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The September 17 gag on NYT Strands focuses on punning with word halves, opposite forces, with a touch of puzzle magic.
Identifying the spangram OPPOSITESATTRACT is a very efficient means of amalgamating all theme words in the grid.
Using hints and recognizing antonyms improves vocabulary, logic, and pattern recognition skills.
Word Puzzle fans are in for a treat with Strands in the New York Times today. The Wednesday edition returns the fun with one of the longest spangrams in recent memory. This hybrid serves as a mixture of word searches and thematic puzzles, where players identify relationships, improve their vocabulary, and develop their logical thinking.
The theme of the Set for the seventeenth of September is Word Pairs, focusing on opposites. Every word in the puzzle has its opposite, providing a neat pattern for solvers to recognize.
Acknowledging this idea as the central theme will help the player anticipate answers and recognize them as fast as possible in the six-by-eight letter grid. It is quite a clever theme that forces attention to detail but rewards quick thinking and pattern recognition.
Hints guide solvers to spot the theme words, especially when tackling shorter or trickier terms. Here’s a helpful breakdown:
The first word is five letters, starts with an R, and describes something stiff.
There is a four-letter word that begins with a B, synced together with fearless.
A five-letter word beginning with T is hinted at as the opposite of bold.
A five-letter word begins with Q; that would be the opposite of silence.
This would be the fifth word starting with an N and containing five letters, meaning the opposite of quiet.
The sixth word is F with eight letters, and the hint is a synonym of adjustable.
Players can also uncover words by finding any four-letter terms first. NYT Strands rewards consistent progress: finding three words of four letters or more unlocks additional theme hints.
The non-spangram answers for September 17 are:
Rigid
Flexible
Bold
Timid
Quiet
Noisy
These words are paired conceptually, making it easier to anticipate and locate the corresponding opposite.
Today’s spangram is:
OPPOSITESATTRACT
This spangram, at sixteen letters, is among the longest registered in recent Strands history. It runs across the grid, tying all theme words together. Recognizing it early makes solving the puzzle more efficient and rewarding, as it demonstrates the puzzle's ingenious employment of word relationships.
Strands test observation, vocabulary, and logic. Using an orderly method for solving gives a better flow:
Early identification of thematics. If one can start spotting some word patterns or categories, they can better predict the answers.
Scan systematically. Go through rows, columns, and diagonals to avoid missing words.
Use shorter words first. Four-letter terms often trigger helpful in-game hints.
Spot related word pairs. Recognizing antonyms can make other answers obvious.
Trace the spangram carefully. Longer spangrams can confirm the theme and connect the grid.
The September 17 NYT Strands puzzle combines clever wordplay, logic, and good vocabulary-building practice. The opposites concept helps the solver see the pattern comparatively quickly and enjoy the challenge of the record-length spangram. Daily Strands puzzles provide a fun and stimulating way to train the brain, increase one's word power, and enjoy thematic variations that keep one on her toes daily.
