If you are finding it hard to spot theme words in today’s puzzle, then you are in serious need of the Strands hints below. Those bored with sensational games like Wordle and Connections are turning their attention to Strands for a challenging new experience. If you happen to be one of them and are struggling with NYT Strands, we can get you sorted. So, to help you out, we have added the Strands hints, answers, and Spangram on Saturday, August 23, 2025, below.
What is NYT Strands?
NYT Strands is a word game that’s part of The New York Times’ growing “Games” library. The aim of this game is to connect letters in a six-by-eight grid to form a bunch of words that share a common theme. If you wish to master the art of NYT Strands and learn some helpful tips and tricks, then check out our how to play Strands guide.
When you first open the puzzle, it will give you a theme for today’s NYT Strands that you can use to form multiple “theme” words, along with one “special” word called — Spangram. This is a word or phrase that spans the length of the grid, vertically, horizontally, or diagonally, and is the key to crack the rest of the Strands answers.
NYT Strands Hint Today
The theme for today’s Strands on August 23, 2025, is — Rub it in, why don’t you?.
If you can’t figure out answers for today’s puzzle, here’s a quick Strands hint — think of substances used to keep the skin well hydrated.
Here are hints for a couple of Strands theme words to make it easy for you to solve today’s puzzle on your own without having to scroll down to view the answers:
- Hint #1: an ointment used to promote healing of the skin or as protection.
- Hint #2: easily absorbed oil- or water-based liquids that you spread on your skin.
NYT Strands Spangram Hint: Is It Vertical or Horizontal?
The Spangram for today’s Strands on August 23, 2025, is mostly HORIZONTAL. It starts with the letters “MO”.
The hint for today’s Spangram for Strands — a cosmetic preparation used for protecting and lubricating the skin, to prevent or relieve dryness.
Spoiler Warning:
Scroll past this point AT YOUR OWN RISK. Hints and answers for today’s Strands below.
NYT Strands Answer for Today
NYT Strands can keep you on your toes every day with its intriguing set of Spangrams. The Spangram answer for today’s Strands on August 23, 2025, is — Moisturizers.
All Theme Words in Today’s Strands
Still looking for the theme words to get the answers for today’s NYT Strands? You can check them out below:
- BALM
- CREAM
- LOTION
- BUTTER
- JELLY
- SALVE
- SERUM
Missed yesterday’s game? Here’s the NYT Strands hint for August 22 if you want to catch up.
Difficulty Level for Strands Today
Based on previous answers and my experience solving NYT Strands, I would rate today’s puzzle — 2 out of 5.
In my scale, 1 is the easiest in terms of difficulty and 5 is the hardest. As always, your difficulty level may vary based on experience and know-how of certain topics, so that’s subjective.
How to find answers to Strands game?
Solving an NYT Strands puzzle successfully isn’t that hard in itself, but in some cases, the approach might not be as straightforward as it looks. Here’s how I found today’s strands answers:
- One hint was all that I needed: Before I could get to any of the theme words, I needed a hint as today’s theme was slightly confusing.
- The very first theme words: With a hint I got, I set out to find the first set of theme words and found – BALM and CREAM. This gave me a good idea on what the theme for today’s Strands might be about.
- Spangram: I was certain I was looking at a some kind of a “emollient” and that’s when I spotted MOIST and solved the Spangram.
- End of the puzzle: With the Spangram now deciphered, I was able to find the rest of the theme words with relative ease, although I had to solve another hint to find SALVE.
What is NYT Strands Spangram and How Does It Work?
Every NYT Strands puzzle consists of a unique word or phrase that’s called the Spangram. This word or set of words will run the length of two opposite sides of the grid. One thing to note here is that, a Spangram doesn’t necessarily have to originate or end at the edge of the grid.
In its essence, the Spangram is kind of like a bigger hint that sums up today’s Strands theme in just a word or two. Since it spans across two sides of the puzzle, solving it early helps you figure out the rest of the theme words and vice versa.
Tips and Tricks for Mastering NYT Strands Puzzles
Here are some simple tips and tricks that we suggest you follow to crack the theme words and Spangram for Strands puzzles:
- Always start at the corners: No two puzzles are the same. But a good strategy is to find and decrypt relevant words that are at the corners of the grid.
- Don’t be ashamed to get hints: A theme word could be all you need to solve today’s strands. If that requires getting a hint, then that’s the first thing you should do.
- Think both literally and figuratively: Some puzzles may welcome clever answers that may convey something totally different from their actual meaning.
- Aim for the Spangram: The Spangram is what splits the Strands board in half. So, figuring it out will help you cross out other potential approaches for a theme.
We’ll meet again for another Strands challenge tomorrow, so until then, sit back and stay tuned to our NYT Games coverage.
The theme for today’s NYT strands puzzle is – Rub it in, why don’t you?
Today’s Strands puzzle is mostly HORIZONTAL, and the answers include different skin-softening preparations. The Spangram answer for today’s Strands puzzle is — Moisturizers.
The answer to yesterday’s NYT strands puzzle was – ItsAMystery.
Unlike Connections and Wordle, NYT Strands doesn’t have a dedicated “archive” page. So, the only way to play old games is by tweaking your device’s time settings to a previous date and then accessing the NYT Strands website.
