NYT Strands hints and answers for Wednesday, July 9 (game #493)

Looking for a different day?A new NYT Strands puzzle appears at midnight each day for your time zone – which means that some people are always playing 'today's game' while others are playing 'yesterday's'. If you're looking for Tuesday's puzzle instead then click here: NYT Strands hints and answers for Tuesday, July 8 (game #492).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.Want more word-based fun? Then check out my NYT Connections today and Quordle today pages for hints and answers for those games, and Marc's Wordle today page for the original viral word game.SPOILER WARNING: Information about NYT Strands today is below, so don't read on if you don't want to know the answers.NYT Strands today (game #493) - hint #1 - today's themeWhat is the theme of today's NYT Strands?• Today's NYT Strands theme is… Party time!NYT Strands today (game #493) - hint #2 - clue wordsPlay any of these words to unlock the in-game hints system.FINALSONNETCLOSE POETTOOLBURNTNYT Strands today (game #493) - hint #3 - spangram lettersHow many letters are in today's spangram?• Spangram has 11 lettersNYT Strands today (game #493) - hint #4 - spangram positionWhat are two sides of the board that today's spangram touches?First side: top, 6th columnLast side: bottom, 1st columnRight, the answers are below, so DO NOT SCROLL ANY FURTHER IF YOU DON'T WANT TO SEE THEM.NYT Strands today (game #493) - the answers(Image credit: New York Times)The answers to today's Strands, game #493, are…BALLOONBUNTINGPENNANTCONFETTISTREAMERSPANGRAM: DECORATIONSMy rating: HardMy score: 1 hintLike many families, mine has a box in a cupboard filled with DECORATIONS that only see the light of day a few times a year, including BUNTING and banners.It’s odd how a birthday doesn’t feel like a birthday if we don’t put these out the night before the special day, regardless of whether anyone is having a party or not – if they are, then the BALLOONs come out, too.Unlike Christmas with its 12th night deadline, there is no official time when you must take down birthday cards and decorations. For some families it may be the day after, others may leave them up to keep the spirit alive.I think this may be why in our house people have birthdays but there’s also a loose agreement that they have a birthday week too. It’s a lovely thing, why not let it last a bit?How did you do today? Let me know in the comments below.Yesterday's NYT Strands answers (Tuesday, July 8, game #492)TIMECHANGEKEYSMOMENTBEDROOMHANDSPARTSTIRESSPANGRAM: SPARESWhat is NYT Strands?Strands is the NYT's not-so-new-any-more word game, following Wordle and Connections. It's now a fully fledged member of the NYT's games stable that has been running for a year and which can be played on the NYT Games site on desktop or mobile.I've got a full guide to how to play NYT Strands, complete with tips for solving it, so check that out if you're struggling to beat it each day.