Strands Hint

#828Tuesday, June 9, 2026

Strands answers for June 9, 2026 — “Dramamine, anyone?” (#828)

The NYT Strands spangram for June 9, 2026 (puzzle #828) is IMONABOAT, a 9-letter answer to the theme "Dramamine, anyone?". The 6 theme words are DANCING, DECK, DRINKS, SEASICKNESS, SNACKS and WAVES.

DANCINGDECKDRINKSSEASICKNESSSNACKSWAVESIMONABOAT

Where is each answer on the June 9 Strands board?

The full answer set for puzzle #828 is 6 theme words and one spangram.

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.

Verified board positions, Strands puzzle #828
AnswerLettersStartsEndsDirection
DANCING7row 2, column 6row 1, column 6diagonally across the grid
DECK4row 6, column 5row 8, column 6diagonally across the grid
DRINKS6row 4, column 4row 3, column 6diagonally across the grid
SEASICKNESS11row 6, column 1row 8, column 5diagonally across the grid
SNACKS6row 1, column 1row 1, column 3diagonally across the grid
WAVES5row 3, column 3row 4, column 1diagonally across the grid
IMONABOAT9row 5, column 1row 5, column 6left to right

What did the June 9 Strands grid look like?

Puzzle #828 is played on 48 letters arranged in eight rows of six.

SNSINGAKCNADCVWRKSSEADINIOAOATSMNBDEESCNSCAIKESK

Spangram — 9 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 S-N-S-I-N-G, row 2 reads A-K-C-N-A-D, row 3 reads C-V-W-R-K-S, row 4 reads S-E-A-D-I-N, row 5 reads I-O-A-O-A-T, row 6 reads S-M-N-B-D-E, row 7 reads E-S-C-N-S-C, and row 8 reads A-I-K-E-S-K.

How hard was the June 9 Strands puzzle?

The difficulty index rates puzzle #828 as hard: it sits at the 80th percentile of every Strands grid to date.

Difficulty
80
percentile, hard
Path turns
27
direction changes
Decoy words
704
non-theme words accepted
Mean answer
6.5
letters per theme word

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 June 9 Strands puzzle?

Strands puzzle #828 was edited by Tracy Bennett and constructed by Christina Iverson. Output across the whole run is broken down on who makes NYT Strands.

Common questions about the June 9 Strands puzzle

What was the clue for Strands on June 9, 2026?

The Strands clue for June 9, 2026 is “Dramamine, anyone?”, on puzzle #828. It is answered by the spangram IMONABOAT, and all 6 theme words that day belong to that idea.

What were the Strands words on June 9, 2026?

The 6 Strands theme words for June 9, 2026 are DANCING, DECK, DRINKS, SEASICKNESS, SNACKS and WAVES, plus the spangram IMONABOAT.

What was the big word in the June 9, 2026 Strands?

The big word — the spangram — for June 9, 2026 is IMONABOAT, 9 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 “Dramamine, anyone?” mean?

The Strands theme “Dramamine, anyone?” for June 9, 2026 means IMONABOAT — 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 June 9, 2026?

Strands puzzle #828 has 6 theme words plus one spangram, and together they use all 48 letters on the board exactly once.

How difficult was the June 9, 2026 Strands puzzle?

Strands #828 rates hard on a computed index, harder than 80% of every Strands puzzle published since March 2024.

What number was the Strands puzzle on June 9, 2026?

The Strands puzzle published on Tuesday, June 9, 2026 is #828, 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 June 2026, part of the full Strands archive.