NYT Strands Hints and Answers for May 5, 2025 (#428)

NYT Strands puzzle #428, for Monday, May 5, 2025, has the theme “On the side.” A spoiler-light hint: think of a restaurant side dish, especially different kinds of fries. If you want the full solution, it appears below a clear spoiler break.

Hints for Strands #428

Start with the theme

“On the side” points to something you might order alongside a meal at a restaurant or fast-food spot. The answers are varieties of French fries.

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First-two-letter prompts

Parade reports these starting-letter prompts for the six theme words and spangram: HO, CU, CR, ST, WA, SH, and FR.

Spangram placement

The spangram is 11 letters long. Parade describes it as mostly vertical, running from top to bottom; TechRadar says it touches the right edge at rows one and four.

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How Strands hints work

Parade’s gameplay guide says that finding three non-theme words earns a hint showing the letters of a theme word. You can drag letters or tap them to form words; when tapping, double-tap the final letter to submit. Found theme words stay highlighted blue, and theme words fill the board without overlapping. The spangram describes the theme and touches two opposite sides of the board; it may consist of two words.

Spoilers: May 5 Strands answers

The following answers are reported by Parade and TechRadar, whose date-matched reports agree on the solution set. The original NYT archive entry was not independently verified.

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Spangram

FRENCHFRIES (also written as “FRENCH FRIES”).

Theme words

• HOME
• CURLY
• CRINKLE
• STEAK
• WAFFLE
• SHOESTRING

Sources

• Parade’s May 5, 2025 Strands hints and answers
• TechRadar’s May 5, 2025 Strands hints and answers

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