Yesterday’s answers
Strands #940 (September 29, 2026)ShowHide
Theme “Have a heart”. Spangram: CARDIOVASCULAR. Theme words: ARTERY, ATRIUM, BLOOD, PRESSURE, PULSE, VEIN.
How Strands works
Strands is a word search with a theme. The board has 48 letters, and every letter belongs to exactly one answer. You connect letters in any direction, including diagonally, to find the theme words. One special answer, the spangram, describes the theme and stretches from one side of the board to the other. Finding non-theme words of four or more letters earns hints in the game.
What today’s words mean
Once you’ve found them, see how each theme word fits “An instrumental destination”, with meanings from our dictionary. The first word is the spangram.
Show today’s theme words and their meaningsShowHide
MUSICSTORE
Not in our dictionary (it may be a name, phrase or newer word).
AMPLIFIER · noun
electronic equipment that increases strength of signals passing through it
CAPO · noun
the head of a branch of an organized crime syndicate
DRUMS · noun
a musical percussion instrument; usually consists of a hollow cylinder with a membrane stretched across each end
Similar: membranophone, tympan
GUITAR · noun
a stringed instrument usually having six strings; played by strumming or plucking
PIANO · noun
a keyboard instrument that is played by depressing keys that cause hammers to strike tuned strings and produce sounds
Similar: pianoforte
PICK · verb
select carefully from a group
“She finally picked her successor”
SYNTH
Not in our dictionary (it may be a name, phrase or newer word).
How to use these hints
- Spotted a possible word? Type it into the word checker: it tells you if it’s a theme word or the spangram.
- Read the theme clue and think about what it could mean: it’s often a pun.
- Use the spangram hints: its length, direction and first letter show where to look on the board.
- Reveal theme words one at a time. Each shows its length and first letter before the full word.
Strands strategy
- Start at the edges and corners. Letters there have fewer neighbours, so there are fewer words they can be part of.
- Find the spangram early. It crosses the whole board, which splits the remaining letters into smaller areas.
- Use every letter. Since each letter is used once, leftover letters must form the last words.
- Build words with the tools. The word unscrambler lists words from a set of letters, handy for an area of the board you can’t crack.
Hints for today’s other puzzles
Source and disclaimer: Strands is a puzzle game by The New York Times, and Strands is its trademark. This site is independent and not affiliated with or endorsed by The New York Times. Please play the puzzle on the NYT Games site or app.
The hints, explanations, statistics and word meanings on this page are our own. We show the day’s answers (facts), hidden until you reveal them, but not the puzzle itself: no boards, grids or clue wording.
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Frequently asked questions
What is a spangram?
The spangram is the answer that names the theme. It touches two opposite sides of the board, top to bottom or left to right.
When does the new Strands come out?
Every day at midnight in your local time zone. This page updates daily and shows the puzzle for your date.
Do you have hints for other puzzles?
Yes: Wordle hints and Connections hints, updated every day.