Today’s NYT Strands clues, answers and help for December 14, #286

Today’s NYT Strands clues, answers and help for December 14, #286

Looking for that Latest Strand’s answer? Click here for our daily Strands tips, as well as our daily answers and clues for the New York Times Mini Crosswords, Wordle and Connections puzzles.


“Strands” was something of a puzzle for me today. I’ve found that I do better on puzzles that involve very specific objects, like species of fish or Taylor Swift albums. I’m not so comfortable with the “they” being just…a concept and there really isn’t a short list of words that fit the bill. Today was one of those days. If you need hints or answers, read on.

I also go into detail about the rules for Strands in this story.

If you are looking for today’s word, connect and mini crossword puzzle answers, you can visit CNET’s NYT Puzzle Clues page.

Read more: NYT Connections turns 1: These are the 5 most difficult puzzles so far

Clue for today’s Strands puzzle

Today’s Strands topic is: Nothing can stop me!

If that doesn’t help you, here’s a hint: determination! Also “Eye of the Tiger”.

Clue words to unlock clues in the game

Your goal is to find hidden words that match the theme of the puzzle. If you get stuck, find all the words you can. Every time you find three words with four or more letters, Strands reveals one of the theme words. These are the words I used to get these clues, but any words with four or more letters that you find will work:

  • NOTE, VOTE, GONE, STENT, SETS, GIST, DEER, TINE, STAR, RATS, RATE, DOVE, TENNIS, TEED, SINE, PASS, PAST.

Answers for today’s Strands puzzle

These are the answers that fit the topic. The goal of the puzzle is to find them all, including the spangram, a theme word that extends from one side of the puzzle to the other. Once you have all of them (I originally thought it would always be eight, but learned that the number can vary), every letter on the board is used. Here are the non-Spangram answers:

  • FIRE, DRIVE, PASSION, PURPOSE, INTENSITY, DEDICATION.

Today’s Strands Spangram

Today’s Strands Spangram is GOGETTER. To find it, start with the G, which is two lines from the far left, and add five letters down. Move slightly to the left, then up and up.

completed-nyt-strands-puzzle-for-12/14/2024

The completed NYT Strands puzzle for December 14, 2024.

NYT/Screenshot from CNET

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