Purposeful pairs Strands NYT hints and answers (June 4)

Check out our June 5 Strands hints.

Today’s Strands puzzle was the most challenging ever for me. “Purposeful pairs” reminded me of the old “looking for a mate” theme about objects that come in pairs. This time, we have to go a bit meta to solve the puzzle and think of word pairs.

Don’t worry—knowing the June 4 Strands puzzle is about word pairs doesn’t give away the entire solution, so consider this a free hint. Even if you solve the board like I did, by accidentally stumbling upon some answer words, you might still struggle to understand the theme if you don’t find the Spangram quickly. That’s why I recommend checking the Spangram hints below first if you want a better chance of solving the rest of the puzzle on your own.

Purposeful pairs Strands Spangram hints and answer (June 4)

The Spangram goes from left to right, with the first letter higher up than the last letter.

The Spangram’s first letter is “U” and the last letter is “E.”

Guidance or recommendations that are practical, actionable, and relevant to a specific situation.

The June 4 Spangram is “USEFULADVICE.” It starts from the “U” in the left column and ends on the “E” in the last column.

Purposeful pairs Strands word hints and final solution

Now that you know all answer words on the Strands board are about useful advice, crossing that with the theme shows that all answers are made of two words that match like a pair. For example, “Reflect and Act” isn’t an answer, but if it were, you would find “reflect” as one word and “act” as a separate word. Since there are six words to find, you’re looking for three useful words of advice, which I’ll hint at below. Click or touch the boxes to reveal the chosen hint.

A strategy of breaking down a large problem into smaller, manageable parts to solve them individually.

The process of observing someone else’s actions or techniques to gain knowledge or skills.

The act of pardoning someone for wrongdoing and letting go of any lingering resentment or memory of the offense.

Here’s the full answer for the “purposeful pairs” Strands of June 4 with all words in their right placements:

• USEFULADVICE (Spangram)
• FORGIVE
• FORGET
• WATCH
• LEARN
• DIVIDE
• CONQUER