The New York Times’ Strands puzzle for October 19th (#595) proved moderately challenging, but the underlying theme makes solving it accessible once identified. The core task is to uncover words that fit a specific category; revealing three four-letter words or longer triggers in-game hints towards the overall theme.
Puzzle Breakdown
Today’s Strands theme is centered around apples and associated autumnal treats. The puzzle utilizes a grid of letters where players must identify hidden words related to this subject.
Helpful Words to Start With
Several words can be extracted from the grid to unlock in-game theme hints:
- CARE
- RACE
- PURE
- TOME
- TOMES
- DRIFT
- DISC
- TUFT
- SUET
- FEUD
- SEER
These words, once found, will prompt the game to reveal theme-related clues.
Full Solutions
The complete list of answers for today’s Strands puzzle is as follows:
- CIDER
- JELLY
- SAUCE
- BUTTER
- COMPOTE
- FRITTER
- STRUDEL
The spangram (a word spanning the entire grid) is APPLES. Locate the ‘A’ on the far-left side, five letters down, and trace horizontally to uncover the full solution.
Difficulty Trends
Recent Strands puzzles have occasionally posed significant challenges. Examples include the January 21st puzzle featuring “Dated slang” (with “PHAT” as the most difficult word) and the January 15th puzzle on marine biology (“Thar she blows!,” with “BALEEN” or “RIGHT” being particularly tough).
These puzzles demonstrate that Strands can vary in difficulty, sometimes requiring specialized knowledge to solve efficiently.
