NYT Strands Hints and Answers for August 16, 2025

For the August 16, 2025 NYT Strands puzzle, the theme is “Think on it!” The spangram is LEFT BRAIN, and the six other theme words are ANALYSIS, LANGUAGE, LOGIC, NUMBERS, ORDER, and REASON. Use the hints below in order to avoid spoilers until you want them.

Progressive hints for Strands on August 16

Start with the theme

The puzzle’s theme clue is “Think on it!” A gentler nudge is: “Get that grey matter working.”

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1		Puzzle Mania!: Wordle, Connections, Spelling Bee, Minis and More! (New York Times Games Books)	$26.60	Buy on Amazon
2		The New York Times Strictly Medium Crossword Puzzles Volume 1: 200 Medium Puzzles	$7.75	Buy on Amazon
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4		The New York Times Monday Through Friday Easy to Tough Crossword Puzzles: 50 Puzzles from the Pages...	$13.98	Buy on Amazon
5		The New York Times Mini Crosswords, Volume 1: 150 Easy Fun-Sized Puzzles	$9.15	Buy on Amazon

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Hint for the spangram

It has nine letters and begins with L. The answer is shown below.

Spangram

LEFT BRAIN

All six theme words

• ANALYSIS
• LANGUAGE
• LOGIC
• NUMBERS
• ORDER
• REASON

These answers are for the puzzle dated August 16, 2025. TechRadar labels it game #531; archive numbering can differ, so the date is the clearest way to identify it.

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How Strands works

Strands is a word-search puzzle played on a six-by-eight grid. Find words that fit the theme by tracing adjacent letters horizontally, vertically, or diagonally; paths may change direction. Each letter is used once across the answers. The spangram captures the theme and touches two sides of the grid.

As Forbes contributor Kris Holt explains, three valid non-theme words of at least four letters unlock a hint that highlights a theme word. That article describes the game’s rules and the author’s own solving experience, not an official NYT statement about this particular puzzle.

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The puzzle-answer guides agree on the theme and answers. The available answer sources are third-party guides and archives rather than an official NYT archival answer page.

Quick Recap

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Puzzle Mania!: Wordle, Connections, Spelling Bee, Minis and More! (New York Times Games Books)

$26.60

SaleBestseller No. 2

The New York Times Strictly Medium Crossword Puzzles Volume 1: 200 Medium Puzzles

$7.75

SaleBestseller No. 3

New York Times Games Monday Through Friday 50 Easy to Tough Crossword Puzzles Volume 10 (New York Times Super Sunday Crosswords, 10)

$8.48

SaleBestseller No. 4

The New York Times Monday Through Friday Easy to Tough Crossword Puzzles: 50 Puzzles from the Pages of The New York Times (New York Times Crossword Puzzles)

$13.98

SaleBestseller No. 5

The New York Times Mini Crosswords, Volume 1: 150 Easy Fun-Sized Puzzles

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Best Value

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$9.15

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Rank #4

Sale

The New York Times Monday Through Friday Easy to Tough Crossword Puzzles: 50 Puzzles from the Pages of The New York Times (New York Times Crossword Puzzles)

$13.98

Buy on Amazon

Rank #3

Sale

New York Times Games Monday Through Friday 50 Easy to Tough Crossword Puzzles Volume 10 (New York Times Super Sunday Crosswords, 10)

$8.48

Buy on Amazon

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