Honestly, some mornings you just want to find the words and move on with your life. I get it. You're staring at a grid of letters that looks like someone spilled a bowl of alphabet soup, and the clue "You need to chill" is basically mocking you. If you are looking for the strands answers today mashable style—straight to the point and without the fluff—you have come to the right place.
The NYT Strands puzzle for January 13, 2026, is actually one of those that feels impossible until you see one specific word. Then, everything just clicks into place.
What is Today's Strands Theme?
Today's theme is "You need to chill." When I first saw that, I thought about emotions. Calm down. Relax. Take a breath. But the New York Times loves a good pun, and this "chill" is literal. It is about things that are actually, physically cold.
If you've been hunting for words like relax or serene, you're going to be looking for a very long time. Stop doing that. Think about your freezer instead. Think about that section in the grocery store where you have to wear a jacket just to pick out a dinner.
The Spangram for January 13
The Spangram is the big one. It's the word that stretches across the entire board, touching two opposite sides.
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For today, the Spangram is FROZENFOOD.
It runs horizontally across the middle of the grid. Once you find it, it turns yellow, and the whole puzzle starts to make a lot more sense. Suddenly, those random letters in the corners aren't just junk—they’re snacks.
Strands Answers Today: The Full List
If you just want the answers to stop the brain itch, here is exactly what is hidden in that grid. No more guessing.
- PIZZA (The ultimate freezer staple)
- POPSICLES (Bottom left area)
- VEGETABLES (The healthy stuff we ignore)
- WAFFLES (Top right corner—think Eggos)
- SHERBET (The one that always trips people up with the spelling)
- FROZENFOOD (The Spangram)
There it is. That's the whole list.
Why Today's Puzzle is Tricky
Usually, I can breeze through these, but today had a couple of "gotcha" moments.
Sherbet vs. Sherbert
Seriously, why do we all want to put a second "r" in that word? I spent two minutes trying to find "sherbert" and felt like I was losing my mind. It’s SHERBET. Only one "r" in the middle. If you're stuck in that bottom section, that’s probably why.
The Waffle Trap
WAFFLES is tucked away in the upper right. If you didn't find the Spangram first, you might see "waffle" and think the theme is breakfast. I did. I started looking for eggs and bacon, which are nowhere to be found.
The Grid Layout
The words today have some funky shapes. They aren't just straight lines. They twist and turn. VEGETABLES is a long one that snakes around, and if you miss one letter, the whole thing falls apart.
How to Get Better at Strands
If you’re tired of looking up the strands answers today mashable or elsewhere, you can actually train your brain to spot these patterns.
Start with the corners.
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Letters in the corners are less "connected" than letters in the middle. A corner letter only has three neighbors. A middle letter has eight. Statistically, it's way easier to figure out what a corner letter belongs to because there are fewer options.
Also, don't ignore the "non-theme" words.
If you see a word like "CAT" or "HOUSE," and it's not part of the theme, select it anyway. For every three of these you find, the game gives you a hint. The hint will highlight the letters of a theme word. It won't tell you the order, but it narrows the field down significantly.
Actionable Tips for Tomorrow
- Check the theme clue twice. It's almost always a pun or a double entendre.
- Look for the Spangram early. It’s the backbone of the puzzle. If you find the word that describes the theme, the rest of the board becomes a game of elimination.
- Watch for suffixes. Words often end in "S," "ING," or "ED." If you see those clusters, work backward.
- Rotate your phone. Sometimes looking at the grid from a different angle helps your eyes break out of the patterns they've already formed.
Go finish that grid. You've got the answers now, so there's no excuse to leave those little circles unfilled. If you're also playing Wordle or Connections today, remember that the "Gumbo" answer in Wordle and the "Mr. Monopoly" category in Connections are the other big hurdles for the morning.
Stick to the corners, watch out for the "sherbet" spelling, and you'll be a pro by the time tomorrow's puzzle drops.
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Next Steps:
- Open your NYT Games app and enter FROZENFOOD as your Spangram.
- Locate WAFFLES in the top right to clear that section first.
- Search for the "Z"s to quickly lock in PIZZA.