NYT Offers Festive Clues for Christmas Holidays

The NYT Games Strands puzzle for Christmas Day presents a festive challenge! To conquer this word puzzle, you'll need to decipher the theme and untangle the words hidden within the letter grid.

Even experienced Strands players might need some assistance. This guide provides clues, hints, and—if needed—the complete solution.

NYT Games Strands Puzzle #297 - December 25, 2024

Today's Strands puzzle clue is A Visit From Santa. The goal is to find nine items: a pangram and eight thematically related words.

NYT Games Strands Clues

The following sections offer increasing levels of assistance, revealing one word per section.

General Hint 1

Hint 1: What kind of gifts might Santa bring?

General Hint 2

Hint 2: Consider smaller, often individually wrapped gifts.

General Hint 3

Hint 3: What small items might fill a Christmas stocking?

Spoilers for Two Words in Today's Strands

These sections provide spoilers, including the word and its location in the grid.

Spoiler 1

Word 1: Candy

Spoiler 2

Word 2: Toys

The Answer to Today's NYT Games Strands

The complete solution is provided below. This includes all themed words and their placement within the grid.

The theme is Stocking. The words are: Toys, Plushie, Orange, Socks, Scarf, Coal, Candy, and Pens.

Today's Strands Explained

The theme's connection to the clue is explained here.

"A Visit from Santa" implies gifts, many of which are small enough for a Stocking. All themed words are common Christmas stocking fillers.

Ready to play? Find the NYT Games Strands website; it's accessible on most devices with a browser.