NYT Strands for 16 November 2026 has the theme “What’s the big idea?”. There are six theme words and one spangram to find.
16 November 2026 NYT Strands #988 Theme: “What’s the big idea?”
The board has 8 rows and 6 columns, and every letter belongs to one of the six theme words or the spangram.
16 November 2026 NYT Strands: Hints
Open the hints one at a time. Each hint gives away more than the one before it.
Hint 1 · a size connection
The clue plays on the size-related meaning of “big.”
Hint 2 · a shared action
Look for verbs about becoming bigger or making something bigger.
Hint 3 · first letters
The theme words start with B, E, E, G, I and S.
Hint 4 · spangram route
The spangram starts in the bottom-left corner of the board and ends on the top edge.
Hint 5 · spangram shape and meaning
The spangram has three words, with letter counts of 5, 4 and 5. It means something is very good.
Three words that earn a hint
These three words are valid on today’s board and are not theme words: THAN, LIFE and BEST. Entering three such words earns one hint in the game.
16 November 2026 NYT Strands: Answers
The six theme words and the spangram are folded below. Open them one at a time.
First two letters of each theme word
The theme words start with BL, EN, EX, GR, IN and SU.
Today’s six theme words
- Bloat
- Enlarge
- Expand
- Grow
- Inflate
- Surge
Spangram
The spangram names the theme and runs from one side of the board to the opposite side.
Spangram letter count
The spangram has 14 letters.
First and last spangram letters
The spangram starts with T and ends with L.
Today’s spangram
THATS JUST SWELL
“That’s just swell” is an expression of approval. Here, “swell” connects the theme words, which describe increasing in size or amount.
Reveal the board one word at a time
Each fold below adds one word to the board, so you can stop after any word. The last fold adds the spangram.
Word 1 of 7 on the board
Bloat
Word 2 of 7 on the board
Enlarge
Word 3 of 7 on the board
Expand
Word 4 of 7 on the board
Grow
Word 5 of 7 on the board
Inflate
Word 6 of 7 on the board
Surge
Word 7 of 7 on the board
THATS JUST SWELL
Yesterday’s Strands answer for 15 November 2026
Yesterday’s theme was “Foiled again!”. The theme words were Firefly, Joker, Penguin, Riddler and Scarecrow, and the spangram was BATMANVILLAIN.
More Strands: Yesterday’s puzzle · Play Strands on The New York Times
Also today: Wordle · Connections · Pips · Phrazle · Quordle · Keyword · Colordle · Unwordle · Hurdle · NYT Crossword · NYT Mini · NYT Midi · Jumble · Spelling Bee · Letter Boxed · Parseword · Poeltl
Earlier days: 15 Nov · 14 Nov · 13 Nov · 12 Nov · 11 Nov · 10 Nov · 9 Nov
Questions about Strands
When does Strands change to a new puzzle?
A new puzzle arrives at midnight in the player’s own time zone.
How many tries does a player get in Strands?
There is no limit on guesses, and the game cannot be lost.
Where can a person play Strands?
Play on The New York Times Games site or in the NYT Games app: Strands.
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