#346Wednesday, February 12, 2025
Strands answers for February 12, 2025 — “Don't stop believin'” (#346)
Spoilers below — this page is the full record for this puzzle
The NYT Strands spangram for February 12, 2025 (puzzle #346) is JOURNEY, a 7-letter answer to the theme "Don't stop believin'". The 8 theme words are GIRL, LONELY, MIDNIGHT, SMALL, TOOK, TOWN, TRAIN and WORLD.
Where is each answer on the February 12 Strands board?
Here are all 8 theme words from the February 12, 2025 Strands puzzle, with the spangram last.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| GIRL | 4 | row 2, column 4 | row 4, column 2 | diagonally across the grid |
| LONELY | 6 | row 1, column 6 | row 3, column 4 | diagonally across the grid |
| MIDNIGHT | 8 | row 7, column 4 | row 8, column 1 | right to left |
| SMALL | 5 | row 2, column 5 | row 1, column 1 | right to left |
| TOOK | 4 | row 5, column 6 | row 5, column 5 | diagonally across the grid |
| TOWN | 4 | row 2, column 3 | row 3, column 1 | diagonally across the grid |
| TRAIN | 5 | row 8, column 6 | row 8, column 4 | diagonally across the grid |
| WORLD | 5 | row 4, column 3 | row 6, column 1 | diagonally across the grid |
| JOURNEY | 7 | row 4, column 6 | row 7, column 1 | diagonally across the grid |
What did the February 12 Strands grid look like?
Every letter below appears in exactly one answer — the 9 words tile all 48 cells of the February 12, 2025 grid.
Spangram — 7 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 L-L-A-M-O-L, row 2 reads W-O-T-G-S-N, row 3 reads N-R-I-Y-L-E, row 4 reads R-L-W-U-O-J, row 5 reads L-O-N-R-K-T, row 6 reads D-E-D-I-O-O, row 7 reads Y-H-N-M-I-A, and row 8 reads T-G-I-N-R-T.
How hard was the February 12 Strands puzzle?
Measured against the full archive, the February 12, 2025 puzzle lands in the easy range — above 28% of all Strands puzzles.
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 February 12 Strands puzzle?
Strands puzzle #346 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 February 12 Strands puzzle
What was the clue for Strands on February 12, 2025?
The Strands clue for February 12, 2025 is “Don't stop believin'”, on puzzle #346. It is answered by the spangram JOURNEY, and all 8 theme words that day belong to that idea.
What were the Strands words on February 12, 2025?
The 8 Strands theme words for February 12, 2025 are GIRL, LONELY, MIDNIGHT, SMALL, TOOK, TOWN, TRAIN and WORLD, plus the spangram JOURNEY.
What was the big word in the February 12, 2025 Strands?
The big word — the spangram — for February 12, 2025 is JOURNEY, 7 letters long, running from row 4, column 6 to row 7, column 1. It is the one word that touches two opposite sides of the board and states the theme outright.
What did the Strands theme “Don't stop believin'” mean?
The Strands theme “Don't stop believin'” for February 12, 2025 means JOURNEY — 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 February 12, 2025?
Strands puzzle #346 has 8 theme words plus one spangram, and together they use all 48 letters on the board exactly once.
How difficult was the February 12, 2025 Strands puzzle?
Strands #346 rates easy on a computed index, harder than 28% of every Strands puzzle published since March 2024.
What number was the Strands puzzle on February 12, 2025?
The Strands puzzle published on Wednesday, February 12, 2025 is #346, 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 February 2025, part of the full Strands archive.