NEW YORK — Today’s NYT Strands puzzle (#871, July 22, 2026) has a theme of “What is…” – and if that phrase rings a bell, you’re already halfway there. The spangram and all six strand words are solved below, with hints above the reveal.
The theme phrase lands as a Jeopardy! reference, and once it clicks, the strand words are close behind. The spangram is the one that crosses the entire board, and in today’s puzzle it doubles as the premise of the whole game show.
NYT Strands Hints for July 22, 2026 (Puzzle #871)
Hint 1: The theme is a game show phrase – contestants speak it before every answer they give.
Hint 2: The spangram is what happens when something is at risk.
Hint 3: Think about the physical and conceptual elements of the Jeopardy! game itself – the things you’d see on the set and in the format.
NYT Strands Answer for July 22, 2026 – Theme: “What is…”
Spangram: IN JEOPARDY
Strand words: ANSWER, BOARD, BUZZER, CATEGORY, QUESTION, WAGER
Every strand word is a working piece of the Jeopardy! format. The BOARD is the game board showing the category grid. Each cell holds a QUESTION – or more precisely, the answer that contestants must phrase as a question. CATEGORY organizes the board into columns by topic. The BUZZER is what players hit to lock in their response. A WAGER comes into play during Daily Doubles and Final Jeopardy. And ANSWER – in Jeopardy!’s famously inverted logic – is what the host reads aloud, while the contestants supply the question.
IN JEOPARDY as the spangram works on two levels: it names the show, and it literally means “at risk” – which is exactly the pressure every contestant feels when the Final Jeopardy music plays, and their total is on the line.
The “What is…” theme phrase is how every correct Jeopardy! response must be phrased. It’s one of the most recognizable conventions in American game show history, which makes the puzzle’s reveal satisfying even if the strand words take a moment to unlock.
For the rest of today’s NYT puzzle answers, our Wordle answer for July 22, 2026 is live.
