NYT Strands today — hints, spangram and answers for game #295 (Monday, December 23 2024)

NYT Strands on a cellphone
(Image credit: Tom’s Guide/NY Times/Shutterstock)
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Need some assistance with NYT Strands today? Today's theme — "Pass the eggnog" — is pretty clearly Christmas themed, but how?

Below, we've compiled some useful hints for Strands #295, 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 #295, so read on if you need a little help.

Warning: Spoilers lie ahead for Strands #295.

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

The official theme for NYT Strands #295 is... "Pass the eggnog".

And here's an unofficial hint from me: "Taste and scents of the season."

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

  • CRANE
  • MINER
  • BARD
  • COMA
  • MOOT
  • NINE
  • BEARD

Still struggling? The spangram will give you a hint about the connection word. Today, it starts with H and ends with R.

Scroll down to find out what it is...

It's HOLIDAYFLAVOR.

Today's Strands answers

So, what are today's Strands answers for game #295?

Drumroll, please...

  • GINGERBREAD
  • PEPPERMINT
  • COCOA
  • CRANBERRY

Strands #295

(Image credit: Alan Martin)

...and the spangram was HOLIDAYFLAVOR.

Strands #295

“Pass the eggnog”

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Hi Strands fans. With a theme like "Pass the eggnog", for the second day in a row, this was clearly going to be a seasonal puzzle.

At first, I thought I might have to list the ingredients of said festive drink, but when I found GINGERBREAD curled around the middle of the board, I realized this was about Christmas scents and tastes more generally.

I found PEPPERMINT next, and with 21 out of 48 letters already claimed, I cottoned on to the fact that this was set to be the smallest Strands puzzle yet, with only five answers including the spangram. Said spangram was another long one - HOLIDAYFLAVOR coiled around itself at the very top of the grid, leaving just 14 letters unclaimed

The last two answers were a bit smaller, therefore. COCOA was tucked in between my existing answers, and that just left CRANBERRY to connect in the bottom-right corner to complete the puzzle.

Yesterday's Strands answers

Reading this in a later time zone? You can find the full article on yesterday's Strands answers for game #294 right here.

Alan Martin

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. Or, more likely, playing Spelunky for the millionth time.