#397Friday, April 4, 2025
Strands answers for April 4, 2025 — “Step on it!” (#397)
Spoilers below — this page is the full record for this puzzle
The NYT Strands spangram for April 4, 2025 (puzzle #397) is FLOORING, a 8-letter answer to the theme "Step on it!". The 5 theme words are CONCRETE, HARDWOOD, LAMINATE, LINOLEUM and TERRAZZO.
Where is each answer on the April 4 Strands board?
The 5 theme words for Strands on April 4, 2025 are listed below, followed by the spangram.
The table gives the start square, end square and travel direction of all 6 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CONCRETE | 8 | row 6, column 1 | row 5, column 4 | left to right |
| HARDWOOD | 8 | row 2, column 4 | row 1, column 1 | right to left |
| LAMINATE | 8 | row 6, column 3 | row 5, column 2 | diagonally across the grid |
| LINOLEUM | 8 | row 1, column 6 | row 5, column 6 | top to bottom |
| TERRAZZO | 8 | row 2, column 1 | row 7, column 4 | diagonally across the grid |
| FLOORING | 8 | row 7, column 1 | row 7, column 6 | left to right |
What did the April 4 Strands grid look like?
The Strands board for April 4, 2025 is a six-column, eight-row grid of 48 letters.
Spangram — 8 letters5 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 D-O-O-D-R-L, row 2 reads T-E-W-H-A-I, row 3 reads N-I-R-E-L-N, row 4 reads A-T-M-R-U-O, row 5 reads O-E-A-E-A-M, row 6 reads C-N-L-E-T-Z, row 7 reads F-C-R-O-Z-G, and row 8 reads L-O-O-R-I-N.
How hard was the April 4 Strands puzzle?
On the same measure applied to every puzzle since 2024, Strands #397 comes out above average, ahead of 61% of them.
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 April 4 Strands puzzle?
Strands puzzle #397 was edited by Tracy Bennett and constructed by Sam Corbin. Output across the whole run is broken down on who makes NYT Strands.
Common questions about the April 4 Strands puzzle
What was the clue for Strands on April 4, 2025?
The Strands clue for April 4, 2025 is “Step on it!”, on puzzle #397. It is answered by the spangram FLOORING, and all 5 theme words that day belong to that idea.
What were the Strands words on April 4, 2025?
The 5 Strands theme words for April 4, 2025 are CONCRETE, HARDWOOD, LAMINATE, LINOLEUM and TERRAZZO, plus the spangram FLOORING.
What was the big word in the April 4, 2025 Strands?
The big word — the spangram — for April 4, 2025 is FLOORING, 8 letters long, running from row 7, column 1 to row 7, 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 “Step on it!” mean?
The Strands theme “Step on it!” for April 4, 2025 means FLOORING — that is what the spangram spells, and every one of the 5 theme words is an example of it.
How many theme words are in Strands April 4, 2025?
Strands puzzle #397 has 5 theme words plus one spangram, and together they use all 48 letters on the board exactly once.
How difficult was the April 4, 2025 Strands puzzle?
Strands #397 rates above average on a computed index, harder than 61% of every Strands puzzle published since March 2024.
What number was the Strands puzzle on April 4, 2025?
The Strands puzzle published on Friday, April 4, 2025 is #397, 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 April 2025, part of the full Strands archive.