Today's NYT Strands Hints, Answer and Help for Aug. 16 #531
Today's NYT Strands puzzle really stumped me. Even after I thought I understood the theme, I didn't see any obvious words to look for, and struggled to unscramble the ones I did get. Want help with today's NYT Strands puzzle? If you need hints and answers, read on.
I go into depth about the rules for Strands in this story.
If you're looking for today's Wordle, Connections and Mini Crossword answers, you can visit CNET's NYT puzzle hints page.
Read more: NYT Connections Turns 1: These Are the 5 Toughest Puzzles So Far
Hint for today's Strands puzzle
Today's Strands theme is: Think on it!
If that doesn't help you, here's a clue: Smarty pants.
Clue words to unlock in-game hints
Your goal is to find hidden words that fit the puzzle's theme. If you're stuck, find any words you can. Every time you find three words of four letters or more, Strands will reveal one of the theme words. These are the words I used to get those hints but any words of four or more letters that you find will work:
SLOG, SILO, BANG, BALE, BUNS, BURS, BRAIN, RAIN, LEAF, DRESS, SURE, COIL, COILS, NUMB, REAR, GORE, GORED
Answers for today's Strands puzzle
These are the answers that tie into the theme. The goal of the puzzle is to find them all, including the spangram, a theme word that reaches from one side of the puzzle to the other. When you have all of them (I originally thought there were always eight but learned that the number can vary), every letter on the board will be used. Here are the nonspangram answers:
LOGIC, ORDER, REASON, NUMBERS, ANALYSIS, LANGUAGE
Today's Strands spangram
The completed NYT Strands puzzle for Aug. 16, 2025, #531.
NYT/Screenshot by CNET
Today's Strands spangram is LEFTBRAIN. To find it, look for the L that's two letters over on the top row, and wind down.
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