"The New York Times has published a series of daily puzzles, including Strands and Connections editions, spanning dates in May 2024 and May through June 2026. The puzzles cover distinct themes ranging from dance and oddness to Formula One racing and music slang."
NYT Strands Puzzles
May 2, 2024: "Line Dance"
The May 2, 2024, Strands puzzle featured a theme related to movement and dancing. The spangram, a special word summarizing the theme, was "Line Dance," oriented vertically. The complete word list included: Pony, Scuff, Kick, Shuffle, Wizard, Sailor, and Coaster.
May 3, 2024: "That's Odd"
The May 3, 2024, Strands puzzle focused on a theme of oddness or unusualness. The spangram was "That's Odd," displayed vertically. The puzzle's words were: Strange, Weird, Peculiar, Unusual, Bizarre, and Quirky.
Game Mechanics
In Strands, players find words by linking letters in any direction (up, down, left, right, diagonal) and changing direction. Every letter in the grid must be used as part of an answer. The spangram spans the entire grid either horizontally or vertically and encapsulates the puzzle's theme.
NYT Connections Puzzles
May 8, 2026
The Connections puzzle for May 8, 2026, included the following categories:
- Yellow (Canoodling): FIRST BASE, MAKING OUT, TONSIL HOCKEY, NECKING
- Green (Five-sided things): SCHOOL CROSSING SIGN, THE PENTAGON, HOME PLATE, PITCHER'S MOUND
- Blue (Unexpected places to be "out of"): LEFT FIELD, THE BLUE, NOWHERE, THIN AIR
- Purple (Ending in candy brands minus "S"): MEMENTO, FILM NERD, JEANS BACK POCKET, BURGER KING WHOPPER
June 9, 2026
The June 9, 2026, Connections puzzle featured the following categories:
- Yellow (Symbols of innocence): ANGEL, BABE, DOVE, LAMB
- Green (Things you're not supposed to reveal): PASSWORD, SECRET, SPOILER, SURPRISE
- Blue (Things represented in superscript): ASTERISK, DEGREE, EXPONENT, TRADEMARK
- Purple (Slang for musical instruments): AXE, BONE, KEYS, SKINS
June 23, 2026
The June 23, 2026, Connections puzzle included the following categories:
- Yellow (Dance styles): FOXTROT, MODERN, SWING, TAP
- Green (In a Monopoly box): DEED, HOTEL, MONEY, TOKEN
- Blue (Content sorting options online): FEATURED, POPULAR, RECENT, TRENDING
- Purple (Things with mantles/mantels): EARTH, EMPEROR, FIREPLACE, YANKEES
Sports Edition #612 (2026)
The Connections: Sports Edition puzzle #612 required knowledge of Formula One and included the following categories:
- Yellow (Found on a uniform): NUMBER, SPONSOR PATCH, SURNAME, TEAM NAME
- Green (Teams to reach the NHL conference finals): CAROLINA, COLORADO, MONTREAL, VEGAS
- Blue (2026 F1 Grand Prix locations): AUSTIN, MADRID, MEXICO CITY, MONZA
- Purple (____cast): BROAD, POD, SPORTS, STAT
Game Mechanics
In Connections, players are given a grid of 16 words and must sort them into four groups of four based on common themes. Groups are color-coded by difficulty: yellow (easiest), green, blue, and purple (hardest).