NYT Strands today — hints, answers and spangram for Sunday, June 9 (game #98)

For the second day in a row I’m a little frustrated by Strands. You can decide for yourself whether you agree with my take, but it may well be one of those games where a hint helps.

Want more word-based fun? Then check out my Wordle today, NYT Connections today and Quordle today pages for hints and answers for those games. 

SPOILER WARNING: Information about NYT Strands today is below, so don’t read on if you don’t want to know the answers.

NYT Strands today (game #98) – hint #1 – today’s theme

NYT Strands today (game #98) – hint #2 – clue words

NYT Strands today (game #98) – hint #3 – spangram

NYT Strands today (game #98) – hint #4 – spangram position

Right, the answers are below, so DO NOT SCROLL ANY FURTHER IF YOU DON’T WANT TO SEE THEM.

NYT Strands today (game #98) – the answers

The answers to today’s Strands, game #98, are…

• SEEDS
• WATER
• SUNLIGHT
• EARTH
• SPACE
• LOVE
• PROTECTION
• SPANGRAM: GARDEN

• My rating: Frustrating
• My score: One hint

Creating a Strands puzzle must be difficult. I don’t know how it’s done – even once you come up with the answers, the challenge of fitting them all into the grid, in a way in which they tessellate and where the letters can’t be used in a different way, must be a real head-scratcher. Probably harder than solving it, to be honest!

I say all that to mitigate the fact that I really don’t think this Strands puzzle works. It’s not the first time I’ve felt that way, either. Strands is regularly great, but sometimes it just doesn’t hit the mark. The game’s instructions state that the spangram “describes the puzzle’s theme”. The theme clue today, meanwhile, was “Way to grow!” So what is the theme? Is it the verb ‘garden’, as in to do some gardening? That’s the closest fit, but the answers – including LOVE and PROTECTION – don’t really work then. Does it really require LOVE to garden? Someone who does it for a job doesn’t necessarily put LOVE into it. And SPACE? You can just about justify them all, but it’s a stretch. It’s one of those puzzles where at the end you’re left grimacing at how it had to be forced in, rather than smiling at the smart way it was done and accepting that yes, they bested you today – or at least got you thinking, as opposed to guessing random words.

Maybe this is all sour grapes from me, because I needed one hint to find LOVE, but I suspect I won’t be the only one feeling a little unsatisfied today.

How did you do today? Send me an email and let me know.

Yesterday’s NYT Strands answers (Saturday 8 June, game #97)

• BEACH
• CAMP
• POPSICLE
• CARNIVAL
• LEMONADE
• HOPSCOTCH
• SPANGRAM: SUMMER