#428Monday, May 5, 2025
Strands answers for May 5, 2025 — “On the side” (#428)
Spoilers below — this page is the full record for this puzzle
The NYT Strands spangram for May 5, 2025 (puzzle #428) is FRENCHFRIES, a 11-letter answer to the theme "On the side". The 6 theme words are CRINKLE, CURLY, HOME, SHOESTRING, STEAK and WAFFLE.
Where is each answer on the May 5 Strands board?
The full answer set for puzzle #428 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CRINKLE | 7 | row 8, column 6 | row 5, column 6 | bottom to top |
| CURLY | 5 | row 4, column 5 | row 2, column 6 | diagonally across the grid |
| HOME | 4 | row 5, column 4 | row 6, column 3 | diagonally across the grid |
| SHOESTRING | 10 | row 4, column 2 | row 1, column 2 | bottom to top |
| STEAK | 5 | row 2, column 3 | row 1, column 5 | diagonally across the grid |
| WAFFLE | 6 | row 7, column 1 | row 8, column 5 | left to right |
| FRENCHFRIES | 11 | row 4, column 6 | row 1, column 6 | bottom to top |
What did the May 5 Strands grid look like?
The grid below is six letters wide and eight rows deep, with every answer traced through the letters it uses.
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 N-G-T-E-K-S, row 2 reads I-R-S-A-E-Y, row 3 reads E-S-T-I-R-L, row 4 reads O-S-R-U-C-F, row 5 reads H-F-O-H-R-E, row 6 reads H-M-E-E-K-L, row 7 reads W-C-N-N-I-R, and row 8 reads A-F-F-L-E-C.
How hard was the May 5 Strands puzzle?
The difficulty index rates puzzle #428 as average: it sits at the 33th 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 May 5 Strands puzzle?
Strands puzzle #428 was edited by Tracy Bennett and constructed by Jacqueline Yue and Sam Corbin. Output across the whole run is broken down on who makes NYT Strands.
Common questions about the May 5 Strands puzzle
What was the clue for Strands on May 5, 2025?
The Strands clue for May 5, 2025 is “On the side”, on puzzle #428. It is answered by the spangram FRENCHFRIES, and all 6 theme words that day belong to that idea.
What were the Strands words on May 5, 2025?
The 6 Strands theme words for May 5, 2025 are CRINKLE, CURLY, HOME, SHOESTRING, STEAK and WAFFLE, plus the spangram FRENCHFRIES.
What was the big word in the May 5, 2025 Strands?
The big word — the spangram — for May 5, 2025 is FRENCHFRIES, 11 letters long, running from row 4, column 6 to row 1, 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 “On the side” mean?
The Strands theme “On the side” for May 5, 2025 means FRENCHFRIES — 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 May 5, 2025?
Strands puzzle #428 has 6 theme words plus one spangram, and together they use all 48 letters on the board exactly once.
How difficult was the May 5, 2025 Strands puzzle?
Strands #428 rates average on a computed index, harder than 33% of every Strands puzzle published since March 2024.
What number was the Strands puzzle on May 5, 2025?
The Strands puzzle published on Monday, May 5, 2025 is #428, 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 May 2025, part of the full Strands archive.