#878Wednesday, July 29, 2026
Strands answers for July 29, 2026 — “A made man” (#878)
Spoilers below — this page is the full record for this puzzle
The NYT Strands spangram for July 29, 2026 (puzzle #878) is FABRICATED, a 10-letter answer to the theme "A made man". The 6 theme words are DOLL, DUMMY, FIGURINE, MANNEQUIN, PUPPET and STATUE.
Where is each answer on the July 29 Strands board?
Here are all 6 theme words from the July 29, 2026 Strands puzzle, with the spangram last.
The table gives the start square, end square and travel direction of all 7 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| DOLL | 4 | row 7, column 4 | row 6, column 3 | diagonally across the grid |
| DUMMY | 5 | row 2, column 5 | row 3, column 6 | diagonally across the grid |
| FIGURINE | 8 | row 6, column 4 | row 7, column 5 | diagonally across the grid |
| MANNEQUIN | 9 | row 4, column 2 | row 1, column 3 | bottom to top |
| PUPPET | 6 | row 7, column 1 | row 6, column 2 | diagonally across the grid |
| STATUE | 6 | row 2, column 3 | row 2, column 6 | left to right |
| FABRICATED | 10 | row 5, column 1 | row 5, column 6 | left to right |
What did the July 29 Strands grid look like?
Every letter below appears in exactly one answer — the 7 words tile all 48 cells of the July 29, 2026 grid.
Spangram — 10 letters6 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 U-I-N-A-T-U, row 2 reads Q-E-S-T-D-E, row 3 reads N-N-I-C-U-Y, row 4 reads A-M-R-A-M-M, row 5 reads F-A-B-T-E-D, row 6 reads E-T-L-F-I-G, row 7 reads P-P-L-D-E-U, and row 8 reads P-U-O-N-I-R.
How hard was the July 29 Strands puzzle?
Measured against the full archive, the July 29, 2026 puzzle lands in the average range — above 41% of all Strands puzzles.
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 July 29 Strands puzzle?
Strands puzzle #878 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 July 29 Strands puzzle
What was the clue for Strands on July 29, 2026?
The Strands clue for July 29, 2026 is “A made man”, on puzzle #878. It is answered by the spangram FABRICATED, and all 6 theme words that day belong to that idea.
What were the Strands words on July 29, 2026?
The 6 Strands theme words for July 29, 2026 are DOLL, DUMMY, FIGURINE, MANNEQUIN, PUPPET and STATUE, plus the spangram FABRICATED.
What was the big word in the July 29, 2026 Strands?
The big word — the spangram — for July 29, 2026 is FABRICATED, 10 letters long, running from row 5, column 1 to row 5, 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 “A made man” mean?
The Strands theme “A made man” for July 29, 2026 means FABRICATED — that is what the spangram spells, and every one of the 6 theme words is an example of it.
How many theme words are in Strands July 29, 2026?
Strands puzzle #878 has 6 theme words plus one spangram, and together they use all 48 letters on the board exactly once.
How difficult was the July 29, 2026 Strands puzzle?
Strands #878 rates average on a computed index, harder than 41% of every Strands puzzle published since March 2024.
What number was the Strands puzzle on July 29, 2026?
The Strands puzzle published on Wednesday, July 29, 2026 is #878, 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 July 2026, part of the full Strands archive.