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The New York Times daily word puzzle, NYT Strands, continues challenging and engaging players with its clever word associations. Launched just a year ago, this word game has taken the online gaming arena by storm. Perfect for sharpening vocabulary, and bonding with family and friends while also being the perfect commute partner.
For February 17, the puzzle focuses on shades of a colour, offering players a vibrant mental exercise.
Now, without any further ado, let’s deep dive into the world of colourful word challenges for today!
Unlike some abstract or tricky themes, today’s puzzle is refreshingly straightforward. The theme revolves around different shades of yellow, a colour often associated with warmth, energy, and brightness. Each word in today’s Strands puzzle represents a distinct shade of yellow, making the puzzle a delightful way to explore the vast variety within a single-colour family.
Whether thinking of mustard on a sandwich, a lemon’s tangy zest, or the deep gold of saffron, players are taken on a colourful journey. The simplicity of the theme makes it accessible, but the challenge lies in recalling and identifying specific shades.
The spangram is the longest, most essential word in NYT Strands and often provides a crucial hint toward solving the puzzle. Today’s spangram is a six-letter shade of colour which perfectly encapsulates the theme. Unlike some puzzles where the spangram can be tricky to spot, today's direction is rather linear, making it a little easier to identify. Once players find the six-letter spanagram, they can use it as a reference to uncover the rest of the words.
Here’s a helping hand for all players:
Hint: This word is often connected with happiness, friendship and sunshine.
Direction: Horizontal
And drumrolls, please!!!
February 17 NYT Strands Spanagram Answer
Answer: Yellow
For those who may have struggled or simply want to verify their answers, here’s the complete list of words in today’s puzzle:
Word 1: A deep, warm yellow, often associated with the prized spice derived from crocus flowers.
Word 2: A bright, vivid yellow, reminiscent of the feathers of a canary bird.
Word 3: A fresh, springtime yellow, inspired by the petals of daffodil flowers.
Word 4: The spangram and the unifying colour in today’s puzzle.
Word 5: A darker, earthy shade of yellow, commonly associated with the condiment.
Word 6: A sharp, citrusy yellow, representing the colour of the fruit.
Word 7: A rich, golden yellow, named after the wildflower that blooms in late summer.
One of the most enjoyable aspects of today's NYT Strands puzzle is its ability to make players think in colours. While yellow might seem like a straightforward hue, the variety within it is vast. Each of the words featured today represents a unique shade, used in different contexts—nature, food, fashion, and beyond.
This theme also makes players appreciate the subtlety of language. Some people may think that citrus and yellow are some of the shades on their palette, but they will barely know ‘ maize’ and saffron’ are too. The final test is to join the recognized signs to their less usual colours.
Saffron
Canary
Daffodil
Yellow
Mustard
Lemon
Goldenrod
Today’s NYT Strands puzzle showcases its simplicity while showing how engaging and informative it can be. These examples demonstrate that playing with colours can be both an imaginative and an exciting activity. For those who liked today’s challenge, NYT Strands provides more daily wordplay and logic problems in the form of crosswords. Wait for more interesting themes and do not forget to practice your knowledge of vocabularies more as the next puzzle is coming soon!
Here is the link to the NYT Strands page. Happily puzzling!
