#393Monday, March 31, 2025
Strands answers for March 31, 2025 — “That's an equine of a different shade!” (#393)
Spoilers below — this page is the full record for this puzzle
The NYT Strands spangram for March 31, 2025 (puzzle #393) is HORSECOLORINGS, a 14-letter answer to the theme "That's an equine of a different shade!". The 5 theme words are BUCKSKIN, CHESTNUT, DAPPLE, PALOMINO and ROAN.
Where is each answer on the March 31 Strands board?
The 5 theme words for Strands on March 31, 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| BUCKSKIN | 8 | row 5, column 5 | row 1, column 6 | bottom to top |
| CHESTNUT | 8 | row 7, column 6 | row 7, column 3 | right to left |
| DAPPLE | 6 | row 1, column 2 | row 2, column 1 | diagonally across the grid |
| PALOMINO | 8 | row 8, column 1 | row 3, column 2 | bottom to top |
| ROAN | 4 | row 8, column 3 | row 8, column 6 | left to right |
| HORSECOLORINGS | 14 | row 5, column 4 | row 8, column 2 | diagonally across the grid |
What did the March 31 Strands grid look like?
The Strands board for March 31, 2025 is a six-column, eight-row grid of 48 letters.
Spangram — 14 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 L-D-A-C-E-N, row 2 reads E-P-P-O-S-I, row 3 reads N-O-L-R-S-K, row 4 reads M-I-O-O-K-C, row 5 reads O-I-R-H-B-U, row 6 reads L-N-U-N-S-H, row 7 reads A-G-T-T-E-C, and row 8 reads P-S-R-O-A-N.
How hard was the March 31 Strands puzzle?
On the same measure applied to every puzzle since 2024, Strands #393 comes out hard, ahead of 93% 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 March 31 Strands puzzle?
Strands puzzle #393 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 March 31 Strands puzzle
What was the clue for Strands on March 31, 2025?
The Strands clue for March 31, 2025 is “That's an equine of a different shade!”, on puzzle #393. It is answered by the spangram HORSECOLORINGS, and all 5 theme words that day belong to that idea.
What were the Strands words on March 31, 2025?
The 5 Strands theme words for March 31, 2025 are BUCKSKIN, CHESTNUT, DAPPLE, PALOMINO and ROAN, plus the spangram HORSECOLORINGS.
What was the big word in the March 31, 2025 Strands?
The big word — the spangram — for March 31, 2025 is HORSECOLORINGS, 14 letters long, running from row 5, column 4 to row 8, column 2. It is the one word that touches two opposite sides of the board and states the theme outright.
What did the Strands theme “That's an equine of a different shade!” mean?
The Strands theme “That's an equine of a different shade!” for March 31, 2025 means HORSECOLORINGS — 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 March 31, 2025?
Strands puzzle #393 has 5 theme words plus one spangram, and together they use all 48 letters on the board exactly once.
How difficult was the March 31, 2025 Strands puzzle?
Strands #393 rates hard on a computed index, harder than 93% of every Strands puzzle published since March 2024.
What number was the Strands puzzle on March 31, 2025?
The Strands puzzle published on Monday, March 31, 2025 is #393, 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 March 2025, part of the full Strands archive.