For Wednesday, November 5, 2025, the NYT Strands puzzle is game #612. Its theme is “The butterfly effect.” Start with the hints below if you want to solve it yourself, or skip to the spoiler-marked answer list.
Hints for today’s Strands
- Theme: The butterfly effect.
- A more literal nudge: Think of a butterfly’s life cycle and the monarch’s seasonal journey.
Strands lets you form words by dragging or tapping letters. Theme words are highlighted blue once found, and finding words that are not part of the theme earns hints. The spangram describes the theme and touches two opposite sides of the board. These rules are reproduced by Parade from the New York Times; this explanation is based on that secondary account.
What is the Strands spangram for November 5?
The spangram is MONARCHS.
Answers for Wednesday, November 5, 2025
Spoiler warning: The full answer list is below.
- CHRYSALIS
- CATERPILLAR
- HATCH
- MIGRATE
- MILKWEED
- Spangram: MONARCHS
The words are listed for readability, not as a required solve order. TechRadar and Forbes reported the same answer set for game #612. TechRadar and Forbes coverage
Which puzzle does “today” refer to?
This guide is for Wednesday, November 5, 2025, game #612—not the current daily puzzle. TechRadar reports that a new Strands puzzle appears at midnight in each time zone, so “today” can refer to different puzzles depending on where and when you play. TechRadar’s explanation of the daily release
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