Today's NYT Strands is live for Sunday, May 24, 2026 (Puzzle #812). 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: "Turn, turn, turn"
What It Really Means
Everything in this puzzle revolves around objects designed for winding, spinning, or coiling. Think mechanical and textile devices where rotation is the core function.
Think About...
- Tools and machines that wind thread, rope, or film
- Objects that rotate on a central axis to store material
- Items found in a sewing kit, a fishing tackle box, or an industrial workshop
Spangram Clues
Orientation: Across and down (snaking path)
Letter Count: 11 letters
Starting Zone: First letter of the sixth row
Progressive Spangram Hints
Hint 1 (Gentle): The spangram is a two-word phrase that tells you exactly what to do with all these winding objects.
Hint 2 (Warmer): It's an invitation to relax and let go of tension -- something you might do with a spool of thread or a fishing reel.
Hint 3 (Almost There): First letter is T, last letter is D
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TRYTOUNWIND
Word-by-Word Hints
Solve as many as you can before peeking. Each word includes escalating clues.
Word 1
Vague: A tightly wound circle of something flexible.
Closer: What a snake does, or what you find in a spring.
Letter Clue: Starts with C, 4 letters total
Answer
COIL
Word 2
Vague: A cylindrical object used in sewing machines to hold thread.
Closer: It sits in the shuttle of a sewing machine and feeds thread from below.
Letter Clue: Starts with B, 6 letters total
Answer
BOBBIN
Word 3
Vague: A spool-shaped device used to wind or unwind material.
Closer: Fishermen use this to cast and retrieve their lines.
Letter Clue: Starts with R, 4 letters total
Answer
REEL
Word 4
Vague: A rolled-up document or a way to navigate digital content.
Closer: Think ancient parchment or the action of moving a web page up and down.
Letter Clue: Starts with S, 6 letters total
Answer
SCROLL
Word 5
Vague: A long, thin rod used to hold or wind material.
Closer: Found in textile mills and old record players -- it's what the thread or tape wraps around.
Letter Clue: Starts with S, 7 letters total
Answer
SPINDLE
Word 6
Vague: A mechanical device used to lift or pull heavy loads by winding a rope.
Closer: Commonly found on ships, cranes, and old wells for hauling.
Letter Clue: Starts with W, 5 letters total
Answer
WINCH
Word 7
Vague: A cylindrical object that thread, wire, or film winds around.
Closer: You'd find one in a sewing kit or on a fishing rod, and it often has flanged ends.
Letter Clue: Starts with S, 5 letters total
Answer
SPOOL
Full Answers
Spangram: TRYTOUNWIND
Theme Words:
- COIL
- BOBBIN
- REEL
- SCROLL
- SPINDLE
- WINCH
- SPOOL
Puzzle Debrief
Difficulty Rating: Moderate
Trickiest Word: BOBBIN (Less common in everyday vocabulary than the others, and easy to overlook if you're not familiar with sewing terminology.)
Our Take: "Turn, turn, turn" is a satisfyingly tight theme -- every word is a variation on winding and coiling, with no filler. The seven theme words give you plenty to hunt for, and the spangram TRYTOUNWIND cleverly doubles as both an instruction and a pun. A solid Sunday puzzle that rewards pattern recognition over obscure trivia.
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