While Strands is not quite as popular as other New York Times puzzle games, such as Wordle, it is just as complex and can be a great way to exercise your brain if you can solve it. While it has the foundational appearance of a simple 6x8 word search game, Strands goes one step further, allowing even more creative ways to combine letters.

With a new puzzle to solve every 24 hours, Strands pushes players to test their skills in a concise window. There are eight words to find in each daily puzzle, and while you are given some initial guidance in the form of a theme, it is usually vague and can often make the puzzle even harder to solve without a proper strategy.

10 Use The Theme As A Starting Point

Take The Theme Into

Rather than leaving you with nowhere to begin, Strands will provide one hint to kick things off, which is the daily theme. Though intended to be helpful, it typically has the opposite effect since it is often a broad term.

While it is an excellent place to start, it can also create tunnel vision and cause players to overthink the words they're looking for. The best way to approach a theme is to consider what it could mean and quickly scan the puzzle. If nothing immediately jumps out at you, don't dwell on it; move on.

9 Find Any Word You Can

Mark Any Word You Can Find

While only eight words can officially complete the puzzle, there are plenty more to be found. Since you can't be sure which words are one of the eight final ones anyway, it's always best to try to find anything you can. Not only does it increase the odds of solving the puzzle, but luckily, Strands rewards players for finding any word that is four letters or more. After three non-puzzle words have been found, you will receive a hint.

Don't forget that you can also find extra words from letters already part of a solved word. So, if you desperately need a hint, search the entire puzzle for words, regardless of what has been solved already.

8 Utilize The Hints Feature

Hints Are Available For A Reason

As stated, players will receive hints after finding three non-puzzle words that will reveal all letters that makeup one of the eight-word solutions. Unfortunately, it will not tell you how to connect them; they are all part of the word, so it will still be up to you to figure out what the word is. While some people may hesitate to use hints or see it as a form of cheating in NYT puzzles, it is something the game offers and can make it easier to find the rest of the words without more help.

The hint bar does not automatically trigger when filled; it must be intentionally used. Therefore, those who would rather use it as a last resort can save it until they are stuck or opt not to use it at all.

7 Don't Forget The Rules

Strands Do Not Follow Normal Word Search Rules

In a typical word search, the rule is that words must be found in a straight-line pattern. Strands do not follow this rule, as shown by Every Day Doug on YouTube. It is unlikely that you will find any word that only goes in a straight line. Instead, Strands requires you to combine letters in more of a zig-zag style pattern. The only rule that needs to be followed when searching for words is that the letters must be adjacent. So, use a different word search method for scanning lines because it will likely only cause more frustration.

6 Pick A Corner And Go From There

Strands Should Be Solved Letter By Letter

With Strands's operation, solving these puzzles letter by letter is better. Rather than looking for words as a whole, you should pick one corner and scan the surrounding letters. If any could lead to a possible word, move on to that letter and repeat the same process to see if it goes anywhere.

If it does, mark the word, and it will either be used as a hint or credited as one of the eight puzzle words. Look out for common prefixes and the normal pattern of consonants followed by vowels.

5 Double-Check Previously Found Words

Words May Be Longer Than You Suspect

When searching for different words, it can be easy to find shorter words, and when marked, they may appear to be non-puzzle words when they are, in reality, just portions of a puzzle word. Therefore, it can be beneficial to ensure that nothing at the beginning or end of the word could turn it into something longer.

An example would be "Lunch" actually being "Lunch Money" and "Store" actually being "Grocery Store". It is worth checking if the smaller word should apply to the day's theme but isn't ing.

One of the most common occurrences of this problem that frustrates players is the pluralization of words. If you've found a word that is part of the theme, but Strands is not ing it as one, there is a high likelihood that it may need something as simple as adding an S at the end of it, such as the word "Magazine" actually being "Magazines."

4 Widen Your Vocabulary

Expand Your Guesses

As with every word puzzle game like Wordle, studying vocabulary is one of the simplest ways to make things easier for yourself. Even doing something as simple as looking at a word of the day can slowly increase your vocabulary, making it easier to find words you may otherwise not have known.

The New York Times has a word of the day themselves, but so do Merriam-Webster and other websites that could be utilized for this purpose. While it may not seem important, you can't guess words you don't know are words in the first place.

Another good idea is to look up the theme's definition if you are unfamiliar with it. This can often help you better understand what words you should be looking for, making the overall puzzle easier to solve.

3 Take Your Time

There's No Time Limit

Unlike NYT games like Wordle, which require players to solve the puzzle in a limited number of tries, you have unlimited tries and time in Strands to solve the puzzle. Therefore, if you attempt to rush, you'll only be stressing out and making it harder to think.

All the NYT puzzle games are meant to encourage brain exercise and critical thinking, which can be hard to do if you're worried about finishing things quickly. The best way to approach Strands is to take your time and think about what you're doing.

2 Look For The Spanagram First

The Biggest Clue Is The Spanagram

As stated, the Spanagram is the longest word in the puzzle. It will always connect one side of the puzzle to the opposite side. This means that the first and last letters will be on opposing sides, but the rest of the word could fall anywhere in between.

While the theme can be helpful, the Spanagram is often a much bigger clue for what words you should look for. You will know when you've found this word as it will highlight yellow instead of blue, and there will be a little alert.

1 Consistency Is Key

Practice Makes Perfect

The best thing players can do to solve Strands more efficiently is to play every day. Strands is a daily game that resets at midnight EST with a brand-new puzzle. To train the habits that will help you scan and solve these puzzles, you should aim to complete the daily puzzle as often as possible.

This is true for Strands and all the NYT puzzle games like the mini-crossword, Wordle, and Tiles. This will also help you develop your habits to find what works best for you to begin solving Strands without needing any hints.

Source: Every Day Doug/YouTube