Today's NYT Strands answers, clues, and hints on October 21 (puzzle #962)
This article provides a guide and tips for solving the daily NYT Strands word puzzle for October 21, 2026. It explains the game's mechanics, including how to find theme words and the 'spangram' within the grid.
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The goal is to find a selection of hidden words related to a broader theme within a 48-letter grid (6×8). Unlike a traditional word search puzzle, you can string together adjacent letters in any direction, and the goal is to complete the entire board. In addition to the theme words, there’s also the “spangram”: a word that describes today’s theme and touches two opposite sides of the grid (it can also be multiple words). You’ll know it’s the spangram, as it’s highlighted in yellow once found.
The theme for today’s Strands is “On a higher level” . NYT rates the difficulty of today’s puzzle (#962) as “moderate”.
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