Need help with today's NYT strand? Today's “Turn it up a notch” theme may be a bit confusing given the 7 “Z's” on the board!

Below are some helpful hints for Strand #230 and some answers if you need them. We'll start with the hints, and then go on to the full answer to Strand #230.

WARNING: There are spoilers for Strands #230.

The official theme for NYT Strands #230 is... “One Step Up.”

And here's an unofficial hint from me: “Razzle Dazzle of old.”

If you're still in the dark, here's a handy word that gives you a valuable hint:

Still struggling? Spangram gives you a hint on conjunctions. Today it starts with “e” and ends with “g.”

Scroll down to see what it is.

EXTRASOMETHING.

Now, what is the answer to today's Strand game #230?

Drumroll, please.

... Spangram was EXTRASOMETHING.

Strands #230

“Turn it up a notch”

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Hello Strands fans! I hope you had a great time! I must say that the fact that the board contains 7 'Z's helped.

That means I was able to place PIZZAZZ in the lower left corner.

I decided to solve the rest of the 'Z's starting with the top left ZING. Between my two answers was a FIZZZ. After that, there was a SPARK in the lower right corner and a VERVE above that.

Now that it was clear that the spangram was from top to bottom, I got to it, and when I realized that the 'X' was part of EXTRASOMETHING, another unusual letter came to my rescue.

That left me with two answers. I connected both KICK and OOMPH and completed the puzzle very satisfactorily in the time there.

Are you reading this later in the day? Read the full article about the solution to yesterday's game #229 on the Strand here.