Jul 13, 2025
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NYT Strands puzzles out creepy-crawly creatures with an insect-inspired theme
The spangram INSECT unites eight tiny-but-mighty theme words
Words like BUTTERFLY, WASP, FLEA, and MANTIS challenge your vocabulary with buzzing brilliance
It’s Thursday, and the month is coming to a close. Wallets are light, coffee is a necessity, and payday can’t come soon enough. While you tally up the hours until that paycheck arrives, why not keep your brain occupied with today’s New York Times Strands puzzle?
Today’s puzzle is full of little surprises, a bug-themed grid that just might bug you in all the best ways. As you wade through this sea of words, each word solved is a mini triumph, and a mental payday that you sorely need.
Today’s puzzle transports us to the realm of six-legged critters. From elegant fliers to little jumpers, this subject is a celebration of the fascinating, underrated world of insects. Whether they zoom, sting, or creep, these creatures are all part of nature’s buzzing equilibrium.
As with all Strands, the puzzle is a 6x8 grid of words that are all interconnected in the form of a common theme. Your task: find blue-highlighted theme words and one yellow-highlighted spangram, a word or phrase that crosses at least two borders of the board and summarizes the theme. Theme words are ordinary nouns; the spangram could be a proper one.
Start with identifying any three acceptable four-letter words or more, even if they don’t relate to anything. This opens the Hint button, which reveals one theme word. Then, the sequence starts unfolding, tiny creatures in plain sight, ready to be discovered by the swipe of your finger or the tap of your mouse.
Today’s puzzle revolves around INSECT, wending its way through the board and bringing together the buzzing, flying, biting theme. It’s the puzzle glue, an umbrella term for the mini wonders that call the grid home.
This month-end swarm contains eight themed solutions:
BUTTERFLY – The graceful flyer that symbolizes change
DRAGONFLY – A flying wonder of symmetry and loveliness
HORNET – Bigger, nastier, and ineradicable
MANTIS – The silent hunter with hands clasped
WASP – A striped flyer with a stinging pain
FLEA – A tiny jumper that hits hard
MOTH – Attracted to light, shrouded in secrecy
Today’s Strands is more than a puzzle; it’s a cerebral palate cleanser before the weekend crush (and pay relief). With INSECT as glue, every word is a tip of the hat to the creepy-crawly strength we take for granted. So, if your bank accounts on empty, comfort yourself: your mind is still full of wonder, and today’s Strands provides just the kickstart it requires.
