Today's NYT Strands hints and answer: solutions to game #713, February 14

NYT Strands on a cellphone
(Image credit: Tom’s Guide/NY Times/Shutterstock)
Strands today: Quick menu

Need a bit of help with NYT Strands today? No shame in that, and you've come to the right place. Below, we've compiled some useful hints for Strands #713 as well as the answers, should it come to that.

Warning: Spoilers lie ahead for Strands #713.

Today's NYT Strands answer — Today's theme and hints

The official theme for NYT Strands #713 is... "XOXOXO".

And here's an unofficial hint from me: "Valentine's Day special".

If you're still in the dark, here are some useful words to give you those valuable clue tokens:

  • KIDS
  • DISK
  • GUNS
  • DUEL
  • CHECKS
  • SANDS
  • RICE
  • CRISP

Still struggling? The spangram touches two opposite sides of the board (but can start and end anywhere), and will give you a hint about the connection between the answers. Today, it starts with 'H' and ends with 'S'.

Scroll down to find out what it is...


It's HUGSANDKISSES.

Today's Strands answers

So, what are today's Strands answers for game #713?

Drumroll, please...

  • SMACK
  • SMOOCH
  • PECK
  • CUDDLE
  • SNUGGLE
  • EMBRACE

Strands #713

(Image credit: Alan Martin)

...and the spangram was HUGSANDKISSES.

Strands #713

“XOXOXO”

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Hi Strands fans. A nice easy one for Valentine's Day. "XOXOXO" is universally recognized as HUGSANDKISSES, the spangram that split the board in two from top to bottom.

The right side, it turns out, was exclusively reserved for the latter. I found SMACK in the top-right corner, with SMOOCH at the other end. Between the two was the more reserved PECK.

I suspected the left would be for the hugs part of the equation, and that proved to be the case. SNUGGLE was at the top, with CUDDLE at the bottom. That left EMBRACE between the two to complete the puzzle.

Yesterday's Strands answers

Reading this in a later time zone? Here are the Strands answers for game #712.

Strands #712

(Image credit: Alan Martin)
  • CHART
  • DIAGRAM
  • INFOGRAPHIC
  • PHOTO
  • VIDEO
  • MODEL

...and the spangram was VISUALAIDS.

Strands #712

“See what I mean?”

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Hi Strands fans. A tricky one to get started with. "See what I mean?" is a somewhat vague theme, and I found myself using a clue.

When said clue revealed CHART, I was kicking myself. Of course, this is about ways of presenting things without text!

I quickly found DIAGRAM spelt diagonally alongside CHART. That left a neat gap between the two for the spangram of VISUALAIDS.

I then found INFOGRAPHIC in the bottom-left corner, with PHOTO above it to complete the half.

Two answers were left to find in the top-right corner, and with only ten letters left on the board, they were both going to be short. I found VIDEO spelt backwards on the left, with MODEL in the corner to complete the puzzle.

Freelance contributor Alan has been writing about tech for over a decade, covering phones, drones and everything in between. Previously Deputy Editor of tech site Alphr, his words are found all over the web and in the occasional magazine too. When not weighing up the pros and cons of the latest smartwatch, you'll probably find him tackling his ever-growing games backlog. He also handles all the Wordle coverage on Tom's Guide and has been playing the addictive NYT game for the last several years in an effort to keep his streak forever intact.