#820Monday, June 1, 2026
Strands answers for June 1, 2026 — “Shall we gather for lunch?” (#820)
Spoilers below — this page is the full record for this puzzle
The NYT Strands spangram for June 1, 2026 (puzzle #820) is FORAGING, a 8-letter answer to the theme "Shall we gather for lunch?". The 6 theme words are BLACKBERRY, CHESTNUT, CHICORY, MOREL, NETTLE and RAMP.
Where is each answer on the June 1 Strands board?
The full answer set for puzzle #820 is 6 theme words and one 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| BLACKBERRY | 10 | row 1, column 3 | row 3, column 5 | diagonally across the grid |
| CHESTNUT | 8 | row 7, column 4 | row 7, column 1 | right to left |
| CHICORY | 7 | row 4, column 1 | row 6, column 3 | diagonally across the grid |
| MOREL | 5 | row 8, column 6 | row 6, column 6 | diagonally across the grid |
| NETTLE | 6 | row 3, column 3 | row 4, column 6 | left to right |
| RAMP | 4 | row 2, column 2 | row 1, column 2 | diagonally across the grid |
| FORAGING | 8 | row 3, column 1 | row 5, column 6 | diagonally across the grid |
What did the June 1 Strands grid look like?
Puzzle #820 is played on 48 letters arranged in eight rows of six.
Spangram — 8 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 M-P-B-A-K-E, row 2 reads A-R-L-C-B-R, row 3 reads F-O-N-E-Y-R, row 4 reads C-H-R-T-L-E, row 5 reads C-I-A-T-N-G, row 6 reads O-R-Y-G-I-L, row 7 reads T-T-S-C-E-R, and row 8 reads U-N-E-H-O-M.
How hard was the June 1 Strands puzzle?
The difficulty index rates puzzle #820 as hard: it sits at the 84th percentile of every Strands grid to date.
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 June 1 Strands puzzle?
Strands puzzle #820 was edited by Tracy Bennett and constructed by Jen Scheerer. Output across the whole run is broken down on who makes NYT Strands.
Common questions about the June 1 Strands puzzle
What was the clue for Strands on June 1, 2026?
The Strands clue for June 1, 2026 is “Shall we gather for lunch?”, on puzzle #820. It is answered by the spangram FORAGING, and all 6 theme words that day belong to that idea.
What were the Strands words on June 1, 2026?
The 6 Strands theme words for June 1, 2026 are BLACKBERRY, CHESTNUT, CHICORY, MOREL, NETTLE and RAMP, plus the spangram FORAGING.
What was the big word in the June 1, 2026 Strands?
The big word — the spangram — for June 1, 2026 is FORAGING, 8 letters long, running from row 3, column 1 to row 5, 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 “Shall we gather for lunch?” mean?
The Strands theme “Shall we gather for lunch?” for June 1, 2026 means FORAGING — 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 June 1, 2026?
Strands puzzle #820 has 6 theme words plus one spangram, and together they use all 48 letters on the board exactly once.
How difficult was the June 1, 2026 Strands puzzle?
Strands #820 rates hard on a computed index, harder than 84% of every Strands puzzle published since March 2024.
What number was the Strands puzzle on June 1, 2026?
The Strands puzzle published on Monday, June 1, 2026 is #820, 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 June 2026, part of the full Strands archive.