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NYT Strands Answer & Hints — “It follows”, March 18, 2026

Stuck on the March 18, 2026 NYT Strands puzzle? Here are progressive hints and the full answer for the “It follows” puzzle (Strands #437 of 508 in our archive). Every reveal is hidden by default — click to open the ones you need.

Spoiler warning. The answers below are for the March 18, 2026 NYT Strands puzzle. Scroll past this section if you want to solve it yourself first.
Hint 1: The themeReveal

The theme for the March 18, 2026 NYT Strands puzzle is “It follows”. Every theme word and the spangram connects back to this phrase, so think about what related words might fit a 6×8 grid of 48 letters before you start scanning.

Hint 2: Spangram length and first letterReveal

The spangram for the “It follows” puzzle is 9 letters long and starts with the letter A. It touches two opposite edges of the grid, as every NYT Strands spangram does.

Hint 3: How many theme wordsReveal

Besides the spangram, the March 18, 2026 NYT Strands puzzle has 7 theme words. Together with the spangram, they use every letter on the 6×8 grid exactly once.

Answer: Full spangramReveal

The spangram for the March 18, 2026 NYT Strands “It follows” puzzle is AFTERLIFE. It spans two opposite edges of the 6×8 grid and captures the theme directly.

Answer: All theme wordsReveal

Here are the 7 theme words for the March 18, 2026 NYT Strands “It follows” puzzle:

  • BLOOD
  • COACH
  • CYCLE
  • HACK
  • LESSON
  • PRESERVER
  • STYLE

Plus the spangram AFTERLIFE, that’s every word on the grid — all 48 letters accounted for.

Answers for the March 18, 2026 NYT Strands puzzle. Strands Unlimited is an independent fan archive — today's NYT Strands is free on nytimes.com/games/strands.

About the "It follows" NYT Strands puzzle

"It follows" — a theme that invites you to explore a specific concept through the lens of this Strands puzzle. The phrase describes a mood, setting, or idea, and every theme word hidden in the 6×8 grid belongs to that same world. This general puzzle uses its descriptive title to guide your intuition. Start by brainstorming words that come to mind when you read the theme, then look for them on the board.

At 7 theme words, this is one of the denser puzzles in the archive. The grid is packed, so words will be closer together. With 9 letters, the spangram is mid-length — long enough to stand out in the grid but still requiring careful scanning to trace from edge to edge. Originally published on a Wednesday, Puzzle #437 is a more recent addition to the 508+ puzzle archive.

#437
Puzzle Number
7
Theme Words
9
Spangram Letters
Challenging
Difficulty

How to approach "It follows"

  • The theme paints a picture. Brainstorm 5-10 words that come to mind when you read it, then scan the grid for those words or close variants.
  • There are 7 theme words packed into this grid. Try to find 2-3 shorter words first to free up space and make the remaining words easier to trace.
  • The spangram always describes or names the theme. If you can guess the theme from the title alone, you effectively know the spangram — then just find its path in the grid.
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Strands Unlimited is an independent fan archive of past Strands puzzles. Not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by The New York Times Company. NYT Strands is a trademark of The New York Times Company. Today's daily puzzle is free at nytimes.com/games/strands.