Hey there, puzzle lovers! Ready to dive into today’s NYT Strands? We’ve got the hints, spangram, and answers for Sunday, March 2, right here. Let’s get started!
How to Play NYT Strands
Strands is a fresh twist on the classic word search. You can play it on the NYT website or the NYT Games app, alongside favorites like Wordle and Connections.
Each day, you’ll face a new puzzle with a 6×8 letter grid. Your goal? Find words that share a common theme. A clue will guide you. When you spot a theme word, it turns blue.
But wait—there’s more! You’ll also need to find the spangram. This special word ties the theme together and connects two sides of the grid. It might be a proper name, unlike the theme words. When found, it highlights in yellow.
Every letter is used once in either a theme word or the spangram. You can link letters vertically, horizontally, or diagonally, and even switch directions mid-word. On touchscreens, double-tap the last letter to submit your guess.
Stuck? Find three valid words (at least four letters long) that aren’t theme words to unlock the Hint button. It’ll highlight letters from a theme word.
Heads up: The puzzles vary in difficulty. Some days, you’ll fill in missing words in phrases. Other times, you’ll tackle synonyms or homophones. Stay sharp!
Today’s Strands Hint
Scroll carefully! After the hint, we’ll reveal the answers.
The official theme hint for today is…
Getting closure
Need more help? Here’s another clue…
Keep it together
You’ll need to find eight theme words in total, with the spangram included among them.
Today’s NYT Strands Hints
Spoiler alert! Stop scrolling if you’re not ready for the hints.
Here are the first two letters of each theme word, ordered from left to right and top to bottom:
- CL
- BU
- SN
- FA
- VE
- MA
- ZI
- BU
Today’s NYT Strands Answers
Final spoiler warning! Here’s the spangram and full word list.
Today’s spangram is…
FASTENERS
And here’s where it sits on the grid…
Today’s theme words are:
- CLASP
- BUTTON
- SNAP
- FASTENERS
- VELCRO
- MAGNET
- ZIPPER
- BUCKLE
My Solving Experience
This was one of the quickest Strands solves for me—under a minute!
The letter “Z” caught my eye, leading me to ZIPPER. Once the theme clicked, BUCKLE and MAGNET followed easily. The spangram, FASTENERS, helped me spot VELCRO. BUTTON, CLASP, and SNAP wrapped it up smoothly.
No hints needed, and the spangram was the third word I found. A satisfying win!
