Today's NYT Strands is live for Sunday, August 30, 2026 (Puzzle #910). Stuck on today's Strands? We've got progressive hints, from gentle nudges to full solutions, so you can solve at your own pace.
How Strands Works (New Players Start Here)
Strands hides themed words inside a 6x8 letter grid. Your mission: find every word connected to the day's theme. Letters link in any direction (horizontal, vertical, diagonal) and words can twist and turn. Every letter gets used exactly once.
The spangram is the key word or phrase that captures the theme and stretches across the entire board, touching opposite edges.
Need a boost? Find any 4+ letter word (even non-theme words) three times, and the game reveals a hint highlighting theme word letters.
Theme Decoder
Today's Theme Prompt: "Hardly eager"
What It Really Means
You are hunting for adjectives that describe resistance to doing something or a lack of eagerness.
Think About...
- Language for holding back from a commitment.
- Words that fit someone who does not want to take part.
- Different shades of saying no without a blunt refusal.
Spangram Clues
Orientation: Top to bottom down the board
Letter Count: 11 letters
Starting Zone: Row 1, letter 1
Progressive Spangram Hints
Hint 1 (Gentle): Think of a polite sentence someone might use to turn down an invitation.
Hint 2 (Warmer): It is a first-person refusal framed as a preference rather than a direct no.
Hint 3 (Almost There): First letter is I, last letter is T
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IDRATHERNOT
Word-by-Word Hints
Solve as many as you can before peeking. Each word includes escalating clues.
Word 1
Vague: Strongly opposed to a particular option.
Closer: Often paired with “to,” it describes someone firmly against an action or idea.
Letter Clue: Starts with A, 6 letters total
Answer
AVERSE
Word 2
Vague: Slow to act because certainty has not arrived.
Closer: Picture someone pausing before answering or taking the next step.
Letter Clue: Starts with H, 8 letters total
Answer
HESITANT
Word 3
Vague: Deeply disinclined to do what is being proposed.
Closer: This compact adjective commonly precedes “to” plus a verb and signals strong distaste for the action.
Letter Clue: Starts with L, 5 letters total
Answer
LOATH
Word 4
Vague: Holding back despite pressure or expectation.
Closer: It often describes agreement given with little enthusiasm, such as joining only after persuasion.
Letter Clue: Starts with R, 9 letters total
Answer
RELUCTANT
Word 5
Vague: Not prepared to consent or cooperate.
Closer: It begins with a negative prefix and describes someone who refuses to do what is asked.
Letter Clue: Starts with U, 9 letters total
Answer
UNWILLING
Full Answers
Spangram: IDRATHERNOT
Theme Words:
- AVERSE
- HESITANT
- LOATH
- RELUCTANT
- UNWILLING
Puzzle Debrief
Difficulty Rating: Medium, the shared meaning is clear, but several near-synonyms are hard to separate before their paths emerge.
Trickiest Word: LOATH is the trickiest word because it is easily confused with LOATHE, the related verb with a final E.
Our Take: The “Hardly eager” prompt unites AVERSE, HESITANT, LOATH, RELUCTANT, and UNWILLING as tightly related shades of resistance. IDRATHERNOT turns that shared idea into a natural spoken refusal, while the list ranges from a momentary pause to firm opposition. The close synonymy makes the theme cohesive and adds challenge because meaning alone does not immediately identify each grid path.
