The NYT Strands puzzle from June 7 isn’t for the faint of heart.
It deals with reptiles. And frogs. Things people keep in cages sometimes, if they are brave enough. Or crazy.
Not great pets for the average person, most of these.
Unscrambling today’s board requires a bit of muscle. You need to spot words hiding in the noise.
Let’s break down the Herpetology 101 theme so you can win today. Or just see what you missed.
The Clue
Herpetology 101
Doesn’t that ring a bell? Reptile time is upon us.
If that isn’t enough, think about animals that don’t run on body heat. Think about scales.
Start there.
Here is the thing about Strands though. You don’t need the theme immediately. Just find three words with four or more letters and the game hands you a lifeline. It’s how the system works.
I found these random words first to unlock hints. Yours will likely be different, and that is fine:
- GOLF
- COLD
- Lobe
- Bell
- Come
- Mane
- Reed
- Lore
- Lake
- Flake
- Bull
Any word longer than three letters will do the trick. It doesn’t matter which ones, as long as you get three down.
The Answers
Once you unlock the hint, the board starts to make sense. The goal is finding every themed word including the big spangram. The long word that stretches from one edge of the grid to the other.
Here is the lineup for puzzle #826.
SNAKE, TURTLE, BULLFROG, CHAMELEON, CROCODILE
That’s a heavy lineup. A true cold-blooded crew.
The Spangram
This one hides in plain sight if you look closely.
COLDBLOODED
Find the C. It’s sitting near the top row. Three letters over.
Start there. Wind your way down the board like the number 7. It connects. It always does when you spot the right starting letter.
Don’t force it. The path will appear.
Toughest Strands Puzzles
Today feels manageable. Really it does. But have you tried these other nightmares?
Some topics just beat me down.
Dated slang. Specifically. The phrase “PHAT”? I didn’t use it when it was cool either. So yeah, good luck.
Marine biology is another boss battle.
I am no scientist. I can barely tell a dolphin from a whale let alone identify parts of a baleen whale. “RIGHT”? As in right whale?
Tough words for a tough day.
So what now. Do you feel smarter already or just defeated.
