Strands #978 hints
The official theme was "Autumn walk in the woods". If that alone doesn't help, work down the hints below.
Hints revealed: 0
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What's the theme in plain words?Gentle hint
Stroll under the trees in fall and you'll come across tiny natural bits that drop down or grow on the ground and bark.
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How many words am I looking for?Gentle hint
There are 7 theme words plus the spangram.
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A nudge toward the spangramHelpful hint
Well, the whole ground layer beneath the trees is where everything ends up, and that word spans the board from one side to the other.
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How do the theme words start?Helpful hint
The theme words start with: A, B, H, L, M, P, T.
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How long is the spangram, and which way does it run?Strong hint: spangram length
The spangram has 11 letters and runs from top to bottom.
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Play Strands #978
The same letter grid NYT shows. Drag across touching letters, or tap them one by one and tap the last letter again to check. Theme words turn blue and the spangram turns yellow. Hint outlines one word you haven't found. Nothing is saved, so your real game stays untouched.
Strands #978 in numbers
- Theme words
- 7
- Recent average
- 5.8
- Longest theme word
- 8 letters
- Rare letters on this board: K, V, W. Words with them are a good place to start, since few words can use them.
- The 8 answers use all 48 letters, an average of 6.0 letters each.
Strands #978 answers
Spoiler zone. Below are the spangram and all theme words for November 6, 2026.
Reveal one word at a time
Only want a foothold? Open one word, find it on the board, then go back and try for the rest. Shorter words come first because they give away the least.
Theme word 1 (4 letters, reveals the word)
HUSK. It starts in row 3, column 2, counting from the top left.
Theme word 2 (4 letters, reveals the word)
MOSS. It starts in row 4, column 2, counting from the top left.
Theme word 3 (4 letters, reveals the word)
TWIG. It starts in row 4, column 6, counting from the top left.
Theme word 4 (5 letters, reveals the word)
ACORN. It starts in row 5, column 6, counting from the top left.
Theme word 5 (6 letters, reveals the word)
BRANCH. It starts in row 2, column 6, counting from the top left.
Theme word 6 (6 letters, reveals the word)
LEAVES. It starts in row 6, column 5, counting from the top left.
Theme word 7 (8 letters, reveals the word)
PINECONE. It starts in row 6, column 1, counting from the top left.
The spangram (11 letters, reveals it)
FORESTFLOOR. It starts in row 1, column 1, counting from the top left.
Everything at once
Show every theme word and the solved board (full spoiler)
Spangram: FORESTFLOOR
Theme words: ACORN, BRANCH, HUSK, LEAVES, MOSS, PINECONE, TWIG
An autumn walk in the woods has you looking down at things like ACORN, PINECONE, LEAVES, TWIG, BRANCH, HUSK and MOSS. They all gather on the FORESTFLOOR, which ties the whole set together.
Puzzle note
The puzzle turned once FORESTFLOOR appeared and tied everything together. HUSK and MOSS were the tricky ones, since ACORN and PINECONE felt far more obvious and came to mind first. On scene clues, imagine looking down at the ground.
On the board, the spangram FORESTFLOOR stretches between the top and bottom edges and uses 2 corner letters.
Recent Strands puzzles
| Date | Puzzle | Theme |
|---|---|---|
| Nov 5 | #977 | Handle with care |
| Nov 4 | #976 | Getting the job done |
| Nov 3 | #975 | I've got a song in my heart |
| Nov 2 | #974 | High and mighty |
| Nov 1 | #973 | For the rest of the day |
| Oct 31 | #972 | It's in the bag |
| Oct 30 | #971 | All charged up |
About Strands
NYT Strands is a themed word search: 48 letters, a short clue, and one spangram that runs edge to edge. Looking at past themes shows how often the clue is a pun, which is the key to solving quickly.
Other puzzles on Nov 6
Strands #978 questions
What was the Strands theme on November 6, 2026?
The official clue for Strands #978 was "Autumn walk in the woods", with 7 theme words plus a spangram.
What was the Strands spangram on November 6, 2026?
The spangram for Strands #978 was FORESTFLOOR, for the theme "Autumn walk in the woods".
What were the Strands theme words on November 6, 2026?
ACORN, BRANCH, HUSK, LEAVES, MOSS, PINECONE, TWIG, plus the spangram FORESTFLOOR.
What did the Strands #978 clue mean?
An autumn walk in the woods has you looking down at things like ACORN, PINECONE, LEAVES, TWIG, BRANCH, HUSK and MOSS. They all gather on the FORESTFLOOR, which ties the whole set together.
How long was the Strands #978 spangram?
FORESTFLOOR has 11 letters, and the 7 theme words started with A, B, H, L, M, P, T.