NYT Strands Hints & Answer — Men in tights, May 14, 2026

Loading puzzle...

NYT Strands Answer & Hints — “Men in tights”, May 14, 2026

Stuck on the May 14, 2026 NYT Strands puzzle? Here are progressive hints and the full answer for the “Men in tights” puzzle (Strands #494 of 494 in our archive). Every reveal is hidden by default — click to open the ones you need.

Spoiler warning. The answers below are for the May 14, 2026 NYT Strands puzzle. Scroll past this section if you want to solve it yourself first.
Hint 1: The themeReveal

The theme for the May 14, 2026 NYT Strands puzzle is “Men in tights”. Every theme word and the spangram connects back to this phrase, so think about what related words might fit a 6×8 grid of 48 letters before you start scanning.

Hint 2: Spangram length and first letterReveal

The spangram for the “Men in tights” puzzle is 9 letters long and starts with the letter R. It touches two opposite edges of the grid, as every NYT Strands spangram does.

Hint 3: How many theme wordsReveal

Besides the spangram, the May 14, 2026 NYT Strands puzzle has 6 theme words. Together with the spangram, they use every letter on the 6×8 grid exactly once.

Answer: Full spangramReveal

The spangram for the May 14, 2026 NYT Strands “Men in tights” puzzle is ROBINHOOD. It spans two opposite edges of the 6×8 grid and captures the theme directly.

Answer: All theme wordsReveal

Here are the 6 theme words for the May 14, 2026 NYT Strands “Men in tights” puzzle:

  • ARCHERY
  • DISGUISE
  • FOREST
  • FRIAR
  • OUTLAW
  • SHERIFF

Plus the spangram ROBINHOOD, that’s every word on the grid — all 48 letters accounted for.

Answers for the May 14, 2026 NYT Strands puzzle. Strands Unlimited is an independent fan archive — today's NYT Strands is free on nytimes.com/games/strands.

About the "Men in tights" NYT Strands puzzle

"Men in tights" — a theme that invites you to explore a specific concept through the lens of this Strands puzzle. The phrase describes a mood, setting, or idea, and every theme word hidden in the 6×8 grid belongs to that same world. This science & technology puzzle uses its descriptive title to guide your intuition. Start by brainstorming words that come to mind when you read the theme, then look for them on the board.

This puzzle has 6 theme words hidden in the grid — a balanced count that gives you enough to work with without overwhelming the board. With 9 letters, the spangram is mid-length — long enough to stand out in the grid but still requiring careful scanning to trace from edge to edge. Originally published on a Thursday, Puzzle #494 is a more recent addition to the 494+ puzzle archive.

#494
Puzzle Number
6
Theme Words
9
Spangram Letters
Medium
Difficulty

How to approach "Men in tights"

  • The theme paints a picture. Brainstorm 5-10 words that come to mind when you read it, then scan the grid for those words or close variants.
  • Start by scanning the grid edges for the spangram — it must connect two opposite sides. Once you find it, the theme becomes clear and the remaining words are easier to spot.
  • Once you find the spangram, re-read the theme title. It almost always makes much more sense in hindsight, which helps you brainstorm the remaining theme words.
PreviousAll NYT Strands answers

More puzzles from May 2026

13 Wed
You've got ...
12 Tue
Quite the pair
11 Mon
A nice medley
10 Sun
We all saw it
9 Sat
Garden varieties
8 Fri
Garden variety
View all May puzzles

More NYT Strands puzzles

Dec 6
Tolkien's world
Jun 9
What you see isn't what you get
May 13
You've got ...
May 12
Quite the pair
May 11
A nice medley
May 10
We all saw it
May 9
Garden varieties
May 8
Garden variety

Sister Sites · More logic puzzles

Queens
Region logic, daily + 1,500 puzzles
Patches
Region-stitching puzzle
Tango
No 3-in-a-row pattern
Zip
Path-drawing puzzle
Mini Sudoku
Compact sudoku
Strands Unlimited is an independent fan archive of past Strands puzzles. Not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by The New York Times Company. NYT Strands is a trademark of The New York Times Company. Today's daily puzzle is free at nytimes.com/games/strands.