Strands · Hints and answers
Strands hints and answers for Friday, October 16, 2026
Friday's Strands board thinks small: six theme words for tiny things, from a one-celled organism to a speck-sharp point, plus a 10-letter spangram that names the miniature theme. The NYT clue promises just a little bit.
Hints, in order
Hint 0 of 3Tap to show one hint at a time.
Hint 1 of 3
Think small - smaller than small: the scale where you need a microscope, or a very sharp eye.
Hint 2 of 3
Every theme word is something tiny: a one-celled animal, the smallest unit of matter, a hair root, a blood-drinking bug, a cluster of atoms, and a point with no size at all.
Hint 3 of 3
The spangram is two words pushed together, 10 letters: SMALL plus the word for the whole wide place everything lives in.
Spangram and theme words
The spangram first, then all six theme words.
SPANGRAM
SMALLWORLD
AMOEBATheme word
ATOMTheme word
FOLLICLETheme word
MITETheme word
MOLECULETheme word
PINPOINTTheme word
Next on the board
NYT Mini Crossword →
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