Today's NYT Strands hints and answer: solutions to game #919, September 8

NYT Strands on a cellphone
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Need a bit of help with NYT Strands today? No shame in that, and you've come to the right place. Below, we've compiled some useful hints for Strands #919 as well as the answers, should it come to that.

We'll start off with some clues, before building up to the full answer for Strands #919, so read on if you need a little help.

Warning: Spoilers lie ahead for Strands #919.

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Today's NYT Strands answer — Today's theme and hints

The official theme for NYT Strands #919 is... "It's elementary!"

And here's an unofficial hint from me: "Time to learn."

If you're still in the dark, here are some useful words to give you those valuable clue tokens:

  • BOLD
  • CABLE
  • SALES
  • BLOOD
  • WOOD
  • LEGS
  • BITER
  • TIRES

Still struggling? The spangram touches two opposite sides of the board (but can start and end anywhere), and will give you a hint about the connection between the answers. Today, it starts with 'B' and ends in 'L'.

Scroll down to find out what it is...


It's BACKTOSCHOOL.

Today's Strands answers

So, what are today's Strands answers for game #919?

Drumroll, please...

  • DESK
  • CUBBY
  • WHITEBOARD
  • MARKERS
  • GLOBE
  • EASEL

Strands #919

(Image credit: Alan Martin)

...and the spangram was BACKTOSCHOOL.

Strands #919

“It's elementary!”

🟡🔵🔵🔵

🔵🔵🔵

Hi Strands fans. A nice easy one today, once I'd established that the word "Sherlock" wasn't on the board.

No, this is a puzzle about school: a word I saw written diagonally down the board from left to right. After that failed to connect on its own, I worked backwards and completed the spangram of BACKTOSCHOOL.

I then began looking for words associated with my (long distant) school days. DESK was in the bottom-right corner, with CUBBY above it.

WHITEBOARD was underneath the majority of the spangram, with MARKERS completing the bottom half.

Two words were left to find in the top section. GLOBE was on the right, with EASEL to its left to complete the puzzle.

Yesterday's Strands answers

Reading this in a later time zone? Here are the Strands answers for game #918.

Strands #918

(Image credit: Alan Martin)
  • COMPROMISE
  • SETTLE
  • AGREE
  • NEGOTIATE
  • SHARE

...and the spangram was MEETMEHALFWAY.

Strands #918

“It's a deal!”

🟡🔵🔵🔵

🔵🔵

Hi Strands fans. Today's puzzle was pretty simple, as I saw the spangram of MEETMEHALFWAY immediately upon loading the page.

That made it clear that the puzzle was related to negotiation, and I quickly found COMPROMISE in the bottom-left corner. SETTLE was to its right to complete the bottom half of the board.

I then found AGREE in the top-right corner, with NEGOTIATE immediately below it. That just left SHARE to its left to complete the puzzle.

Freelance contributor Alan has been writing about tech for over a decade, covering phones, drones and everything in between. Previously Deputy Editor of tech site Alphr, his words are found all over the web and in the occasional magazine too. When not weighing up the pros and cons of the latest smartwatch, you'll probably find him tackling his ever-growing games backlog. He also handles all the Wordle coverage on Tom's Guide and has been playing the addictive NYT game for the last several years in an effort to keep his streak forever intact.