The New York Times’ Strands puzzle for December 5th, 2023, challenges players to identify themed words hidden within a grid of letters. Today’s theme revolves around food and dining establishments. If you’re stuck, here’s a breakdown of the hints, clues, and complete solutions.
Understanding the Puzzle
Strands is a word-search-style puzzle where players must uncover themed words of at least four letters. Discovering three qualifying words triggers the game to reveal one of the theme’s core terms. The ultimate goal is to find all themed words, including the “spangram” — a word that stretches across the entire grid.
Hints and Clues
The initial hint for today’s puzzle is: “Feeling peckish?”
A more direct clue: “Can I see a menu?”
To unlock in-game hints, any combination of four-letter or longer words will work. Some useful starter words from today’s puzzle include:
- BAKE
- BONE
- DIET
- DINE
- FUNS
Complete Solutions
The non-spangram answers for today’s Strands puzzle are:
- BAKERY
- CAFE
- BISTRO
- BUFFET
- BREWERY
- STEAKHOUSE
The spangram (the word that spans the grid) is DININGOUT. Begin at the “D” located three letters to the right on the top row and trace the path downwards to uncover the full word.
Past Difficult Puzzles
According to recent player experience, some of the toughest Strands themes include dated slang (January 21st, with “PHAT” as the most challenging word) and nautical terminology (January 15th, with “BALEEN” or “RIGHT” proving particularly difficult).
This concludes today’s Strands solution.
