#297Wednesday, December 25, 2024
Strands answers for December 25, 2024 — “A visit from Santa” (#297)
Spoilers below — this page is the full record for this puzzle
The NYT Strands spangram for December 25, 2024 (puzzle #297) is STOCKING, a 8-letter answer to the theme "A visit from Santa". The 8 theme words are CANDY, COAL, ORANGE, PENS, PLUSHIE, SCARF, SOCKS and TOYS.
Where is each answer on the December 25 Strands board?
The full answer set for puzzle #297 is 8 theme words and one spangram.
The table gives the start square, end square and travel direction of all 9 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CANDY | 5 | row 8, column 5 | row 4, column 5 | bottom to top |
| COAL | 4 | row 4, column 6 | row 5, column 5 | diagonally across the grid |
| ORANGE | 6 | row 8, column 1 | row 6, column 2 | diagonally across the grid |
| PENS | 4 | row 6, column 5 | row 8, column 6 | diagonally across the grid |
| PLUSHIE | 7 | row 6, column 1 | row 3, column 2 | bottom to top |
| SCARF | 5 | row 4, column 4 | row 3, column 6 | diagonally across the grid |
| SOCKS | 5 | row 1, column 4 | row 1, column 6 | diagonally across the grid |
| TOYS | 4 | row 1, column 1 | row 1, column 2 | diagonally across the grid |
| STOCKING | 8 | row 8, column 4 | row 1, column 3 | bottom to top |
What did the December 25 Strands grid look like?
Puzzle #297 is played on 48 letters arranged in eight rows of six.
Spangram — 8 letters8 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 T-S-G-S-O-S, row 2 reads O-Y-N-A-K-C, row 3 reads I-E-I-C-R-F, row 4 reads H-U-K-S-Y-C, row 5 reads S-L-C-D-L-O, row 6 reads P-E-O-N-P-A, row 7 reads G-N-T-A-E-N, and row 8 reads O-R-A-S-C-S.
How hard was the December 25 Strands puzzle?
The difficulty index rates puzzle #297 as easy: it sits at the 4th 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 December 25 Strands puzzle?
Strands puzzle #297 was edited by Tracy Bennett, who also constructed it. Output across the whole run is broken down on who makes NYT Strands.
Common questions about the December 25 Strands puzzle
What was the clue for Strands on December 25, 2024?
The Strands clue for December 25, 2024 is “A visit from Santa”, on puzzle #297. It is answered by the spangram STOCKING, and all 8 theme words that day belong to that idea.
What were the Strands words on December 25, 2024?
The 8 Strands theme words for December 25, 2024 are CANDY, COAL, ORANGE, PENS, PLUSHIE, SCARF, SOCKS and TOYS, plus the spangram STOCKING.
What was the big word in the December 25, 2024 Strands?
The big word — the spangram — for December 25, 2024 is STOCKING, 8 letters long, running from row 8, column 4 to row 1, column 3. It is the one word that touches two opposite sides of the board and states the theme outright.
What did the Strands theme “A visit from Santa” mean?
The Strands theme “A visit from Santa” for December 25, 2024 means STOCKING — that is what the spangram spells, and every one of the 8 theme words is an example of it.
How many theme words are in Strands December 25, 2024?
Strands puzzle #297 has 8 theme words plus one spangram, and together they use all 48 letters on the board exactly once.
How difficult was the December 25, 2024 Strands puzzle?
Strands #297 rates easy on a computed index, harder than 4% of every Strands puzzle published since March 2024.
What number was the Strands puzzle on December 25, 2024?
The Strands puzzle published on Wednesday, December 25, 2024 is #297, 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 December 2024, part of the full Strands archive.