Today's NYT Strands is live for Thursday, October 29, 2026 (Puzzle #970). 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: "Double, double toil and trouble"
What It Really Means
Hunt for creatures, gruesome ingredients, and cooking activity associated with a witch's brew.
Think About...
- Small creatures fit for a sinister recipe.
- Anatomical additions to an unsettling potion.
- Heat and motion around a simmering concoction.
Spangram Clues
Orientation: Left to right across the board
Letter Count: 8 letters
Starting Zone: Row 4, letter 1
Progressive Spangram Hints
Hint 1 (Gentle): Think about what holds the sinister mixture.
Hint 2 (Warmer): Picture a witch stirring a deep iron cooking pot.
Hint 3 (Almost There): First letter is C, last letter is N
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CAULDRON
Word-by-Word Hints
Solve as many as you can before peeking. Each word includes escalating clues.
Word 1
Vague: A vital liquid with sinister recipe potential.
Closer: The red liquid your heart pumps through your veins.
Letter Clue: Starts with B, 5 letters total
Answer
BLOOD
Word 2
Vague: A brief, rounded pocket that can rise and burst.
Closer: A thin film enclosing gas, like one floating above a soapy bath.
Letter Clue: Starts with B, 6 letters total
Answer
BUBBLE
Word 3
Vague: A source of heat that demands careful tending.
Closer: The flames beneath a pot that bring its contents to a boil.
Letter Clue: Starts with F, 4 letters total
Answer
FIRE
Word 4
Vague: A scaly creature you might spot basking on a rock.
Closer: A gecko or iguana belongs to this reptile group.
Letter Clue: Starts with L, 6 letters total
Answer
LIZARD
Word 5
Vague: A small amphibian associated with ponds.
Closer: A small salamander famously paired with an eye in a witch's recipe.
Letter Clue: Starts with N, 4 letters total
Answer
NEWT
Word 6
Vague: A reptile built for slithering.
Closer: A cobra or python is one of these legless reptiles.
Letter Clue: Starts with S, 5 letters total
Answer
SNAKE
Word 7
Vague: A muscular body part with a sensory job.
Closer: The organ in your mouth that bears taste buds and helps form speech.
Letter Clue: Starts with T, 6 letters total
Answer
TONGUE
Word 8
Vague: A soft-bodied crawler beneath your feet.
Closer: A wriggling garden creature often threaded onto a fishing hook.
Letter Clue: Starts with W, 4 letters total
Answer
WORM
Full Answers
Spangram: CAULDRON
Theme Words:
- BLOOD
- BUBBLE
- FIRE
- LIZARD
- NEWT
- SNAKE
- TONGUE
- WORM
Puzzle Debrief
Difficulty Rating: Medium, with a clear witchcraft cue but a word list that mixes creatures, ingredients, and cooking activity.
Trickiest Word: BUBBLE is my pick because it describes activity in the pot, while the creature and body-part answers steer your search toward ingredients.
Our Take: CAULDRON gives the theme a satisfying center, a vessel that ties the unsettling ingredients together. FIRE and BUBBLE add heat and movement, making this feel like a brewing scene rather than a simple creature list.