#816Thursday, May 28, 2026
Strands answers for May 28, 2026 — “Talking scents” (#816)
Spoilers below — this page is the full record for this puzzle
The NYT Strands spangram for May 28, 2026 (puzzle #816) is FRAGRANCE, a 9-letter answer to the theme "Talking scents". The 6 theme words are BERGAMOT, JASMINE, MUSK, NEROLI, PEAR and SANDALWOOD.
Where is each answer on the May 28 Strands board?
Here are all 6 theme words from the May 28, 2026 Strands puzzle, with the spangram last.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| BERGAMOT | 8 | row 8, column 6 | row 7, column 5 | diagonally across the grid |
| JASMINE | 7 | row 1, column 5 | row 5, column 4 | top to bottom |
| MUSK | 4 | row 6, column 2 | row 4, column 3 | diagonally across the grid |
| NEROLI | 6 | row 6, column 1 | row 7, column 1 | diagonally across the grid |
| PEAR | 4 | row 1, column 6 | row 4, column 6 | top to bottom |
| SANDALWOOD | 10 | row 2, column 3 | row 4, column 2 | diagonally across the grid |
| FRAGRANCE | 9 | row 8, column 5 | row 1, column 3 | diagonally across the grid |
What did the May 28 Strands grid look like?
Every letter below appears in exactly one answer — the 7 words tile all 48 cells of the May 28, 2026 grid.
Spangram — 9 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 N-A-E-A-J-P, row 2 reads D-L-S-C-S-E, row 3 reads A-W-N-I-M-A, row 4 reads O-D-K-A-N-R, row 5 reads O-S-R-E-A-G, row 6 reads N-M-U-G-M-R, row 7 reads I-E-A-O-T-E, and row 8 reads L-O-R-R-F-B.
How hard was the May 28 Strands puzzle?
Measured against the full archive, the May 28, 2026 puzzle lands in the average range — above 54% of all Strands puzzles.
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 28 Strands puzzle?
Strands puzzle #816 was edited by Tracy Bennett and constructed by Elie Levine. Output across the whole run is broken down on who makes NYT Strands.
Common questions about the May 28 Strands puzzle
What was the clue for Strands on May 28, 2026?
The Strands clue for May 28, 2026 is “Talking scents”, on puzzle #816. It is answered by the spangram FRAGRANCE, and all 6 theme words that day belong to that idea.
What were the Strands words on May 28, 2026?
The 6 Strands theme words for May 28, 2026 are BERGAMOT, JASMINE, MUSK, NEROLI, PEAR and SANDALWOOD, plus the spangram FRAGRANCE.
What was the big word in the May 28, 2026 Strands?
The big word — the spangram — for May 28, 2026 is FRAGRANCE, 9 letters long, running from row 8, column 5 to row 1, column 3. It is the one word that touches two opposite sides of the board and states the theme outright.
What did the Strands theme “Talking scents” mean?
The Strands theme “Talking scents” for May 28, 2026 means FRAGRANCE — 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 28, 2026?
Strands puzzle #816 has 6 theme words plus one spangram, and together they use all 48 letters on the board exactly once.
How difficult was the May 28, 2026 Strands puzzle?
Strands #816 rates average on a computed index, harder than 54% of every Strands puzzle published since March 2024.
What number was the Strands puzzle on May 28, 2026?
The Strands puzzle published on Thursday, May 28, 2026 is #816, 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.