NYT Strands Answer Today (#963) – 22 Oct 2026 Solution & Hints
- About Today’s Strands
- Today’s Theme
- General Hints
- Spangram Length
- Spangram Orientation
- Spangram First & Last Letters
- First & Last Letters of All Words
- Spangram (Click to Reveal)
- Spangram Definition (Click to Reveal)
- Sample Words (Click to Reveal)
- Full Solution (Click to Reveal)
- Definitions of All Words (Click to Reveal)
About Today’s Strands
Puzzle #963 (published 22 Oct 2026). One special word — the Spangram — spans the grid and ties the theme together.
Today’s Theme
Theme: Any relation?
General Hints
- Today’s puzzle is all about the people you’re connected to by birth or by marriage.
- Several entries describe a group of relatives as a whole, rather than one single person.
- One hidden word ties the whole grid together around the idea of a close-knit lineage.
Spangram Length
The Spangram has 10 letters and is two words (joined together in the grid).
Spangram Orientation
The Spangram runs horizontally, stretching across the board and touching the left and right sides of the grid.
Spangram First & Last Letters
Begins with F and ends with S.
Pattern preview (length-obscured): F___S
Note: We always display first/last letters as X___Y with three underscores, regardless of true length.
First & Last Letters of All Words
- Word 1: A___S
- Word 2: B___D
- Word 3: B___N
- Word 4: K___K
- Word 5: O___G
Spangram preview: F___S
Spangram
Click to reveal today’s Spangram
FAMILYTIES
Spangram Definition
Click to reveal the definition of the Spangram
FAMILYTIES — The bonds of kinship and obligation that connect members of a family to one another.
Example: “Even after the siblings scattered across the country, their family ties kept pulling them back together every holiday.”
Sample Words
Click to reveal two words from today’s solution
- ANCESTORS
- BRETHREN
Full Solution
Click to reveal the complete answers
Theme: Any relation?
Spangram: FAMILYTIES
All words:
- ANCESTORS
- BLOOD
- BRETHREN
- KINFOLK
- OFFSPRING
- FAMILYTIES (Spangram)
Definitions of All Words
Click to reveal definitions of today’s words
- ANCESTORS — People from whom someone is descended, especially those further back than grandparents.
- BLOOD — A word used informally to describe shared ancestry or kinship between people.
- BRETHREN — An old-fashioned or formal term for male members of a group bound together, often by faith or family.
- KINFOLK — A person’s relatives, taken together as a group.
- OFFSPRING — The children or young produced by a person, animal, or plant.
- FAMILYTIES — The bonds of kinship and obligation that connect members of a family to one another.
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