NYT Strands Answer Today # 778— Sunday, 20 April 2026

Looking for the NYT Strands answer for Sunday, 20 April 2026? You’re in the right place. Today’s Strands puzzle is No. 778, and as always we’ve put hints before the full answer — so scroll slowly if you’d rather work it out yourself first.

NYT Strands Hints for 20 April 2026 (No Spoilers)

The theme and a few gentle nudges are all you should need. Here are five hints for today’s Strands puzzle:

• Hint 1Today’s theme is: “Gloriously glaring!”
• Hint 2The one-word clue from the puzzle itself is: Shimmery.
• Hint 3Every single theme answer — including the spangram — starts with the same two letters.
• Hint 4The six non-spangram answers range from 4 to 7 letters in length, and they all describe types of light or radiance.
• Hint 5The spangram is a three-word phrase run together, and it’s something a photographer might say about golden-hour light.

If you need a few clue words to unlock the in-game hint system, try entering any of these four-plus-letter words: TEAM, MATE, HATE, GATE, LIST, LISTEN, GLEE, LINT, CHEAT, HEAT. Any words of four letters or more will count — three valid finds unlocks a free theme word.

Still thinking? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Last chance!

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NYT Strands Answer for 20 April 2026

Here are all the theme answers for Strands #778, along with today’s spangram:

All six theme answers share the GL- prefix, each describing a subtly different quality of luminosity. GLOW suggests a steady, warm radiance — think embers or a lit lamp — while GLEAM implies a cleaner, brighter reflected shine, often from polished metal or still water. GLINT is sharper and more fleeting, a single quick flash; GLITTER describes many tiny sparkling points of light at once. GLISTEN typically applies to wet or moist surfaces that catch the light, such as morning dew on grass, and GLIMMER sits between a glow and a glint — faint, wavering, and atmospheric.

The spangram CATCHTHELIGHT ties the theme together beautifully. The phrase is used in photography and painting to describe the way an object or surface is positioned to pick up and reflect available light — hence “gloriously glaring.” To find it on the board, start with the C sitting three letters from the right on the bottom row and wind your way upward.

How Did We Do Today?

Today’s puzzle has a wonderfully cohesive theme — once you clock that all the answers share GL-, the remaining words fall into place fairly quickly. The real challenge lies in spotting GLIMMER and GLISTEN on the grid without those letters clustering in an obvious region. We’d call it a satisfying medium — tricky enough to feel earned, but not so brutal that you’ll need all three in-game hints.

How many hints did you need? Share your score in the comments or on social media. And if you want to compare with yesterday’s puzzle, check out our NYT Strands answer for 18 April 2026. For more from the world of gaming, don’t miss our piece on how the UK video games market hit a record £8.76bn — the highest valuation the industry has ever seen.