Ready to solve NYT Strands puzzle (#534 – August 19, 2025)? Here are the hints and the full solution. Today’s theme will definitely click once you see the connections!
Okay first some basic for NYT Strands. Strands is The New York Times’ newer word game that feels like a mix of Word Search and “spot the theme.”
Instead of just hunting random words, you’re finding terms that all connect under a common topic. It’s trickier than Wordle and often sneaky with overlaps, but that’s what makes it addictive.
Today’s Theme
Extraordinary Theme and Extraordinary Puzzle, The puzzle’s theme is basically shouting “DASH IT!”—pointing to words joined with hyphens. Stylish, right? It’s a neat hint that all the answers are those funky hyphenated, repetitive phrases.
You can also check answers for Quordle Classic Chill Extreme and Sequence, Bandle Hints and Answer, and Globle mystery country revealed here.
Hints
Here are some simple hints to find answers damn quick.
- All the answers today comes with hyphen like double-trouble.
- Spangram itself shouting it loudly that answers are Hyphenated.
- All words are same except one alphabet. e.g. Call-Tall.
- There are total four words with a spangram.
Okay that it from my side for hints section lets go to Answers.
Answers with Spangram
Alright, squad, these are your weapons:
- HOCUS-POCUS
- HOITY-TOITY
- WILLY-NILLY
- PELLMELL
Spangram is HYPHENATED
Even after knowing answers i am sure that finding them is difficult, no worries i have provided solution screenshot below check it out.
Today’s Strands fried my brain like a cheap toaster. First, the hyphens. Absolute chaos gremlins. Do I use them? Do I not? US English says one thing, British English says another, and I’m just sitting here experiencing a full Windows XP blue screen.
Then, once I got the spangram, my brain turned into static. All I could see was a wall of Ls and Ys—like the alphabet version of “The Shining.” All work and no play makes Jack a willy-nilly boy.
Two hints later and I was still struggling, wandering through every possible version of WILLY NILLY like it was some cursed side quest. Spoiler: there are too many ways to spell nonsense.
But after tearing out half my hair and screaming directly into a bucket (therapeutic, 10/10 recommend), I actually finished it. And yeah… it was painful. But like, the good kind of painful.
