Strands is the latest NYT word game after Wordle, Spelling Bee, and Connections, and it’s a lot of fun. It can be difficult, though, so read on for my Strands suggestions.
Want more word-based fun? Then check out my NYT Connections Today and Quordle Today pages for tips and answers for those games, and Marc’s Wordle Today page for the original viral word game.
SPOILER WARNING: Today’s NYT Strands info is below, so don’t read on if you don’t want to know the answers.
NYT Strands today (game #315) – track #1 – today’s topic
What’s the topic of today’s NYT Strands?
• Today’s NYT Strands topic is… Wait what?
NYT Strands Today (Game #315) – Clue #2 – Keywords
Play any of these words to unlock the game’s hint system.
- BULLET
- LANE
- SOLID
- BOOM
- BALLS
- BEAR
NYT Strands today (game #315) – clue #3 – spangram
What’s a clue for today’s spangram?
• Embarrassed
NYT Strands today (game #315) – clue #4 – spangram position
What are the two sides of the board that today’s spangram touches?
First side: top, fourth column
Last side: bottom, third column
Well, the answers are below, so DON’T SCROLL FURTHER IF YOU DON’T WANT TO SEE THEM.
NYT Strands Today (Game #315): The Answers
The answers to today’s Strands game #315 are…
- STUN
- AMAZE
- GOBSMACK
- SURPRISE
- AMAZE
- SPANGRAM: Amazing
- My rating: Easy
- My score: Perfect
There are a couple of brilliant words in today’s Strands that seem to belong in children’s comics from the 1950s and haven’t been heard much since: GOBSMACK and FLABBERGAST.
I was pleased, though not particularly stunned, to learn that Flabbergast originated in Sussex, which is the English county where I was born, although it is unclear why that particular area popularized a word that originally meant “shocked chubby person.”
Gobsmack is also interesting and again began as a portmanteau of two slang words: Gob (for mouth, coined in Ireland in the 16th century) and Smack, which describes the sound of a flat hand hitting something, thus hitting the mouth in a state of shock. Something I instantly imagine Stan Laurel doing.
Meanwhile, the big SURPRISE today was that I completed Strands again without any clues.
How was today? Send me an email and let me know.
Answers from yesterday’s NYT Strands (Saturday, January 11, game #314)
- SUNRISE
- DARKNESS
- NOON
- EVENING
- TOMORROW
- DAYBREAK
- TWILIGHT
- SPANGRAM: TIME
What is NYT Strands?
Strands is the NYT’s new word game, after Wordle and Connections. It’s now out of beta, making it a full member of the NYT Games group and can be played on the NYT Games site on desktop or mobile.
I have a complete guide on how to play NYT Strands, complete with tips for solving it, so check it out if you’re struggling to beat it every day.
