NYT Strands Hints and Answers for August 25, 2025
This morning’s NYT Strands puzzle is all about Back to School—fitting, right? First sentence: the puzzle’s theme is unmistakably centered on things you’d find in a classroom or a student’s backpack. If you feel like your summer stretched just two weeks too short, this motif might spark both nostalgia and a little dread. I remember prepping for school with a zealous, almost manic checklist. (Did I really think two staplers were essential?) Today’s theme invites you to revisit those lists—minus the stress.
Today’s Theme: Back to School
The theme is “Back to school.” Yup, it’s as direct as they come. Strands nudges you to hunt for words that echo student life: items that clutter lockers, weigh down backpacks, or get left behind on bus seats. The best part? It instantly takes me back to trying to wedge an overstuffed binder into my tiny middle-school cubby, cursing geometry homework.
If you need more keywords or just want to play detective, consider googling “school supplies” and see how quickly nostalgia turns to horror at that one odd calculator. Even if you’re far past classroom days, the puzzle is a breezy way to remember the messiness of youth.
Daily Hints (so you don’t lose your mind)
Here’s the blunt truth: If you’re stuck, the following hints are your ticket out. I’m not above using them when my patience runs thin:
Think about things used by students daily.
“Stock your locker”—a nudge from the official clue. It’s not code for some underground classroom trade, just a push toward backpacks and binders.
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One word is a binder for loose papers (“Folders”). Another is ruled paper pages (“Notebooks”).
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If you spot a suspicious horizontal “SU…” near the grid’s edge, you’re probably close to uncovering the spangram.
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And I’ll be honest, sometimes these hints aren’t enough. That’s when you start trying absolutely anything—like entering “slap” or “crap” just to force the game to give up a reveal. Hey, no judgment.
Let’s cut to the chase: the answers are straightforward, but somehow still tricky when the grid taunts you:
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LAPTOP
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CALCULATOR
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BACKPACK
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NOTEBOOKS
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FOLDERS
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And the spangram: SUPPLIES
If you found these instantly, you deserve a confetti cannon. But if, like me, you got stuck around “folders” for fifteen minutes while the cat tried to type “aaaaaaa,” then welcome to the real Strands experience.
Slightly Messy Word List (for reference):
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Backpack
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Calculator
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Supplies (spangram)
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Notebooks
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Folders
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Laptop
Notice how every word is something you might actually see on a list from your first day back after summer. The grid uses every letter, so if you’re missing something, check those diagonals—sometimes “Supplies” snakes its way sideways.
Spangram: SUPPLIES (and why it matters)
Today’s spangram—that long, elegant beast using as many cells as possible—spells out “SUPPLIES.” It’s horizontal, starting with “SU” near the right side of the grid and winding backwards. The satisfaction of nailing the spangram is real; the relief, even more so.
If you’ve ever played Strands, you know this word is your ticket to finishing the puzzle and feeling smart for at least 10 minutes. Nothing beats the tiny dopamine hit when “Congratulations!” flashes on your screen, especially after a slog through “slap” and “lost.”
Lived-In Puzzle Moments and a Bit of Rambling
It’s funny—the “Back to school” theme stirs up old memories. I’m reminded of my friend Lisa, who always brought three different colored folders and still forgot her homework in the car. Strands, on days like this, is less about just solving a puzzle and more about those tiny flashes of remembering what it felt like to run through the hall, backpack bumping, trying not to drop a calculator.
There’s also a nifty sense of community. I’ve seen folks share answers on social media, comparing notes: “Got stuck at CALCULATOR, anyone else?” It’s imperfect, sometimes repetitive, sometimes hilarious when you accidentally spell out “BOOPS.” The game doesn’t mind—it just wants you to keep playing.
