Today's NYT Strands is live for Sunday, July 5, 2026 (Puzzle #854). 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: "Barking up the right tree"
What It Really Means
This puzzle is all about dog breeds bred for specific hunting and retrieving roles. Each theme word names a distinct breed type that was developed for tracking, flushing, pointing, or retrieving game.
Think About...
- Breeds known for their hunting instincts and field work
- Dogs categorized by their specialized skills (pointing, retrieving, flushing)
- The American Kennel Club groups these breeds share
Spangram Clues
Orientation: Across and up
Letter Count: 13 letters
Starting Zone: First letter of the last row
Progressive Spangram Hints
Hint 1 (Gentle): This spangram is the umbrella category that all five theme words fall under.
Hint 2 (Warmer): Think of the broad classification used by kennel clubs and hunters to group dogs by their working style in the field.
Hint 3 (Almost There): First letter is H, last letter is S
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HUNTINGBREEDS
Word-by-Word Hints
Solve as many as you can before peeking. Each word includes escalating clues.
Word 1
Vague: A breed known for freezing in place and indicating the location of game.
Closer: These dogs lock into a distinctive stance to show hunters where birds are hiding.
Letter Clue: Starts with P, 7 letters total
Answer
POINTER
Word 2
Vague: A flushing breed that works thick cover to drive birds into the air.
Closer: Named after a type of bird these dogs were originally bred to flush, these energetic hunters work close to their handler.
Letter Clue: Starts with S, 7 letters total
Answer
SPANIEL
Word 3
Vague: A breed built to find and bring back downed game without damaging it.
Closer: Known for their soft mouths and relentless drive to fetch, these dogs are the gold standard for waterfowl recovery.
Letter Clue: Starts with R, 9 letters total
Answer
RETRIEVER
Word 4
Vague: A scent-driven breed that tracks game by following ground trails.
Closer: These dogs hunt primarily with their nose, often working in packs and known for their distinctive baying call.
Letter Clue: Starts with H, 5 letters total
Answer
HOUND
Word 5
Vague: A feisty breed originally developed to hunt vermin and go to ground after prey.
Closer: Named for their tenacity in digging into burrows, these small but fearless dogs were bred to bolt foxes and rats.
Letter Clue: Starts with T, 7 letters total
Answer
TERRIER
Full Answers
Spangram: HUNTINGBREEDS
Theme Words:
- POINTER
- SPANIEL
- RETRIEVER
- HOUND
- TERRIER
Puzzle Debrief
Difficulty Rating: Moderate
Trickiest Word: SPANIEL (Less commonly associated with hunting in modern contexts than the other breeds, and the 7-letter grid path can be deceptive.)
Our Take: A well-curated theme that covers five distinct hunting breed categories without overlapping into generic dog breeds. The spangram HUNTINGBREEDS ties it together cleanly, and the variety of letter counts keeps the grid interesting. Solid Sunday puzzle with just enough challenge to feel rewarding.
