#230Saturday, October 19, 2024
Strands answers for October 19, 2024 — “Turn it up a notch” (#230)
Spoilers below — this page is the full record for this puzzle
The NYT Strands spangram for October 19, 2024 (puzzle #230) is EXTRASOMETHING, a 14-letter answer to the theme "Turn it up a notch". The 7 theme words are FIZZ, KICK, OOMPH, PIZZAZZ, SPARK, VERVE and ZING.
Where is each answer on the October 19 Strands board?
The 7 theme words for Strands on October 19, 2024 are listed below, followed by the spangram.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| FIZZ | 4 | row 4, column 1 | row 5, column 1 | diagonally across the grid |
| KICK | 4 | row 1, column 4 | row 3, column 2 | diagonally across the grid |
| OOMPH | 5 | row 6, column 4 | row 2, column 5 | bottom to top |
| PIZZAZZ | 7 | row 8, column 3 | row 6, column 1 | diagonally across the grid |
| SPARK | 5 | row 8, column 6 | row 5, column 6 | bottom to top |
| VERVE | 5 | row 1, column 6 | row 4, column 6 | top to bottom |
| ZING | 4 | row 1, column 1 | row 2, column 2 | diagonally across the grid |
| EXTRASOMETHING | 14 | row 1, column 5 | row 8, column 4 | top to bottom |
What did the October 19 Strands grid look like?
The Strands board for October 19, 2024 is a six-column, eight-row grid of 48 letters.
Spangram — 14 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 Z-N-I-K-E-V, row 2 reads I-G-C-X-H-E, row 3 reads I-K-T-P-V-R, row 4 reads F-Z-R-A-M-E, row 5 reads Z-M-O-S-O-K, row 6 reads Z-E-T-O-I-R, row 7 reads Z-Z-I-H-N-A, and row 8 reads A-Z-P-G-P-S.
How hard was the October 19 Strands puzzle?
Measured against the full archive, the October 19, 2024 puzzle lands in the hard range — above 89% 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 October 19 Strands puzzle?
Strands puzzle #230 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 October 19 Strands puzzle
What was the clue for Strands on October 19, 2024?
The Strands clue for October 19, 2024 is “Turn it up a notch”, on puzzle #230. It is answered by the spangram EXTRASOMETHING, and all 7 theme words that day belong to that idea.
What were the Strands words on October 19, 2024?
The 7 Strands theme words for October 19, 2024 are FIZZ, KICK, OOMPH, PIZZAZZ, SPARK, VERVE and ZING, plus the spangram EXTRASOMETHING.
What was the big word in the October 19, 2024 Strands?
The big word — the spangram — for October 19, 2024 is EXTRASOMETHING, 14 letters long, running from row 1, column 5 to row 8, column 4. It is the one word that touches two opposite sides of the board and states the theme outright.
What did the Strands theme “Turn it up a notch” mean?
The Strands theme “Turn it up a notch” for October 19, 2024 means EXTRASOMETHING — 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 October 19, 2024?
Strands puzzle #230 has 7 theme words plus one spangram, and together they use all 48 letters on the board exactly once.
How difficult was the October 19, 2024 Strands puzzle?
Strands #230 rates hard on a computed index, harder than 89% of every Strands puzzle published since March 2024.
What number was the Strands puzzle on October 19, 2024?
The Strands puzzle published on Saturday, October 19, 2024 is #230, 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 October 2024, part of the full Strands archive.