Crack Today’s NYT Strands: Outsmart Big Bad Wolf With Hints and Answers for December 21, 2025
Stuck on today’s NYT Strands? Grab targeted hints—and the full solution if you need it—for puzzle #658 on December 21, 2025, and keep your streak alive.
If you are into daily brain teasers, here is your Strands fix. I post hints and full solutions regularly, and today we are looking at the NYT Strands puzzle for December 21, 2025. Quick setup: this one leans on a classic kids story, and the spangram (the long theme phrase that threads through the grid) practically gives it away if you grew up on bedtime fables.
NYT Strands #658 — December 21, 2025
Spoilers ahead if you want to try the grid clean.
- Theme clue: Tied to a children’s tale.
- Word lengths in play: 4 to 15 letters.
- Spangram hint: Think tiny pigs and a very motivated wolf.
- Extra nudge: Scan for words pulled straight from that story.
- Theme: 'Big bad wolf'.
- Spangram: 'THREE LITTLE PIGS'.
- HUFF — The wolf inhaling like he means business.
- PUFF — The follow-through breath meant to scare the pigs.
- BRICKS — The sturdy house that actually works.
- BLOW — The wolf's go-to demolition strategy.
- DOWN — What the flimsy builds do, fast.
- STRAW — The weakest building material of the trio.
- STICKS — The not-great, middle-of-the-road option.
So yes, the whole grid is a tour through 'Three Little Pigs'. If you clocked the theme early from the spangram, this one probably fell quickly. If not, no shame in letting the wolf huff and puff you toward the finish. See you on the next puzzle.