Looking for a different day?
A new NYT Strands puzzle appears at midnight each day for your time zone – which means that some people are always playing ‘today’s game’ while others are playing ‘yesterday’s’. If you’re looking for Wednesday’s puzzle instead then click here: NYT Strands hints and answers for Wednesday, July 8 (game #857).
Strands is the NYT’s latest word game after the likes of Wordle, Spelling Bee and Connections – and it’s great fun. It can be difficult, though, so read on for my Strands hints.
Want more word-based fun? Then check out my NYT Connections today and Quordle today pages for hints and answers for those games, and Marc’s Wordle today page for the original viral word game.
SPOILER WARNING: Information about NYT Strands today is below, so don’t read on if you don’t want to know the answers.
NYT Strands today (game #858) – hint #1 – today’s theme
What is the theme of today’s NYT Strands?
• Today’s NYT Strands theme is… On the lips
NYT Strands today (game #858) – hint #2 – clue words
Play any of these words to unlock the in-game hints system.
- ALONG
- TIERS
- LUMP
- MUSE
- BLISS
- PLUME
- MAKER
NYT Strands today (game #858) – hint #3 – spangram letters
How many letters are in today’s spangram?
• Spangram has 13 letters
NYT Strands today (game #858) – hint #4 – spangram position
What are two sides of the board that today’s spangram touches?
• First side: left, 5th row
• Last side: right, 5th row
Right, the answers are below, so DO NOT SCROLL ANY FURTHER IF YOU DON’T WANT TO SEE THEM.
NYT Strands today (game #858) – the answers
The answers to today’s Strands, game #858, are…
- STICK
- GLOSS
- STAIN
- LINER
- TINT
- BALM
- PLUM
- SPANGRAM: KISSANDMAKEUP
- My rating: Easy
- My score: Perfect
The first sight of this theme made me think of the old weight-loss mantra “a moment on the lip, a lifetime on the hips” intended to warn dieters off the brief pleasure of a potato chip, as opposed to the lifelong delight of a slender physique.
I digress, as we weren’t looking for dieting advice but instead things that could be applied to lips — of which there are many possibilities.
Fortunately, despite the high number of words in the search they were all short and easy to spot, with the biggest challenge provided by the 13-letter-long spangram.
Yesterday’s NYT Strands answers (Wednesday, July 8, game #857)
- SCAMP
- HELLION
- RAPSCALLION
- WHIPPERSNAPPER
- SPANGRAM: LITTLEDEVIL
What is NYT Strands?
Strands is the NYT’s not-so-new-any-more word game, following Wordle and Connections. It’s now a fully fledged member of the NYT’s games stable that has been running for a year and which can be played on the NYT Games site on desktop or mobile.
I’ve got a full guide to how to play NYT Strands, complete with tips for solving it, so check that out if you’re struggling to beat it each day.
