#806Monday, May 18, 2026
Strands answers for May 18, 2026 — “The daily rind” (#806)
Spoilers below — this page is the full record for this puzzle
The NYT Strands spangram for May 18, 2026 (puzzle #806) is CITRUS, a 6-letter answer to the theme "The daily rind". The 6 theme words are CLEMENTINE, KUMQUAT, LIME, ORANGE, POMELO and TANGERINE.
Where is each answer on the May 18 Strands board?
Strands #806 resolves to these 6 theme words plus the spangram CITRUS.
The table gives the start square, end square and travel direction of all 7 answers. Every position comes from solving the grid outright — the answers have to tile all 48 letters with no overlap and no remainder, which is what makes a single arrangement provable.
| Answer | Letters | Starts | Ends | Direction |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CLEMENTINE | 10 | row 2, column 1 | row 1, column 5 | left to right |
| KUMQUAT | 7 | row 3, column 5 | row 4, column 3 | diagonally across the grid |
| LIME | 4 | row 1, column 6 | row 4, column 6 | top to bottom |
| ORANGE | 6 | row 5, column 2 | row 6, column 3 | diagonally across the grid |
| POMELO | 6 | row 5, column 4 | row 5, column 5 | diagonally across the grid |
| TANGERINE | 9 | row 7, column 3 | row 7, column 4 | diagonally across the grid |
| CITRUS | 6 | row 3, column 1 | row 8, column 6 | diagonally across the grid |
What did the May 18 Strands grid look like?
Puzzle #806 is played on 48 letters arranged in eight rows of six.
Spangram — 6 letters6 theme words
Each line traces one answer through the letters it uses; the heavier yellow line is the spangram.
Read across the grid, row 1 reads L-E-N-T-E-L, row 2 reads C-M-E-I-N-I, row 3 reads C-A-U-Q-K-M, row 4 reads R-I-T-M-U-E, row 5 reads A-O-T-P-O-L, row 6 reads N-G-E-R-O-E, row 7 reads N-A-T-E-U-M, and row 8 reads G-E-R-I-N-S.
How hard was the May 18 Strands puzzle?
The difficulty index rates puzzle #806 as easy: it sits at the 13th percentile of every Strands grid to date.
Easiest puzzle ever published on the left, hardest on the right. The formula behind the score, and the ranked list of every puzzle, are on the Strands difficulty index.
Who made the May 18 Strands puzzle?
Strands puzzle #806 was edited by Tracy Bennett, who also constructed it. Output across the whole run is broken down on who makes NYT Strands.
Common questions about the May 18 Strands puzzle
What was the clue for Strands on May 18, 2026?
The Strands clue for May 18, 2026 is “The daily rind”, on puzzle #806. It is answered by the spangram CITRUS, and all 6 theme words that day belong to that idea.
What were the Strands words on May 18, 2026?
The 6 Strands theme words for May 18, 2026 are CLEMENTINE, KUMQUAT, LIME, ORANGE, POMELO and TANGERINE, plus the spangram CITRUS.
What was the big word in the May 18, 2026 Strands?
The big word — the spangram — for May 18, 2026 is CITRUS, 6 letters long, running from row 3, column 1 to row 8, column 6. It is the one word that touches two opposite sides of the board and states the theme outright.
What did the Strands theme “The daily rind” mean?
The Strands theme “The daily rind” for May 18, 2026 means CITRUS — that is what the spangram spells, and every one of the 6 theme words is an example of it.
How many theme words are in Strands May 18, 2026?
Strands puzzle #806 has 6 theme words plus one spangram, and together they use all 48 letters on the board exactly once.
How difficult was the May 18, 2026 Strands puzzle?
Strands #806 rates easy on a computed index, harder than 13% of every Strands puzzle published since March 2024.
What number was the Strands puzzle on May 18, 2026?
The Strands puzzle published on Monday, May 18, 2026 is #806, counting from the game's launch on March 4, 2024.
Today’s puzzle and its hint ladder are on the front page. This puzzle sits in May 2026, part of the full Strands archive.