Listed below are the solutions for the NYT Strands puzzle #488 immediately, launched on July 4th, 2025, and a few hints that can assist you remedy them.
The New York Instances are recognized for the big selection of video games they publish for readers to finish on the every day. They’d additionally printed the viral phrase recreation, Wordle, in 2022, so as to add to their assortment.
A brand new recreation has been launched by the paper, referred to as Strands, which is at present in beta. On this recreation, there’s a theme of phrases on a board and you could discover the theme associated phrases.
After you have discovered a theme associated phrase, it’s going to keep crammed in blue and to create these phrases, you will want to tug or sort the letters. The entire letters on the board are used to make up phrases for the theme and the letters don’t overlap into different phrases.

There may be additionally a “spangram” which is a phrase on the board that describes the theme of the puzzle for the day. It would contact two reverse sides of the board and could also be two phrases.
After you have discovered the spangram phrase, it’s going to keep highlighted in yellow.
An instance of a spangram is FRUIT, and the opposite themed phrases can be PEAR, BANANA and APPLE.

In case you are struggling to search out any phrases referring to the theme, you’ll be able to attempt to discover different phrases on the board, which won’t keep highlighted, however will enable you to to get hints. You will have to search out three non-theme phrases to get a touch.
Strands 488 Hints Right this moment (July 4th, 2025)
Today’s theme or trace for the puzzle is, “LET’S HAVE A PICNIC!” and there are seven theme phrases to be discovered.

Extra hints that can assist you remedy the Strands puzzle launched immediately is:
- One phrase within the Spangram.
- There are eight letters within the Spangram phrase immediately.
Strands 488 Spangram Reply Right this moment (July 4th, 2025)
With each puzzle, there’s a spangram, which helps describe the theme. The spangram for the puzzle launched on July 4th is:
BARBECUE
The phrase begins on the high and ends on the backside of the grid.
The precise location of the Spangram phrase might be seen under:

Strands 488 Resolution Right this moment (July 4th, 2025)
Listed below are the entire different themed phrases for the Stands 488 puzzle:
- BURGERS
- SALAD
- WATERMELON
- COLESLAW
- BRATS
- BEANS

Tell us within the feedback under which phrases you bought caught on.
