Today's New York Times Stray Suggestions (and Solution) for Tuesday, August 27, 2024 (paraphrased)

Unlocking the Mystery of Today's Strands Puzzle: August 27, 2024 (Unveiled)

If you're in pursuit of guidance and solutions for Strands on August 27, 2024, centered around the theme "Pixar-inspired feasts", you've come to the right place. I'll share some hints, tricks, and, ultimately, the enigma's unraveling.

Wish to effortlessly access our Strands hints daily? Simply save this page. Additionally, you can unveil previous puzzles' solutions here.

Now, allow me to show you some indirect clues for the conundrum's solutions. Delve below for the spangram and the answers, but only take the hints you need.

Hint for the spangram in today’s Strands puzzle

A vegetarian dish encompassing a beloved Pixar film's title.

Hint for the theme words in today’s Strands puzzle

These essential ingredients are crucial for the aforementioned dish.

Warning: Spoilers lie ahead for today’s Strands puzzle!

We are about to reveal the solutions to today's Strands puzzle.

What is the spangram for today’s Strands?

The spangram for today's puzzle is RECIPE.

What are the theme words in today’s Strands?

The theme words are: CAPSICUM, TOMATOES, ONION, ZUCCHINI, EGGPLANT.

This is how the puzzle board appears when it's solved:

Credit: Strands/NYT

Decoding Today's Strands

The clues for the theme seem straightforward—they're likely related to Pixar movie titles that feature dishes.

I discovered CAPSICUM at the top left, and it matches. Hmm, I'm uncertain if there's a Pixar film with capsicum.

Below it, an ONION seems familiar, but I can't quite place the movie.

Tomatoes appear next. Aha, Ratatouille's main ingredients!

Above, I found ZUCCHINI.

And the spangram, strewn across the board, is RECIPE. Lastly, EGGPLANT.

Strands: Games of Wordy Enigma

To play Strands, visit the New York Times website or download the NYT Games app.

Once you start playing, you'll see a game board filled with letters, accompanied by a hint clue—such as "Famous Festivals" or "Timeless Traditions." Your objective is to unearth hidden words within the board that correspond to the puzzle's theme.

The Strands Paradox

Strands is a blend of a crossword and a word search. The crucial word to locate is called the "spangram," which more explicitly encapsulates the puzzle's theme (such as "FERMENTED" for the puzzle with the theme "Improving with age"). The spangram will span the entire game board in one direction, and solving it often makes the rest of the puzzle less daunting.

In Strands, words can traverse various directions (upward, downward, leftward, rightward, and diagonally), and you'll use each letter only once. There is only one correct solution. Once you correctly identify one of the puzzle answers (such as KOMBUCHA, MISO, or KIMCHI), it will be highlighted blue.

If you're grappling, submit non-theme words (as long as they're four letters or more) as hints. If you submit three non-theme words, you can click the "Hint" button, which will highlight some of the theme word's letters for you. You must still link these highlighted letters to form a theme word. If there's already a hint on the board, and you use another hint before solving for that word, the letters' order will be revealed.

Mastering Strands

Unlike Connections and Wordle, you cannot fail Strands. When you submit guesses, you will either correctly identify an answer, receive a hint, or the text will shake, indicating that the word you submitted is too short or invalid. You cannot run out of guesses, and there is no time limit.

You triumph when you've utilized all the letters on the board, meaning you've found the spangram and all the theme words. Like other NYT games, upon solving the puzzle, you will see a shareable card that displays your effort that day: blue dots indicate theme words you found, a yellow dot signals when you found the spangram, and a lightbulb signifies words that you received a hint for.

Credit: Strands/NYT

After solving the Strands puzzle, you might seek relaxation with a little entertainment. The theme for today's Strands was inspired by a Pixar film featuring a beloved vegetarian dish, suggesting you might revisit Ratatouille again. The main ingredients in Ratatouille are capsicum, tomatoes, onions, zucchini, and eggplant—the theme words in today's Strands puzzle.

Additional Reading: