#292Friday, December 20, 2024
Strands answers for December 20, 2024 — “Morning morsel” (#292)
Spoilers below — this page is the full record for this puzzle
The NYT Strands spangram for December 20, 2024 (puzzle #292) is CEREAL, a 6-letter answer to the theme "Morning morsel". The 8 theme words are CHARM, CHEERIO, CRUNCH, FLAKE, LOOP, PEBBLE, PUFF and SMACK.
Where is each answer on the December 20 Strands board?
The 8 theme words for Strands on December 20, 2024 are listed below, followed by the spangram.
The table gives the start square, end square and travel direction of all 9 answers. Every position comes from solving the grid outright — the answers have to tile all 48 letters with no overlap and no remainder, which is what makes a single arrangement provable.
| Answer | Letters | Starts | Ends | Direction |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CHARM | 5 | row 6, column 4 | row 8, column 5 | diagonally across the grid |
| CHEERIO | 7 | row 1, column 3 | row 1, column 5 | diagonally across the grid |
| CRUNCH | 6 | row 2, column 4 | row 4, column 5 | diagonally across the grid |
| FLAKE | 5 | row 7, column 2 | row 7, column 3 | diagonally across the grid |
| LOOP | 4 | row 2, column 1 | row 3, column 1 | diagonally across the grid |
| PEBBLE | 6 | row 5, column 6 | row 8, column 6 | top to bottom |
| PUFF | 4 | row 3, column 3 | row 3, column 5 | diagonally across the grid |
| SMACK | 5 | row 7, column 1 | row 8, column 4 | left to right |
| CEREAL | 6 | row 5, column 1 | row 4, column 6 | left to right |
What did the December 20 Strands grid look like?
The Strands board for December 20, 2024 is a six-column, eight-row grid of 48 letters.
Spangram — 6 letters8 theme words
Each line traces one answer through the letters it uses; the heavier yellow line is the spangram.
Read across the grid, row 1 reads E-H-C-I-O-U, row 2 reads L-E-R-C-R-N, row 3 reads P-O-P-F-F-C, row 4 reads O-E-U-E-H-L, row 5 reads C-A-R-H-A-P, row 6 reads L-K-A-C-B-E, row 7 reads S-F-E-R-L-B, and row 8 reads M-A-C-K-M-E.
How hard was the December 20 Strands puzzle?
On the same measure applied to every puzzle since 2024, Strands #292 comes out average, ahead of 46% of them.
Easiest puzzle ever published on the left, hardest on the right. The formula behind the score, and the ranked list of every puzzle, are on the Strands difficulty index.
Who made the December 20 Strands puzzle?
Strands puzzle #292 was edited by Tracy Bennett, who also constructed it. Output across the whole run is broken down on who makes NYT Strands.
Common questions about the December 20 Strands puzzle
What was the clue for Strands on December 20, 2024?
The Strands clue for December 20, 2024 is “Morning morsel”, on puzzle #292. It is answered by the spangram CEREAL, and all 8 theme words that day belong to that idea.
What were the Strands words on December 20, 2024?
The 8 Strands theme words for December 20, 2024 are CHARM, CHEERIO, CRUNCH, FLAKE, LOOP, PEBBLE, PUFF and SMACK, plus the spangram CEREAL.
What was the big word in the December 20, 2024 Strands?
The big word — the spangram — for December 20, 2024 is CEREAL, 6 letters long, running from row 5, column 1 to row 4, column 6. It is the one word that touches two opposite sides of the board and states the theme outright.
What did the Strands theme “Morning morsel” mean?
The Strands theme “Morning morsel” for December 20, 2024 means CEREAL — that is what the spangram spells, and every one of the 8 theme words is an example of it.
How many theme words are in Strands December 20, 2024?
Strands puzzle #292 has 8 theme words plus one spangram, and together they use all 48 letters on the board exactly once.
How difficult was the December 20, 2024 Strands puzzle?
Strands #292 rates average on a computed index, harder than 46% of every Strands puzzle published since March 2024.
What number was the Strands puzzle on December 20, 2024?
The Strands puzzle published on Friday, December 20, 2024 is #292, counting from the game's launch on March 4, 2024.
Today’s puzzle and its hint ladder are on the front page. This puzzle sits in December 2024, part of the full Strands archive.