This is the archived NYT Strands puzzle for Wednesday, June 4, 2025, game #458—not a current-day puzzle. Its theme is “Monster quest.” Start with the spoiler-light clue below, then reveal progressively stronger hints or the full answer list.
Spoiler-light hint
Think of legendary or mysterious creatures—the kinds of beings that appear in folklore and monster stories.
More hints
First letters
The hint page lists these answer initials in this order: YE, KR, BI, CR, MO, JA. CR is the spangram. This is the hint page’s displayed sequence, not a confirmed order for finding the words on the board.
Spangram direction
The spangram runs vertically. It names the creature category at the center of the theme.
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Strands is a themed word-search game: connect letters in the grid to find words related to the theme. The spangram names or describes that theme and touches opposite sides of the board. Finding three non-theme words earns a hint that reveals letters of a theme word; it does not simply provide the complete answer.
Full answer list
Spoilers below: the answers for Wednesday, June 4, 2025, are:
- Spangram: CRYPTIDS
- BIGFOOT
- CRAWLER
- JACKALOPE
- KRAKEN
- MOTHMAN
- YETI
The dated answer guide and the StrandsSolution archive agree on the theme and answer set: Try Hard Guides’ #458 answer guide and the StrandsSolution archive.
Quick Recap
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