NYT Strands today — hints, answers and spangram for Tuesday, May 14 (game #72)

May 13, 2024

Your Tuesday installment of the NYT’s Strands game is here, and your challenge as always is to find the hidden answers within the letter grid. The game is still in beta, so keep playing and the NYT will hopefully give it full status in time.

SPOILER WARNING: Information about NYT Strands today is below, so don’t read on if you don’t want to know the answers.

Your Strands expert

Marc McLaren

NYT Strands today (game #72) – hint #1 – today’s theme

What is the theme of today’s NYT Strands?

• Today’s NYT Strands theme is… On board

NYT Strands today (game #72) – hint #2 – clue words

What are some good clue words today?

Play any of these words to unlock the in-game hints system.

• CHASE

• MAIL

• CAUSE

• RACK

• FACE

• STRUT

NYT Strands today (game #72) – hint #3 – spangram

What is a hint for today’s spangram?

• Smorgasbord?

NYT Strands today (game #72) – hint #4 – spangram position

What are two sides of the board that today’s spangram touches?

• First: left, 3rd row

• Last: right, 8th row

Right, the answers are below, so DO NOT SCROLL ANY FURTHER IF YOU DON’T WANT TO SEE THEM.

NYT Strands today (game #72) – the answers

NYT Strands answers for game 72 on a blue background — (Image credit: New York Times)

The answers to today’s Strands, game #72, are…

FRUIT
CRACKER
NUTS
OLIVE
BRIE
SALAMI
SPREAD
SPANGRAM: CHARCUTERIE

My rating: Stupid
My score: Two hints

I have a few questions about today’s Strands puzzle. Maybe this is sour grapes (pardon the pun?) but it seems to me to be a flawed concept.

Firstly, why are some answers plural and others not? CRACKER is included in its singular form. Would you only get one cracker on a charcuterie board? Ditto OLIVE. I very much doubt any charcuterie ever, in the history of charcuterie, has featured a single olive. Which would be fine if they were all singular – but NUTS is plural.

Secondly, what on earth is SPREAD? Cheese spread? Butter? What is it doing here? Is this a cultural difference between the UK (where I am) and the US? To me, the answers here just seem like a random collection of foods that you could put together if you wanted to. Why not throw in potato or porridge or roasted pheasant or unicorn steaks? What’s the connection here?

Anyway, maybe you found it easier. By all means email and tell me what I’m missing.

How did you do today? Send me an email and let me know.

Yesterday’s NYT Strands answers (Monday 13 May, game #71)

HOUND
BOXER
HUSKY
COLLIE
POODLE
BEAGLE
SHEPHERD
SPANGRAM: DOGPILE

What is NYT Strands?

Strands is the NYT’s new word game, following Wordle and Connections. It’s currently in Beta and can be played on the NYT Games site on desktop or mobile.

I’ve got a full guide to how to play NYT Strands, complete with tips for solving it, so check that out if you’re struggling to beat it each day.

Source

Your Tuesday installment of the NYT’s Strands game is here, and your challenge as always is to find the hidden answers within the letter grid. The game is still in beta, so keep playing and the NYT will hopefully give it full status in time. SPOILER WARNING: Information about NYT…