NYT Strands Answer Today (#985) – 13 Nov 2026 Solution & Hints
- About Today’s Strands
- Today’s Theme
- General Hints
- Spangram Length
- Spangram Orientation
- Spangram First & Last Letters
- First & Last Letters of All Words
- Spangram (Click to Reveal)
- Spangram Definition (Click to Reveal)
- Sample Words (Click to Reveal)
- Full Solution (Click to Reveal)
- Definitions of All Words (Click to Reveal)
About Today’s Strands
Puzzle #985 (published 13 Nov 2026). One special word — the Spangram — spans the grid and ties the theme together.
Today’s Theme
Theme: Not a good sign
General Hints
- This board is full of small, old superstitions people still half-believe about a run of bad fortune.
- Walking a certain way, dropping something you shouldn’t, and an unlucky number are all represented here.
- One classic bit of folklore says a certain household object carries years of consequence if it cracks.
Spangram Length
The Spangram has 10 letters and is one word.
Spangram Orientation
The Spangram runs horizontally, touching the left and right sides of the grid — it starts on the left edge in row 4 and finishes on the right edge in row 8, curving down through the board rather than tracing a straight line.
Spangram First & Last Letters
Begins with R and ends with K.
Pattern preview (length-obscured): R___K
Note: We always display first/last letters as X___Y with three underscores, regardless of true length.
First & Last Letters of All Words
- Word 1: B___N
- Word 2: F___R
- Word 3: M___R
- Word 4: S___T
- Word 5: S___D
- Word 6: T___H
Spangram preview: R___K
Spangram
Click to reveal today’s Spangram
ROTTENLUCK
Spangram Definition
Click to reveal the definition of the Spangram
ROTTENLUCK — A string of especially bad fortune, as if misfortune has spoiled everything it touches.
Example: “Losing my keys, missing the train, and spilling my coffee all before 9am — pure rottenluck.”
Sample Words
Click to reveal two words from today’s solution
- FLOOR
- SALT
Full Solution
Click to reveal the complete answers
Theme: Not a good sign
Spangram: ROTTENLUCK
All words:
- BROKEN
- FLOOR
- MIRROR
- SALT
- SPILLED
- THIRTEENTH
- ROTTENLUCK (Spangram)
Definitions of All Words
Click to reveal definitions of today’s words
- BROKEN — No longer whole or working as intended; damaged, often suddenly.
- FLOOR — The surface underfoot in a room or building, the base one walks across.
- MIRROR — A reflective surface, typically glass backed with a metallic coating, that shows an image of whatever faces it.
- SALT — A crystalline mineral used to season and preserve food, chemically known as sodium chloride.
- SPILLED — Having accidentally let liquid or small particles escape and scatter outside their container.
- THIRTEENTH — The ordinal number following twelfth, widely regarded in Western folklore as an unlucky position.
- ROTTENLUCK — A string of especially bad fortune, as if misfortune has spoiled everything it touches.
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