#758Tuesday, March 31, 2026
Strands answers for March 31, 2026 — “While you were sleeping ...” (#758)
Spoilers below — this page is the full record for this puzzle
The NYT Strands spangram for March 31, 2026 (puzzle #758) is THETOOTHFAIRY, a 13-letter answer to the theme "While you were sleeping ...". The 7 theme words are COIN, EXCHANGE, NOTE, PILLOW, TUTU, WAND and WINGS.
Where is each answer on the March 31 Strands board?
Strands #758 resolves to these 7 theme words plus the spangram THETOOTHFAIRY.
The table gives the start square, end square and travel direction of all 8 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| COIN | 4 | row 6, column 1 | row 4, column 2 | diagonally across the grid |
| EXCHANGE | 8 | row 4, column 3 | row 3, column 5 | diagonally across the grid |
| NOTE | 4 | row 4, column 5 | row 5, column 6 | diagonally across the grid |
| PILLOW | 6 | row 7, column 2 | row 7, column 5 | left to right |
| TUTU | 4 | row 1, column 3 | row 1, column 6 | left to right |
| WAND | 4 | row 4, column 6 | row 2, column 5 | diagonally across the grid |
| WINGS | 5 | row 1, column 2 | row 4, column 1 | top to bottom |
| THETOOTHFAIRY | 13 | row 7, column 1 | row 6, column 6 | left to right |
What did the March 31 Strands grid look like?
Puzzle #758 is played on 48 letters arranged in eight rows of six.
Spangram — 13 letters7 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 I-W-T-U-T-U, row 2 reads N-C-H-N-D-N, row 3 reads G-X-A-G-E-A, row 4 reads S-N-E-O-N-W, row 5 reads I-O-L-L-T-E, row 6 reads C-I-O-T-O-Y, row 7 reads T-P-O-H-W-R, and row 8 reads H-E-T-F-A-I.
How hard was the March 31 Strands puzzle?
Strands #758 scores above average on our difficulty index, harder than 55% of every Strands puzzle published so far.
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 #758 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, 2026?
The Strands clue for March 31, 2026 is “While you were sleeping ...”, on puzzle #758. It is answered by the spangram THETOOTHFAIRY, and all 7 theme words that day belong to that idea.
What were the Strands words on March 31, 2026?
The 7 Strands theme words for March 31, 2026 are COIN, EXCHANGE, NOTE, PILLOW, TUTU, WAND and WINGS, plus the spangram THETOOTHFAIRY.
What was the big word in the March 31, 2026 Strands?
The big word — the spangram — for March 31, 2026 is THETOOTHFAIRY, 13 letters long, running from row 7, column 1 to row 6, 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 “While you were sleeping ...” mean?
The Strands theme “While you were sleeping ...” for March 31, 2026 means THETOOTHFAIRY — that is what the spangram spells, and every one of the 7 theme words is an example of it.
How many theme words are in Strands March 31, 2026?
Strands puzzle #758 has 7 theme words plus one spangram, and together they use all 48 letters on the board exactly once.
How difficult was the March 31, 2026 Strands puzzle?
Strands #758 rates above average on a computed index, harder than 55% of every Strands puzzle published since March 2024.
What number was the Strands puzzle on March 31, 2026?
The Strands puzzle published on Tuesday, March 31, 2026 is #758, 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 2026, part of the full Strands archive.