The New York Times' Connections game, a daily word puzzle, challenges players to identify thematic links between seemingly unrelated words. The April 18th puzzle presented unique difficulties, requiring critical thinking and linguistic knowledge to sort 16 words into four distinct categories.

Wordle is a word puzzle that gives players six chances to guess a five-letter word. Originally created by software engineer Josh Wardle and released to the public in 2021, the puzzle was acquired by The New York Times in 2022 after rising to huge popularity.

Strands is the NYT's latest word game after the likes of Wordle, Spelling Bee and Connections – and it's great fun. It can be difficult, though, so read on for my Strands hints.