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 #320) - hint #1 - today's theme
What is the theme of today's NYT Strands?
• Today's NYT Strands theme is… The time of our lives
NYT Strands today (game #320) - hint #2 - clue words
Play any of these words to unlock the in-game hints system.
GREEN
MORE
BOOT
TREAT
MOOT
NINE
NYT Strands today (game #320) - hint #3 - spangram
What is a hint for today's spangram?
• People of different ages
NYT Strands today (game #320) - hint #4 - spangram position
What are two sides of the board that today's spangram touches?
First side: top, 1st column
Last side: bottom, 3rd column
Right, the answers are below, so DO NOT SCROLL ANY FURTHER IF YOU DON'T WANT TO SEE THEM.
NYT Strands today (game #320) - the answers
(Image credit: New York Times)
The answers to today's Strands, game #320, are…
MILLENNIAL
ALPHA
BOOMER
ZOOMER
GREATEST
SPANGRAM: GENERATION GAP
My rating: Easy
My score: 1 hint
MILLENNIAL is one of those words that I really struggle to spell, so it was nice to spot it immediately and be guided to the double N that I always miss.
There’s a sweet spot in life when you think the GENERATION GAP is a myth – you’re in touch with your youngers, kidding yourself that you're still cool, and you’re in touch with your elders, having accumulated some life skills. Then that gap begins to grow and before you know it there’s not so much a gap between you and society’s trend setters but a Grand Canyon.
The best thing to do is to accept it and not give a damn about how long you wear your socks or what people think of your Lady Di hair and collection of cravats.
Yesterday's NYT Strands answers (Thursday, 16 January, game #319)
ZOMBIE
SIDECAR
MARTINI
STINGER
COSMOPOLITAN
SPANGRAM: COCKTAILS
What is NYT Strands?
Strands is the NYT's new word game, following Wordle and Connections. It's now out of beta so is a fully fledged member of the NYT's games stable and 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.
The end is nigh for TikTok...or is it? The ultra-popular social media platform stands on the precipice of a US ban that would wipe it from app stores and quickly make it inoperable on iPhones and Androids. 150 million users could lose access to audiences around the world and five million TikTok businesses could vaporize in an instant.
But it's not that cut and dried. Last-minute saviors could arise, even in the form of those who first sought to banish the Chinese-owned app.
A little background here before we dive into the minute-by-minute machinations that hold TikTok's future in the balance.
TikTok is a nearly decade-old social media platform that, in the US, started its life as Music.ly and was primarily a lip-syncing app (people made videos dancing and lip-syncing to their favorite pop songs). The app was bought by ByteDance, a Chinese software company, which quickly combined it with its own social media app and renamed it TikTok (in China, the app is called Douyin).
Not many people initially knew or cared about TikTok besides the teens who had previously used Music.ly. The Pandemic changed all that, though, as families were forced indoors and, with little else to do, turned to TikTok as both a creative outlet and digital community builder. The app's popularity exploded, and it became a cultural phenomenon.
It was also around this time that US relations with China soured, and concerns about cyber espionage grew. A Chinese-owned app in the hands of virtually every American suddenly seemed like a very bad idea. At issue was the Chinese government's open access to all technology and data of any company operating within its borders.
Then President Donald Trump signed an executive order in 2020 to ban TikTok in the US. The company responded by moving all data and operations related to the US version of the app inside the US. Oracle would host the data, and US-based employees would manage virtually everything else.
That was not enough, though, and eventually, President Joe Biden signed a law setting a timeline to force TikTok to sell by January 19, 2025, or be banned in the US.
Now, the final hours are winding down, but here's where things get interesting. We're about to give you the latest on TikTok's fate in the US. Stick with this live blog for all the breaking developments.
Biden as rescuer?
(Image credit: Getty Images)
Because TikTok's ban is set to take effect on January 19th, the final day of President Joe Biden's term and a day before President Trump takes office, there's been some confusion (and maybe concern) about which US leader would have the final say.
Trump has recently signaled he might be in favor of keeping TikTok alive in the US. Biden hasn't said much recently about the issue, but now his administration is signaling, if not a change of heart, an interest in a slightly different ban scenario.
According to a report on NBC News, Biden's office might no longer want TikTok to go dark on the 19th. There may be an interest in deferring the final decision to Trump when he takes office.
The report, however, then all but scuttles that hope, quoting one official who told them, "We are not considering deferring enforcement...Statutorily, we don’t believe we have the authority to do that."
In other words, no one knows what's going to happen on Sunday.
#TikTokRefugees
(Image credit: Future)
TikTok refugees are already planting flags on what they think are safer shores. Many have joined RedNote, another Chinese app that shares many of TikTok's features, but adds in Chinese language controls and content for good measure.
I wrote about the phenomenon here and have since counseled many that, while this app looks like fun, it has even less chance of surviving than TikTok. As a true Chinese app, it has none of TikTok's US data protections. The same goes for Lemon8, which is also owned by TikTok but does not necessarily run in the US.
For the moment, TikTokers seems reluctant to move over to US-based options like Instagram Reels or YouTube Shorts. They may soon have no choice, though.
Things we can't control
I've spent the past few weeks trying to get someone at TikTok to go on the record about what's about to happen and how the US-based team is preparing. No one is ready to talk.
I did, however, attend a TikTok cocktail party after a TikTok 5th annual What's Next Trend Report session at CES 2025. As I hobnobbed with various TikTok execs, they all expressed the same mood: this is beyond our control. They were cheerful, weirdly positive, and focused on the future, as uncertain as it is.
Most like to focus on the current and continuing positive impact Tiktok has had on countless businesses, from startups to long-established ones. They have plans for them and are still building tools to support them.
As Sofia Hernandez, Global Head of Business Marketing for TikTok said in a release, "In 2024, we saw brands push creative limits, lean into trends, and connect with their communities in powerful ways, but 2025 is set to take it even further.”
I wonder if any are sending frantic notes to ByteDance headquarters begging them to sell the company (ByteDance has always said it has no interest in a sale) but none of that anxiety was in evidence that evening. They're just doing what they can now and will react to the changes if and when they come.
Kind of like the 150 million US-based TikTok users
A Beast enters the arena
(Image credit: Future)
YouTube showman and over-caffeinated philanthropist Mr. Beast (real name James Stephen Donaldson) has produced several TikToks this week saying that he is buying TikTok. The YouTuber is well known for stunts and this may simply be another one.
As I noted earlier ByteDance has never put the platform up for sale but Donaldson appears undaunted.
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 #319) - hint #1 - today's theme
What is the theme of today's NYT Strands?
• Today's NYT Strands theme is… Bar association
NYT Strands today (game #319) - hint #2 - clue words
Play any of these words to unlock the in-game hints system.
RICE
TRACK
CORE
MILK
TASTE
CART
NYT Strands today (game #319) - hint #3 - spangram
What is a hint for today's spangram?
• Mixed beverages
NYT Strands today (game #319) - hint #4 - spangram position
What are two sides of the board that today's spangram touches?
First side: top, 4th column
Last side: bottom, 1st column
Right, the answers are below, so DO NOT SCROLL ANY FURTHER IF YOU DON'T WANT TO SEE THEM.
NYT Strands today (game #319) - the answers
(Image credit: New York Times)
The answers to today's Strands, game #319, are…
ZOMBIE
SIDECAR
MARTINI
STINGER
COSMOPOLITAN
SPANGRAM: COCKTAILS
My rating: Easy
My score: 1 hint
When I saw today’s theme I initially feared that it was going to be about boring legal words (and who’d want that), but my concerns were soon eased when the first Hint gave me ZOMBIE – which is both a slow-moving human whose brain has been eaten by an inexplicable virus OR a delicious beverage made from rum, lime and grapefruit juice.
Why it’s called a Zombie is uncertain although I suspect you’d find navigating stairs tricky if you had more than a couple.
Strands also included the classic cocktail COSMOPOLITAN – not a word that I use very often, but one that was strangely satisfying to connect letter by letter.
Yesterday's NYT Strands answers (Wednesday, 15 January, game #318)
BLUE
RIGHT
GRAY
ORCA
BALEEN
HUMPBACK
SPANGRAM: WHALES
What is NYT Strands?
Strands is the NYT's new word game, following Wordle and Connections. It's now out of beta so is a fully fledged member of the NYT's games stable and 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.
Quordle was one of the original Wordle alternatives and is still going strong now more than 1,000 games later. It offers a genuine challenge, though, so read on if you need some Quordle hints today – or scroll down further for the answers.
Enjoy playing word games? You can also check out my NYT Connections today and NYT Strands today pages for hints and answers for those puzzles, while Marc's Wordle today column covers the original viral word game.
SPOILER WARNING: Information about Quordle today is below, so don't read on if you don't want to know the answers.
Quordle today (game #1088) - hint #1 - Vowels
How many different vowels are in Quordle today?
• The number of different vowels in Quordle today is 3*.
* Note that by vowel we mean the five standard vowels (A, E, I, O, U), not Y (which is sometimes counted as a vowel too).
Quordle today (game #1088) - hint #2 - repeated letters
Do any of today's Quordle answers contain repeated letters?
• The number of Quordle answers containing a repeated letter today is 1.
Quordle today (game #1088) - hint #3 - uncommon letters
Do the letters Q, Z, X or J appear in Quordle today?
• No. None of Q, Z, X or J appear among today's Quordle answers.
What letters do today's Quordle answers start with?
• P
• B
• T
• P
Right, the answers are below, so DO NOT SCROLL ANY FURTHER IF YOU DON'T WANT TO SEE THEM.
Quordle today (game #1088) - the answers
(Image credit: Merriam-Webster)
The answers to today's Quordle, game #1088, are…
PARTY
BLUNT
TWEED
PLANT
Boom!
I employed a different technique today and achieved easily my best ever Quordle score, getting all four words after six guesses.
Instead of taking an overview of all four columns I decided to solve each word at a time – Wordle style, or in the way that Daily Sequence game works – and only move on once I guessed each correctly. I didn’t do the words consecutively though, just looked at which one gave me the most clues. After getting PARTY I moved on to the fourth word – PLANT – as I had a head start there, with two green letters and two orange.
TWEED was lucky. With no other vowels available I thought there could be a double E and TWEED was the only possibility.
Quordle was one of the original Wordle alternatives and is still going strong now more than 1,000 games later. It offers a genuine challenge, though, so read on if you need some Quordle hints today – or scroll down further for the answers.
Enjoy playing word games? You can also check out my NYT Connections today and NYT Strands today pages for hints and answers for those puzzles, while Marc's Wordle today column covers the original viral word game.
SPOILER WARNING: Information about Quordle today is below, so don't read on if you don't want to know the answers.
Quordle today (game #1087) - hint #1 - Vowels
How many different vowels are in Quordle today?
• The number of different vowels in Quordle today is 5*.
* Note that by vowel we mean the five standard vowels (A, E, I, O, U), not Y (which is sometimes counted as a vowel too).
Quordle today (game #1087) - hint #2 - repeated letters
Do any of today's Quordle answers contain repeated letters?
• The number of Quordle answers containing a repeated letter today is 1.
Quordle today (game #1087) - hint #3 - uncommon letters
Do the letters Q, Z, X or J appear in Quordle today?
• No. None of Q, Z, X or J appear among today's Quordle answers.
What letters do today's Quordle answers start with?
• R
• P
• R
• E
Right, the answers are below, so DO NOT SCROLL ANY FURTHER IF YOU DON'T WANT TO SEE THEM.
Quordle today (game #1087) - the answers
(Image credit: Merriam-Webster)
The answers to today's Quordle, game #1087, are…
RISEN
PLATE
RURAL
ENVOY
I was just one letter away from my Quordle personal best score today, guessing ENJOY instead of ENVOY.
Getting RISEN on my third guess was the game unlocker; after forming RISE with the letters I had, I toyed with RISER, but got lucky with the right choice. Before guessing TEACH – which led me to PLATE – I considered entering EXACT, but backed out because of the rarity of the letter X.
Meanwhile, I completed today’s Sequence puzzle in six which is making me wonder if the word-by-word technique would get me better results in the main game too.
Quordle was one of the original Wordle alternatives and is still going strong now more than 1,000 games later. It offers a genuine challenge, though, so read on if you need some Quordle hints today – or scroll down further for the answers.
Enjoy playing word games? You can also check out my NYT Connections today and NYT Strands today pages for hints and answers for those puzzles, while Marc's Wordle today column covers the original viral word game.
SPOILER WARNING: Information about Quordle today is below, so don't read on if you don't want to know the answers.
Quordle today (game #1086) - hint #1 - Vowels
How many different vowels are in Quordle today?
• The number of different vowels in Quordle today is 4*.
* Note that by vowel we mean the five standard vowels (A, E, I, O, U), not Y (which is sometimes counted as a vowel too).
Quordle today (game #1086) - hint #2 - repeated letters
Do any of today's Quordle answers contain repeated letters?
• The number of Quordle answers containing a repeated letter today is 1.
Quordle today (game #1086) - hint #3 - uncommon letters
Do the letters Q, Z, X or J appear in Quordle today?
• No. None of Q, Z, X or J appear among today's Quordle answers.
What letters do today's Quordle answers start with?
• S
• S
• O
• B
Right, the answers are below, so DO NOT SCROLL ANY FURTHER IF YOU DON'T WANT TO SEE THEM.
Quordle today (game #1086) - the answers
(Image credit: Merriam-Webster)
The answers to today's Quordle, game #1086, are…
SWARM
SCRAP
ONION
BELCH
I was delighted today to get ONION from three letters, but my biggest achievement was BELCH, after deducing the word must end in CH – not that it could have been much else by that stage.
It was interesting to learn that as well as meaning “bringing up wind”, Belch is also a slang word for bad beer – which makes perfect sense in that context.
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 #317) - hint #1 - today's theme
What is the theme of today's NYT Strands?
• Today's NYT Strands theme is… Bundle up
NYT Strands today (game #317) - hint #2 - clue words
Play any of these words to unlock the in-game hints system.
GLOBE
SWAP
TRAIN
TART
CARE
THESE
NYT Strands today (game #317) - hint #3 - spangram
What is a hint for today's spangram?
• Seasonal garments
NYT Strands today (game #317) - hint #4 - spangram position
What are two sides of the board that today's spangram touches?
First side: top, 5th column
Last side: right, 7th row
Right, the answers are below, so DO NOT SCROLL ANY FURTHER IF YOU DON'T WANT TO SEE THEM.
NYT Strands today (game #317) - the answers
(Image credit: New York Times)
The answers to today's Strands, game #317, are…
PARKA
SCARF
JACKET
GLOVES
MITTENS
BEANIE
SPANGRAM: WINTER CLOTHES
My rating: Easy
My score: Perfect
I feel today's Strands was missing the most essential of WINTER CLOTHES – ear muffs. They’re a game changer.
According to outdoorsman and author Alfred Wainwright “there is no such thing as bad weather, just unsuitable clothing”.
When you consider that this statement was made in 1973, long before the multiple advances in cold weather clothing, it’s an even bolder statement.
Wainwright – who made his name writing and illustrating walking guides to the north of England – was thinking of a woolen sweater, flat cap and a pipe rather than a base layer made from polyamide yarn infused with coffee-bean shells, SmartWool socks, a Thinsulate mid layer, a Thermoball jacket and a pair of GoreTex pants.
Yesterday's NYT Strands answers (Monday, 13 January, game #316)
PLAIN
EVERYTHING
GARLIC
RAISIN
SESAME
BLUEBERRY
SPANGRAM: BAGELS
What is NYT Strands?
Strands is the NYT's new word game, following Wordle and Connections. It's now out of beta so is a fully fledged member of the NYT's games stable and 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.
