Need help with today's NYT Strands? Today's theme, “More than just sports,” is intentionally vague and may be difficult for those living outside the US.

Below we have compiled a list of hints for Issue 247. We will start with the hints and then lead you to the full solution of Strands #247.

WARNING: There are spoilers for Strands #247.

The official theme for NYT Strands #247 is...

And here's an unofficial tip from me: “When the gong rings

If you're still not sure, here's a handy word that will give you a valuable clue:

Still having trouble? Spangram gives you a hint on conjunctions. Today it starts with an “A” and ends with an “L.”

Scroll down to see what it is.

AFTERSCHOOL.

Now, what's the answer to today's strand?

Drumroll, please.

... Spangram was AFTERSCHOOL.

Strands #247

“More than just sports”

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Hello Strands fans! I figured out the spangram right away, but this puzzle was very difficult for me.

In the UK, where I live, we don't have a dedicated after-school program, so when I quickly got the AFTERSCHOOL spangram (which in itself was just an attempt to stretch it when I saw the word “school”), I and my friends were able to find out that after the bell rings I imagined the kind of recreational activities we would do (biking, cartoons, games, watching TV, etc.).

None of these came up, so I had to use two clues. I see, so this is about school club activities.

With that in mind, I was able to complete the top half of the board with DEBATE and open the bottom section with ORCHESTRA. That long, meandering word helped to code another DRAMA.

There was only one answer left, and even though it was a simple anagram, it took a while to find: “YEAROBKO.” The spelling makes it obvious, but for some reason the board didn't think so. Nevertheless, I eventually arrived at YEARBOOK.

Are you reading this late in the day? The full article on Strand's solution to yesterday's round of 246 can be found here.