NYT Strands Today — Hints, Answers and Spangram for Tuesday, August 20 (Game #170)
Strands is the latest word game from the NYT after Wordle, Spelling Bee, and Connections—and it’s a lot of fun. It can be tricky, though, so read on for my Strands hints.
Want more word-based fun? Check out my Wordle Today, NYT Connections Today, and Quordle Today pages for hints and answers for those games.
SPOILER ALERT: Below is information about today’s NYT Strands. So don’t read on if you don’t want to know the answers.
NYT Strands Today (Game #170) – Hint #1 – Today’s Theme
What is the theme of today’s NYT Strands?
• The theme of today’s NYT Strands is… I think we’re covered
NYT Strands Today (Contest #170) – Hint #2 – Clue Words
Play one of these words to unlock the hint system in the game.
- GANG
- SENSIBLE
- TO STEAL
- SAIL
- SIDE
- BUCKET
NYT Strands Today (Contest #170) – Hint #3 – Spangram
What’s a hint for today’s spangram?
• Keeps you dry
NYT Strands Today (Contest #170) – Hint #4 – Spangram Position
Which two sides of the board are affected by today’s spangram?
First: left, 4th row
Last: right, 4th row
Okay, the answers are below, so DO NOT SCROLL ANY FURTHER IF YOU DON’T WANT TO SEE THEM.
NYT Strands Today (Contest #170) – The Answers
The answers to today’s Strands question, game #170, are…
- UMBRELLA
- HOOD
- SMOOTHER
- PONCHO
- OVERSHOES
- GEG GUARDS
- SPANGRAM: RAIN CLOTHING
- My rating: Moderate
- My score: Perfect
I marked this as moderate despite the fact that I solved it without needing any in-game hints, because a few of the answers are a bit obscure. For example, I’ve never heard of GAITERS, and GALOSHES was probably a word I last heard about 40 years ago when my grandmother took me for a walk in the rain. Do they still exist? Or is this just another American English vs. British English thing? Plus, the spangram is that familiar phrase RAINGEAR. Ahem.
However, UMBRELLA, PONCHO and HOOD were all easy to solve. The way the letters fell made them possible to solve using a combination of random guessing and real brain power.
How was your day? Send me an email and let me know.
Yesterday’s NYT Strands Answers (Monday, August 19, Contest #169)
- LEOPARD
- AIRPORT
- PANTHER
- LION
- JAGUAR
- Puma
- TIGER
- SPANGRAM: BIG CAT
What is NYT Strands?
Strands is the new word game from the NYT, after Wordle and Connections. It is now out of beta and is therefore a full member of the NYT games stable and can be played on the NYT Games site on desktop or mobile.
I have a complete guide to playing NYT Strands, complete with tips to solve the game. If you are having a hard time beating the game every day, you can definitely check it out.
