#296Tuesday, December 24, 2024
Strands answers for December 24, 2024 — “Who on earth ...?” (#296)
Spoilers below — this page is the full record for this puzzle
The NYT Strands spangram for December 24, 2024 (puzzle #296) is NATURENAMES, a 11-letter answer to the theme "Who on earth ...?". The 6 theme words are BROOK, CLEMENTINE, HOLLY, LAUREL, RIVER and WILLOW.
Where is each answer on the December 24 Strands board?
The 6 theme words for Strands on December 24, 2024 are listed below, followed by the spangram.
The table gives the start square, end square and travel direction of all 7 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| BROOK | 5 | row 6, column 5 | row 6, column 6 | diagonally across the grid |
| CLEMENTINE | 10 | row 4, column 4 | row 3, column 3 | diagonally across the grid |
| HOLLY | 5 | row 1, column 4 | row 1, column 6 | diagonally across the grid |
| LAUREL | 6 | row 8, column 4 | row 8, column 1 | right to left |
| RIVER | 5 | row 6, column 1 | row 4, column 3 | diagonally across the grid |
| WILLOW | 6 | row 6, column 3 | row 3, column 6 | diagonally across the grid |
| NATURENAMES | 11 | row 1, column 3 | row 8, column 5 | diagonally across the grid |
What did the December 24 Strands grid look like?
The Strands board for December 24, 2024 is a six-column, eight-row grid of 48 letters.
Spangram — 11 letters6 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-M-N-H-L-Y, row 2 reads N-N-E-A-O-L, row 3 reads T-I-E-L-T-W, row 4 reads V-E-R-C-U-O, row 5 reads I-N-E-R-L-L, row 6 reads R-A-W-I-B-K, row 7 reads R-U-M-E-R-O, and row 8 reads L-E-A-L-S-O.
How hard was the December 24 Strands puzzle?
On the same measure applied to every puzzle since 2024, Strands #296 comes out above average, ahead of 74% 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 24 Strands puzzle?
Strands puzzle #296 was edited by Tracy Bennett and constructed by Christina Iverson. Output across the whole run is broken down on who makes NYT Strands.
Common questions about the December 24 Strands puzzle
What was the clue for Strands on December 24, 2024?
The Strands clue for December 24, 2024 is “Who on earth ...?”, on puzzle #296. It is answered by the spangram NATURENAMES, and all 6 theme words that day belong to that idea.
What were the Strands words on December 24, 2024?
The 6 Strands theme words for December 24, 2024 are BROOK, CLEMENTINE, HOLLY, LAUREL, RIVER and WILLOW, plus the spangram NATURENAMES.
What was the big word in the December 24, 2024 Strands?
The big word — the spangram — for December 24, 2024 is NATURENAMES, 11 letters long, running from row 1, column 3 to row 8, column 5. It is the one word that touches two opposite sides of the board and states the theme outright.
What did the Strands theme “Who on earth ...?” mean?
The Strands theme “Who on earth ...?” for December 24, 2024 means NATURENAMES — that is what the spangram spells, and every one of the 6 theme words is an example of it.
How many theme words are in Strands December 24, 2024?
Strands puzzle #296 has 6 theme words plus one spangram, and together they use all 48 letters on the board exactly once.
How difficult was the December 24, 2024 Strands puzzle?
Strands #296 rates above average on a computed index, harder than 74% of every Strands puzzle published since March 2024.
What number was the Strands puzzle on December 24, 2024?
The Strands puzzle published on Tuesday, December 24, 2024 is #296, 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.