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Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errorsFree Scan →Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitchesFind Drivers →Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsFix Now →This is the archived answer guide for NYT Strands game #459, dated Thursday, June 5, 2025—not the live puzzle. The theme clue is “Mary, Mary, quite …” If you want to solve it yourself, start with the hints below; the spangram and full word list follow.
Hints for the June 5 Strands puzzle
- Theme clue: “Mary, Mary, quite …”
- Connection: Think of a familiar nursery rhyme. The phrase continues with a question about how a garden grows.
- Spangram length: Six letters.
- Spangram route: It begins at the left edge in row three and ends at the right edge in row four.
June 5, 2025 Strands answers
The spangram is GARDEN. It connects the opposite sides of the board and completes the nursery-rhyme reference.
The theme words are COCKLESHELLS, PRETTY, MAIDS, SILVER, BELLS, and CONTRARY. The two guides consulted differ on one answer: TechRadar gives MAIDS, while Forbes gives MAID. The available sources do not resolve that singular/plural discrepancy.
Why these words fit the theme
The clue points to the rhyme “Mary, Mary, quite contrary … How does your garden grow?” Its familiar wording includes silver bells, cockle shells, and pretty maids. The spangram, GARDEN, supplies the rhyme’s central image; the other answers echo its wording.
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How Strands works
Strands uses a six-by-eight letter grid. Find words that fit the day’s theme: found theme words turn blue, while the spangram is highlighted yellow. The spangram describes what the other answers have in common and links opposite sides of the board. As The New York Times puts it, “Some themes are fill-in-the-blank phrases. They may also be steps in a process, items that all belong to the same category, synonyms or homophones,” as quoted by Forbes.
TechRadar labeled this puzzle “Easy”; that is the guide’s subjective rating, not a measured difficulty score.
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