#385Sunday, March 23, 2025
Strands answers for March 23, 2025 — “In stitches” (#385)
Spoilers below — this page is the full record for this puzzle
The NYT Strands spangram for March 23, 2025 (puzzle #385) is NEEDLEWORK, a 10-letter answer to the theme "In stitches". The 7 theme words are BASTE, CROCHET, DARN, EMBROIDER, KNIT, MEND and PATCH.
Where is each answer on the March 23 Strands board?
Strands #385 resolves to these 7 theme words plus the spangram NEEDLEWORK.
The table gives the start square, end square and travel direction of all 8 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| BASTE | 5 | row 6, column 5 | row 7, column 6 | diagonally across the grid |
| CROCHET | 7 | row 1, column 2 | row 3, column 1 | diagonally across the grid |
| DARN | 4 | row 8, column 3 | row 7, column 1 | diagonally across the grid |
| EMBROIDER | 9 | row 1, column 6 | row 3, column 6 | diagonally across the grid |
| KNIT | 4 | row 5, column 6 | row 4, column 5 | diagonally across the grid |
| MEND | 4 | row 6, column 1 | row 6, column 3 | diagonally across the grid |
| PATCH | 5 | row 4, column 2 | row 4, column 1 | diagonally across the grid |
| NEEDLEWORK | 10 | row 1, column 3 | row 8, column 6 | diagonally across the grid |
What did the March 23 Strands grid look like?
Puzzle #385 is played on 48 letters arranged in eight rows of six.
Spangram — 10 letters7 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 R-C-N-R-B-E, row 2 reads E-O-C-E-O-M, row 3 reads T-H-E-I-D-R, row 4 reads H-P-A-D-T-E, row 5 reads C-T-L-I-N-K, row 6 reads M-N-D-E-B-T, row 7 reads N-E-W-A-S-E, and row 8 reads R-A-D-O-R-K.
How hard was the March 23 Strands puzzle?
The difficulty index rates puzzle #385 as average: it sits at the 52th 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 March 23 Strands puzzle?
Strands puzzle #385 was edited by Tracy Bennett and constructed by Katherine Oung. Output across the whole run is broken down on who makes NYT Strands.
Common questions about the March 23 Strands puzzle
What was the clue for Strands on March 23, 2025?
The Strands clue for March 23, 2025 is “In stitches”, on puzzle #385. It is answered by the spangram NEEDLEWORK, and all 7 theme words that day belong to that idea.
What were the Strands words on March 23, 2025?
The 7 Strands theme words for March 23, 2025 are BASTE, CROCHET, DARN, EMBROIDER, KNIT, MEND and PATCH, plus the spangram NEEDLEWORK.
What was the big word in the March 23, 2025 Strands?
The big word — the spangram — for March 23, 2025 is NEEDLEWORK, 10 letters long, running from row 1, column 3 to row 8, 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 “In stitches” mean?
The Strands theme “In stitches” for March 23, 2025 means NEEDLEWORK — that is what the spangram spells, and every one of the 7 theme words is an example of it.
How many theme words are in Strands March 23, 2025?
Strands puzzle #385 has 7 theme words plus one spangram, and together they use all 48 letters on the board exactly once.
How difficult was the March 23, 2025 Strands puzzle?
Strands #385 rates average on a computed index, harder than 52% of every Strands puzzle published since March 2024.
What number was the Strands puzzle on March 23, 2025?
The Strands puzzle published on Sunday, March 23, 2025 is #385, 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.