NYT Strands Hints and Answers for September 22, 2026 (#933)
Spoiler-safe hints for the NYT Strands puzzle of September 22, 2026: the theme clue first, then first letters, word lengths, the spangram, and the full grid.
Stuck on the Strands puzzle of September 22, 2026? Start with the theme, take one rung at a time, and stop as soon as the grid opens up. Nothing below is revealed until you tap it.
Hints for September 22, 2026, one rung at a time
ThemeToday’s theme
Day and night shift
Start from the clue “Day and night shift”. Once you see what the 4 theme words have in common, the grid opens up quickly.
Hint 1A gentle clue
Read the clue loosely. The 4 answers sit inside that idea; none of them is a definition of it. The spangram runs down the grid, top edge to bottom, so look for a long vertical path first.
Hint 2First letters
Sorted alphabetically, the first letters are C, P, S, T.
Hint 3Word lengths
The theme words are 6, 10, 10 and 11 letters long. The shortest is 6 letters, the longest 11.
SpangramThe spangram
FALLEQUINOX
It is a single word of 11 letters and it touches two opposite sides of the board.
Starts with F, ends with X.
AnswersAll theme words
- SWITCH6 letters
- CHANGEOVER10 letters
- TRANSITION10 letters
- PROGRESSION11 letters
BoardThe completed grid
Theme wordSpangramEach line follows one word; the small number is that letter’s place in it.