NYT Strands hints and answers for Saturday, May 16 (game #804)

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 Friday's puzzle instead then click here: NYT Strands hints and answers for Friday, May 15 (game #803).

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 #804) - hint #1 - today's theme

What is the theme of today's NYT Strands?

• Today's NYT Strands theme is… Bon appétit

NYT Strands today (game #804) - hint #2 - clue words

Play any of these words to unlock the in-game hints system.

• STAGE
• CUTE
• RING
• RACE
• NEAR
• FRAME

NYT Strands today (game #804) - hint #3 - spangram letters

How many letters are in today's spangram?

• Spangram has 12 letters

NYT Strands today (game #804) - hint #4 - spangram position

What are two sides of the board that today's spangram touches?

First side: left, 1st row

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 #804) - the answers

(Image credit: New York Times)

The answers to today's Strands, game #804, are…

• MOUSSE
• CROISSANT
• ECLAIR
• MACARON
• MERINGUE
• SPANGRAM: FRENCHBAKERY

• My rating: Easy
• My score: Perfect

Seeing the word “French” along the top row was impossible to ignore making FRENCHBAKERY, one of the easiest-to-spot spangrams I can remember.

From here on in it was simply a case of how much patisserie you are familiar with — as someone who is a fan of TV cooking shows and of eating as many cakes and pastries as possible, I found it all rather easy. That said, I'm sure everyone saw MOUSSE immediately too.

Indeed the biggest challenge of the day was spelling CROISSANT. Actually, scratch that, the biggest challenge of the day is not leaving my desk to go out to buy a CROISSANT.

Yesterday's NYT Strands answers (Friday, May 15, game #803)

• OTTER
• BADGER
• FERRET
• MARTEN
• POLECAT
• WOLVERINE
• SPANGRAM: MUSTELIDS

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.

https://ift.tt/PjKQFLr

Quordle hints and answers for Friday, May 15 (game #1572)

Looking for a different day?

A new Quordle 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 Thursday's puzzle instead then click here: Quordle hints and answers for Thursday, May 14 (game #1571).

Quordle was one of the original Wordle alternatives and is still going strong now more than 1,400 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 #1572) - 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 #1572) - 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 #1572) - 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.

Quordle today (game #1572) - hint #4 - starting letters (1)

Do any of today's Quordle puzzles start with the same letter?

• The number of today's Quordle answers starting with the same letter is 0.

If you just want to know the answers at this stage, simply scroll down. If you're not ready yet then here's one more clue to make things a lot easier:

Quordle today (game #1572) - hint #5 - starting letters (2)

What letters do today's Quordle answers start with?

• E

• S

• F

• P

Right, the answers are below, so DO NOT SCROLL ANY FURTHER IF YOU DON'T WANT TO SEE THEM.

Quordle today (game #1572) - the answers

(Image credit: Merriam-Webster)

The answers to today's Quordle, game #1572, are…

• EPOCH
• SPIKY
• FAINT
• PENNE

I could only think of two words ending A-I-N-T from the letters I had left: “taint” or FAINT.

Typically, I guessed the wrong of the two, but fortunately I had enough space left to make an error. No stress.

Daily Sequence today (game #1572) - the answers

(Image credit: Merriam-Webster)

The answers to today's Quordle Daily Sequence, game #1572, are…

• SAUNA
• COUNT
• ROUSE
• GROSS

Quordle answers: The past 20

• Quordle #1571, Thursday, 14 May: SEVEN, DECRY, VILLA, MILKY
• Quordle #1570, Wednesday, 13 May: SKUNK, CHAFE, INTER, SOOTH
• Quordle #1569, Tuesday, 12 May: AGLOW, AVAIL, BADLY, STING
• Quordle #1568, Monday, 11 May: CLUMP, SALTY, BOAST, YIELD
• Quordle #1567, Sunday, 10 May: DONOR, FAITH, ROBOT, EXILE
• Quordle #1566, Saturday, 9 May: SHALL, ERUPT, WISER, DRIER
• Quordle #1565, Friday, 8 May: TOXIN, HELIX, FLOUT, ADULT
• Quordle #1564, Thursday, 7 May: DEALT, LOWLY, AHEAD, CHEEK
• Quordle #1563, Wednesday, 6 May: DRESS, SWIFT, HOARD, STEAD
• Quordle #1562, Tuesday, 5 May: SNEER, NEVER, RAMEN, TODDY
• Quordle #1561, Monday, 4 May: IMBUE, FIFTY, STEEP, PINTO
• Quordle #1560, Sunday, 3 May: HATER, FORCE, BASTE, TROUT
• Quordle #1559, Saturday, 2 May: DENIM, WAIVE, CHANT, RENAL
• Quordle #1558, Friday, 1 May: LUMEN, LINEN, GOING, THANK
• Quordle #1557, Thursday, 30 April: LOYAL, CACHE, SWEAT, LIGHT
• Quordle #1556, Wednesday, 29 April: TRAIL, RENEW, BELLE, GREED
• Quordle #1555, Tuesday, 28 April: CLINK, BONUS, BRUSH, DRIER
• Quordle #1554, Monday, 27 April: ARGUE, LUNAR, SEVER, THEIR
• Quordle #1553, Sunday, 26 April: PITHY, BOAST, PRIED, BLIMP
• Quordle #1552, Saturday, 25 April: RESET, DRINK, DEITY, SLACK

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Europe wants to dodge troublesome regions by building undersea cables beneath the Arctic

• The EU is considering routing subsea cables through the Artic
• It aims to avoid regions of conflict and instability such as Russia and Iran
• The routes are projected to cost €2 billion and be operational by 2030

If you currently access or communicate with the internet in Asia as a European, around 90% of your traffic travels via subsea internet cables in the Middle East.

Given the recent conflict between the US and Iran, expanding capacity and building new projects has been a bit of a non-starter, as Meta well knows.

To combat this bottleneck, and to avoid the obvious troubles of navigating the internet via Russia, the European Union wants to take the Northwest Passage, or transit the North Pole.

Putting the internet on ice

The two proposed solutions, under the name Polar Connect, come with their own challenges, but apparently the EU is willing to take icebergs and thick sea ice over a region of periodic instability and Vladimir Putin, so much so that the EU has listed Polar Connect as a priority project with an operational goal of 2030.

For one route, going via the Northwest Passage in Canada to Asia, there is the obvious issue that has plagued navigators from John Cabot to John Franklin: the region is packed with sea ice. The unfortunate silver lining is that climate change has reduced the Arctic ice pack by a considerable amount, making the route a viable option.

As for the North Pole route, the cables would start in Scandinavia and travel across the North Pole.

Both routes would require specialist ice-breaking cable-laying equipment with a hefty price tag, or one ship to break ice and another to lay cable - which is equally expensive. But the costs seem to be a reasonable price to pay to have a more reliable connection with Asia.

This isn’t the first time undersea cables have been laid beneath the Arctic ocean. Quintillion was the last company to attempt such a venture, and had some success. A length of cable began at Nome, ran along the northern coast of Alaska, and reached Prudhoe Bay. Unfortunately, icebergs can drag their lower halves across the bottom of the seafloor at depths beyond that of an undersea cable, damaging or even cutting them in an event known as an “ice scour”.

When Quintillion encountered this problem in June 2023, they did not have access to an icebreaker and so had to wait for the ice to melt before being able to repair the cable. The same happened again in January 2025, leading to an eight month downtime leaving many Alaskans without high-speed internet. Quintillion never laid the rest of the route to Asia.

But given the expense of attempting to lay, repair cables — and navigate the potential taxation of undersea cables by unfriendly nations in the Red Sea or the Gulf of Aden — a €2 billion route through the Arctic provides Europe with sovereignty over their cables, and the data flowing through it.

Via The Verge

https://ift.tt/sW17vQ5

NYT Strands hints and answers for Thursday, May 14 (game #802)

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, May 13 (game #801).

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 #802) - hint #1 - today's theme

What is the theme of today's NYT Strands?

• Today's NYT Strands theme is… Men in tights

NYT Strands today (game #802) - hint #2 - clue words

Play any of these words to unlock the in-game hints system.

• CHEER
• FROST
• TOWN
• GUIDE
• YEAR
• SHIN

NYT Strands today (game #802) - hint #3 - spangram letters

How many letters are in today's spangram?

• Spangram has 9 letters

NYT Strands today (game #802) - hint #4 - spangram position

What are two sides of the board that today's spangram touches?

First side: left, 4th row

Last side: right, 1st row

Right, the answers are below, so DO NOT SCROLL ANY FURTHER IF YOU DON'T WANT TO SEE THEM.

NYT Strands today (game #802) - the answers

(Image credit: New York Times)

The answers to today's Strands, game #802, are…

• ARCHERY
• DISGUISE
• FOREST
• FRIAR
• OUTLAW
• SHERIFF
• SPANGRAM: ROBINHOOD

• My rating: Easy
• My score: Perfect

“Men in tights” could only mean one thing surely? Superheroes and their sidekicks. It was with confidence therefore that I tapped out “robin” — the name of Batman’s sidekick back in the tights era. Alas, it was not to be.

Fortunately I spotted “hood” on the top row and realized that the “men in tights” we were seeking were from an era far beyond the 1960s.

From here on it was just a case of remembering the significant factors of the ROBIN HOOD tale — although the only version I’m familiar with involved a fox, a tortoise and a bear who was into jazz.

Yesterday's NYT Strands answers (Wednesday, May 13, game #801)

• SPUNK
• PLUCK
• GRIT
• NERVE
• GUMPTION
• FIBER
• HEART
• SPANGRAM: WHATITTAKES

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.

https://ift.tt/LGHBh5p

NYT Strands hints and answers for Wednesday, May 13 (game #801)

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 Tuesday's puzzle instead then click here: NYT Strands hints and answers for Tuesday, May 12 (game #800).

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 #801) - hint #1 - today's theme

What is the theme of today's NYT Strands?

• Today's NYT Strands theme is… You’ve got…

NYT Strands today (game #801) - hint #2 - clue words

Play any of these words to unlock the in-game hints system.

• PRUNE
• TEAM
• BRIEF
• PURE
• RUNT
• TIME

NYT Strands today (game #801) - hint #3 - spangram letters

How many letters are in today's spangram?

• Spangram has 11 letters

NYT Strands today (game #801) - hint #4 - spangram position

What are two sides of the board that today's spangram touches?

First side: top, 3rd column

Last side: bottom, 4th column

Right, the answers are below, so DO NOT SCROLL ANY FURTHER IF YOU DON'T WANT TO SEE THEM.

NYT Strands today (game #801) - the answers

(Image credit: New York Times)

The answers to today's Strands, game #801, are…

• SPUNK
• PLUCK
• GRIT
• NERVE
• GUMPTION
• FIBER
• HEART
• SPANGRAM: WHATITTAKES

• My rating: Easy
• My score: Perfect

The theme confused me to begin with, then after finding “what” as I hunted for any words to give me a hint, the mists cleared and I completed the sentence “you’ve got…” WHATITTAKES.

There were some great words in today’s search, a task which was made easier by finding the two containing the letter K in SPUNK and PLUCK and moving onwards from here.

GRIT and NERVE are still spoken about a lot particularly in sports commentaries, but GUMPTION is a word due a revival both in use and in spirit. It is also a quality unique to humans — more GUMPTION coupled with HEART makes the world a better place.

Yesterday's NYT Strands answers (Tuesday, May 12, game #800)

• TUXEDO
• PALAZZO
• HAREM
• GAUCHO
• TOREADOR
• SAILOR
• SPANGRAM: FANCYPANTS

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.

https://ift.tt/Ynb0Wco

Discord Nitro is actually worth it now, and it's all thanks to this new partnership with Xbox

• Discord has announced its Nitro subscription service will now include Xbox Game Pass
• The new starter edition will include access to 50+ games and 10 hours of cloud gaming
• All of Nitro's benefits will also be available alongside Game Pass at no extra cost

Discord has been at the center of controversy in 2026, due to its push for global age verification on the social platform, but its latest move may win some users over.

In a new blog post, Discord announced that its Nitro subscription will now include the new Xbox Game Pass starter edition membership, at no extra cost, allowing users to enjoy the benefits of Nitro's high-quality streaming capabilities and customization, alongside access to 50+ games via Game Pass.

This comes after it was effectively leaked earlier in April, serving as one of the big moves from Xbox under the helm of new CEO, Asha Sharma. It's a big move for both Xbox and Discord, but more so for the latter, considering the large number of its users who were threatening (or proceeded) to cancel Nitro subscriptions to stop the age verification plans.

Those plans haven't gone anywhere, as they're still slated for the latter stage of 2026, but adding Game Pass to Nitro benefits may help shift the attention elsewhere — and while the library is significantly smaller compared to PC Game Pass (which has 300+ games), it's two birds with one stone for consumers, for only $9.99 / £9.49 / AU$14.99 (which may vary due to localized pricing).

(Image credit: Microsoft )

Some of those games included are Fallout 4, Stardew Valley, Deep Rock Galactic, and Overcooked 2, including access to 10 hours of cloud gaming each month. There's no clarity on how upgrades to higher tiers will work via Discord's Nitro subscription, and whether the cost to upgrade is cut, but it's a great start.

The new addition to Nitro is currently within its rollout phase, which will span over the next few weeks, and Discord emphasizes that this collaboration is essentially its way of encouraging users to join Nitro specifically, "if you've been on the fence" about the service.

https://ift.tt/tGDsFEg

NYT Strands hints and answers for Tuesday, May 12 (game #800)

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 Monday's puzzle instead then click here: NYT Strands hints and answers for Monday, May 11 (game #799).

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 #800) - hint #1 - today's theme

What is the theme of today's NYT Strands?

• Today's NYT Strands theme is… Quite the pair

NYT Strands today (game #800) - hint #2 - clue words

Play any of these words to unlock the in-game hints system.

• CURE
• POEM
• CATS
• RAIL
• YEARS
• STOP

NYT Strands today (game #800) - hint #3 - spangram letters

How many letters are in today's spangram?

• Spangram has 10 letters

NYT Strands today (game #800) - hint #4 - spangram position

What are two sides of the board that today's spangram touches?

First side: left, 4th row

Last side: right, 4th row

Right, the answers are below, so DO NOT SCROLL ANY FURTHER IF YOU DON'T WANT TO SEE THEM.

NYT Strands today (game #800) - the answers

(Image credit: New York Times)

The answers to today's Strands, game #800, are…

• TUXEDO
• PALAZZO
• HAREM
• GAUCHO
• TOREADOR
• SAILOR
• SPANGRAM: FANCYPANTS

• My rating: Hard
• My score: 2 hints

Rare letters are always a good place to start a Strands search, but TUXEDO left me a little baffled as I associate it with shirts and the theme “quite the pair” didn’t seem to go with that.

The other rare letters on the board — a double-Z, no less — were the key to finally getting me going. Not that I am exotic enough to know anyone who owns a pair of them, but I now knew after getting PALAZZO that we were looking for types of pants; or, to be precise (as I soon discovered via the spangram), FANCYPANTS.

My fancy pant knowledge is not the best, so I opted for hints to get me the next couple of trousers and from here on in I was able to shimmy my way to a conclusion.

Can the world, I wonder, be divided between those who own and those who would never be seen dead in FANCYPANTS? Quite possibly.

Yesterday's NYT Strands answers (Monday, May 11, game #799)

• JUMBLE
• HODGEPODGE
• VARIETY
• MISHMASH
• RAGBAG
• SPANGRAM: ODDSANDENDS

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.

https://ift.tt/B81KiR4