Hints, answers, and help in today’s New York Times, April 16, #774

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New York Times Today Branches The puzzle can be difficult. I understood the topic right away, but some of the answers are really difficult to solve. If you need hints and answers, read on.

I dig deeper into it The rules of the threads in this story.

If you are looking for today’s Wordle, Connections and Mini Crossword answers then visit the site CNET’s NYT Mysteries Tips Page.

Read more: NYT Connections turns 1: These are the 5 toughest puzzles yet

Hint for today’s Strands puzzle

Today’s Strands topic is: This doesn’t work.

If that doesn’t help, here’s a guide: free time.

Keywords to unlock in-game hints

Your goal is to find the hidden words that fit the theme of the puzzle. If you’re stuck, search for any words you can find. Every time you find three words of four letters or more, Strands will reveal one of the keywords. These are the words I used to get those hints but any four or more letter words you find will work:

• Stem, stems, steam, steam, maps, tees, RIFF, fear, feature, ratio, comfort

Today’s Strands Puzzle Answers

These are the answers that relate to the topic. The goal of the puzzle is to find them all, including the spangram, which is a thematic word that connects from one side of the puzzle to the other. When you have them all (I initially thought there were always eight but I’ve learned that the number can vary), every letter on the board will be used. Here are the non-Spanish answers:

• hobby, amusement, interest, sideline, entertainment

Strands spangram today

Strands spangram today is Just for fun. To find it, start with the leftmost letter J in the top row, and work your way down and up.