Strands #1,116
September 16, 2026Today's theme is “Hard not to notice”. There are 6 theme words and a spangram, which touches two opposite sides of the board.
Hint 1: how long each theme word is
- 5 letters
- 5 letters
- 6 letters
- 6 letters
- 7 letters
- 8 letters
Hint 2: first letters
- J···· — 5 letters
- V···· — 5 letters
- B····· — 6 letters
- F····· — 6 letters
- V······ — 7 letters
- S······· — 8 letters
Hint 3: the spangram
- EYECATCHING
Today's Strands answers, #1,116
The theme
The clue today is “Hard not to notice”, and every theme word belongs to it. If you are stuck, the quickest way in is usually to find the spangram first, because it touches two opposite sides of the board, so it is long, and finding it takes a lot of letters out of play.
Strands hides a theme. This one hides a headline.
One real news sentence a day, twenty to thirty words, something that actually happened. Keep the five words a headline would keep and let the rest go. Here is yesterday's, solved.
At Camden Lock, a 71-year-old woman, Beatrice Millar, took off her shoes, jumped in after a drowning man and saved him by holding his head above water.
Five tries. blue is the right word in the right place, orange is one of the five sitting somewhere else, grey is not one of them. The result beats the process, a name or a job beats a place, and the little words never count.
How you finish decides which sticker you keep.
FAQ
What is today's Strands spangram?
For September 16, 2026, puzzle #1,116, the spangram is EYECATCHING.
What are today's Strands answers?
EYECATCHING is the spangram. The theme words are BRIGHT, FLASHY, JAZZY, STRIKING, VIBRANT, VIVID.
What is today's Strands theme?
“Hard not to notice”.
When does this page update?
Within a few hours of midnight Eastern, from the New York Times puzzle data for the day. Today: 2:21 AM ET.
Is this the official Strands site?
No. Official Strands is on the New York Times. This page is unofficial hints and answers, then Long Story Short, a different game.