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NYT Strands puzzle #297, for Wednesday, December 25, 2024, has the theme “A Visit From Santa.” The spangram is STOCKING. Start with the hints below if you want to solve it yourself; the complete answer list is farther down.
Hints for the December 25 Strands puzzle
Theme hint
The theme points to gifts someone might receive at Christmas.
First-letter hints
The eight regular theme words begin with TO, PL, SO, OR, CO, CA, SC, and PE. The spangram begins with ST.
Spangram direction
The spangram runs vertically, from the bottom of the board to the top.
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Full answer list
Spoilers below: the complete solution is listed here.
- TOYS
- PLUSHIE
- SOCKS
- ORANGE
- COAL
- CANDY
- SCARF
- PENS
Spangram: STOCKING
How the spangram and hints work
The spangram describes the theme and connects two opposite sides of the board; it may consist of two words. Parade reproduces this explanation from The New York Times game instructions. In this puzzle, STOCKING is the spangram and its path is vertical, bottom to top.
Theme words are highlighted blue and the spangram yellow. Finding three words that are not part of the theme earns a hint revealing the letters of a theme word, according to Parade’s guide to this puzzle.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Sources and answer check
The answers are listed by Parade and Try Hard Guides, and the December 25 entry in the Puzzlesbay Strands archive also corroborates the set. There are eight regular theme words plus the spangram. Try Hard Guides’ prose says seven words, but its own list contains eight regular words and STOCKING; the complete list above reflects the corroborated answer set.
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