keep your streak alive. We’ll walk you through the puzzle step by step without spoiling everything upfront—so you can solve at your own pace.
Looking for Tuesday’s Strands hints, spangram and answers? You can find them here:
NYT Strands Tuesday, July 22nd Guide
Odin’s Day marks the very middle of the work week, so we’re halfway there, folks! Halfway to the last weekend of July. Julius Caesar’s month has about a week left, then Augustus Caesar takes center stage. But there’s still plenty of summer left, and plenty of Strands puzzles to solve. Let’s uncover some words!
How To Play Strands
Strands is a daily word puzzle from The New York Times that challenges your vocabulary and pattern-recognition skills. Here’s how it works:
The Goal
Find all the hidden theme words in the grid. Every puzzle has a theme, and the words you need to find will relate to it. Some themes are incredibly obvious, while others require more creative thinking. Generally you’ll need to find between 5 to 9 words in total.
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The Spangram
One special word—called the spangram—will stretch across two or more sides of the grid and tie directly into the theme. It’s key to unlocking the puzzle, tying together all the other words and reinforcing the daily theme.
Finding Words
- Words must be at least four letters long.
- Words can be formed by dragging through adjacent letters (horizontally, vertically, or diagonally).
- You can change direction as you trace a word, but you can’t reuse the same letter tile in a single word.
Here’s what a completed Strands puzzle looks like. The spangram is in yellow:
Helpful Hints
- Each time you find three non-theme words, you’ll earn a hint that highlights a theme word’s first letter.
- Use hints wisely to uncover trickier theme words.
Finishing the Puzzle
Once you find all theme words—including the spangram—you win the game! Play today’s puzzle right here.
Spoilers ahead.
Today’s Strands Hints
Read on for today’s theme and some hints to help you uncover today’s words. Before I reveal the answers, I’ll give you the first two letters of each word to help you get started.
Today’s Theme: Chips in
Hint: Once again, this does not have to do with poker.
Clue: Think in terms of snacks. What might you put a chip (or crisp) in before taking a bite?
Here are the first two letters of each word:
Remember, spoilers ahead!
What Are Today’s Strands Answers?
Today’s spangram is: PARTYDIPS
Here’s the full list of words:
- SALSA
- QUESO
- GUACAMOLE
- TZATZIKI
- HUMMUS
- FONDUE
Here’s the completed Strands grid:
Today’s Strands Breakdown
I think the “theme” today was slightly misleading. While I absolutely dip chips in SALSA, QUESO and GUACAMOLE, the other three words rarely go hand-in-hand with chips (or crisps for you UK readers). I might dip a bit of flatbread like a pita or naan into TZATZIKI or HUMMUS, and I imagine little cubes of bread when I think of FONDUE. But not chips. Oh well.
How did you do on your Strands today? Let me know on Twitter and Facebook.
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