Today's NYT Strands hints and answer: solutions to game #823, June 4

NYT Strands on a cellphone
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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 #823 as well as the answers, should it come to that.

We'll start off with some clues, before building up to the full answer for Strands #823, so read on if you need a little help.

Warning: Spoilers lie ahead for Strands #823.

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

The official theme for NYT Strands #823 is... "Smooth moves".

And here's an unofficial hint from me: "Showing real finesse."

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

  • MOSEY
  • PORE
  • PLOT
  • MEAL
  • PEOPLES
  • PALE
  • MOLES
  • RISEN

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 'P' and ends with 'N'.

Scroll down to find out what it is...


It's POETRYINMOTION.

Today's Strands answers

So, what are today's Strands answers for game #823?

Drumroll, please...

  • GRACE
  • STYLE
  • POISE
  • APLOMB
  • EASE
  • COMPOSURE

Strands #823

(Image credit: Alan Martin)

...and the spangram was POETRYINMOTION.

Strands #823

“Smooth moves”

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Hi Strands fans. I thought I was going to be using a clue for sure, here. The theme of "Smooth moves" wasn't giving me much to work with, but then I saw GRACE in the top-right corner.

I then found STYLE along the left-hand side, and this helpfully cut out the shape of the spangram starting above it. It was POETRYINMOTION, stretching from the top-left corner to the right-hand side of the board.

This cordoned off POISE immediately below GRACE, and I was all set looking for synonyms.

APLOMB was right down the middle, leaving the two remaining answers isolated in their own sections. EASE was on the right, and that just left COMPOSURE to connect on the left-hand side to complete the puzzle.

Yesterday's Strands answers

Reading this in a later time zone? Here are the Strands answers for game #822

Strands #822

(Image credit: Alan Martin)
  • WHITE
  • DAMASK
  • PRAIRIE
  • YELLOW
  • BRIAR
  • WILD
  • HEDGE

Strands #822

“By any other name ...”

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Hi Strands fans. Starting today's puzzle was easy. "By any other name..." is a quote from Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet, which is proceeded by "a rose". That ensured I got the spangram of ROSEGARDEN right away.

But it turns out my knowledge of roses is a lot more limited than my repertoire of Shakespeare quotes, and I struggled a bit to get started.

In the end, I found WHITE to the left of the spangram's ending, and was then able to connect DAMASK next to it. PRAIRIE in the bottom-left corner completed the section.

Moving onto the top section, I was back on colors again, finding YELLOW in the top-right corner. BRIAR was tucked in next to it.

That left two words to complete the puzzle. WILD was in the middle, with HEDGE spelt backwards bordering it to complete the game.

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.