#382Thursday, March 20, 2025
Strands answers for March 20, 2025 — “Wetland patrol” (#382)
Spoilers below — this page is the full record for this puzzle
The NYT Strands spangram for March 20, 2025 (puzzle #382) is WADINGBIRD, a 10-letter answer to the theme "Wetland patrol". The 6 theme words are BITTERN, EGRET, FLAMINGO, IBIS, SPOONBILL and STORK.
Where is each answer on the March 20 Strands board?
Here are all 6 theme words from the March 20, 2025 Strands puzzle, with the spangram last.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| BITTERN | 7 | row 3, column 2 | row 1, column 1 | diagonally across the grid |
| EGRET | 5 | row 6, column 5 | row 5, column 6 | diagonally across the grid |
| FLAMINGO | 8 | row 6, column 2 | row 4, column 2 | diagonally across the grid |
| IBIS | 4 | row 8, column 4 | row 8, column 6 | diagonally across the grid |
| SPOONBILL | 9 | row 3, column 4 | row 2, column 6 | diagonally across the grid |
| STORK | 5 | row 6, column 4 | row 5, column 4 | diagonally across the grid |
| WADINGBIRD | 10 | row 8, column 3 | row 3, column 5 | diagonally across the grid |
What did the March 20 Strands grid look like?
Every letter below appears in exactly one answer — the 7 words tile all 48 cells of the March 20, 2025 grid.
Spangram — 10 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 N-E-I-B-I-L, row 2 reads R-T-B-R-N-L, row 3 reads T-B-G-S-D-O, row 4 reads I-O-N-O-P-O, row 5 reads G-I-T-K-R-T, row 6 reads N-F-D-S-E-E, row 7 reads I-L-A-B-G-R, and row 8 reads M-A-W-I-I-S.
How hard was the March 20 Strands puzzle?
On the same measure applied to every puzzle since 2024, Strands #382 comes out average, ahead of 49% 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 March 20 Strands puzzle?
Strands puzzle #382 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 March 20 Strands puzzle
What was the clue for Strands on March 20, 2025?
The Strands clue for March 20, 2025 is “Wetland patrol”, on puzzle #382. It is answered by the spangram WADINGBIRD, and all 6 theme words that day belong to that idea.
What were the Strands words on March 20, 2025?
The 6 Strands theme words for March 20, 2025 are BITTERN, EGRET, FLAMINGO, IBIS, SPOONBILL and STORK, plus the spangram WADINGBIRD.
What was the big word in the March 20, 2025 Strands?
The big word — the spangram — for March 20, 2025 is WADINGBIRD, 10 letters long, running from row 8, column 3 to row 3, 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 “Wetland patrol” mean?
The Strands theme “Wetland patrol” for March 20, 2025 means WADINGBIRD — 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 March 20, 2025?
Strands puzzle #382 has 6 theme words plus one spangram, and together they use all 48 letters on the board exactly once.
How difficult was the March 20, 2025 Strands puzzle?
Strands #382 rates average on a computed index, harder than 49% of every Strands puzzle published since March 2024.
What number was the Strands puzzle on March 20, 2025?
The Strands puzzle published on Thursday, March 20, 2025 is #382, 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 March 2025, part of the full Strands archive.