Squaredle
A daily word search on a small letter grid: swipe through touching letters to find every hidden word, including a bonus word.
WordsArchive
Word games
StrandsDaily Themed Word Search Where the Words Fill the Board
Strands gives you a six-by-eight grid of letters and a cryptic theme clue, and every letter on the board belongs to exactly one answer. You drag through adjacent letters to spell themed words, and one special answer, the spangram, names the theme and stretches from one side of the grid to the other. It's free to play in your browser, with one puzzle a day and no account needed. There is no unlimited mode: once today's puzzle is done, the next one comes tomorrow.
Play Strands →Opens the official site, nytimes.com
How to play Strands
- Read the theme clue at the top, then drag through touching letters (in any direction) to spell a word.
- Themed answers stay highlighted in blue; the spangram is highlighted in yellow and touches two opposite edges.
- Every three non-theme words of four letters or more earn a hint that outlines one theme word.
- The puzzle is solved when every letter on the board is used.
Tips
- Find the spangram early: it reveals the theme and splits the board into smaller areas.
- Letters in corners and along edges have fewer neighbors, so start there to narrow down which words fit.
- Spelling ordinary words to earn hints is worth it when the clue is a pun you can not crack.
We never post the answer to today's puzzle.
Watch out for copies
Several other sites use the Strands name. The original is at nytimes.com, by Tracy Bennett; that's the only one we link to.
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Strands FAQ
What is Strands?
Strands gives you a six-by-eight grid of letters and a cryptic theme clue, and every letter on the board belongs to exactly one answer. You drag through adjacent letters to spell themed words, and one special answer, the spangram, names the theme and stretches from one side of the grid to the other. It's free to play in your browser, with one puzzle a day and no account needed.
Is Strands free?
Yes. It's free to play in your browser, with one puzzle a day and no account needed.
Does Strands have an unlimited mode?
There is no unlimited mode: once today's puzzle is done, the next one comes tomorrow.
Can you play Strands on a phone?
Yes, in the phone browser.
Where is the official Strands site?
Strands is played at nytimes.com, made by Tracy Bennett and published by The New York Times. Other sites use the same name; they are not the original.
All the Dles is an unofficial directory. Strands belongs to Tracy Bennett / The New York Times; we only link to it. Added Oct 23, 2026. Something wrong? Tell us.