Strains is an exciting new game created by the New York Times that puts a fresh twist on the classic word search. In each puzzle, there's a specific theme, and your goal is to find words related to that theme to complete the puzzle. The cool part? You can also hunt for words that don't fit the theme. When you find these off-topic words, you'll get helpful hints that guide you towards the themed words you're searching for.
Strains is like a word search game where each puzzle is centered around a special theme. You can link letters in any direction to form words, but remember, you can't use the same letter more than once or cross them out. The words that match the theme will light up in blue. There's also a special word in each puzzle called the Spangram. This word sums up the puzzle's theme and stretches from one side of the board to the other, glowing in yellow. When you find all the right words, each letter in the grid will be part of a word. If you're having trouble, try finding any words that don't fit the theme, as long as they're four letters long or more. For every three of these unrelated words you find, you'll get a clue to help you uncover one of the themed words for the day.