Theme hint: The clue points upward, but think about landforms rather than motion. Board hint: The theme words are raised pieces or shapes of terrain. Spangram hint: The spangram names the broader elevated idea tying the grid together. First-letter hint: Theme words begin with B, H, H, K, M, R, and S. Solve path: Find the short terrain entries first, then use the remaining board space to trace the longer shape words.

Spangram: HIGHERGROUND. Theme words: BUTTE, HILL, HUMMOCK, KNOLL, MOUND, RIDGE, SLOPE.

What are today's Strands theme words?

The theme words are BUTTE, HILL, HUMMOCK, KNOLL, MOUND, RIDGE, and SLOPE.

It was verified from the official NYT Strands JSON feed for 2026-05-19.

NYT Strands #807 Hints and Answers for Tuesday, May 19, 2026 | TECHi

◆ Step 05

Stuck on a streak day? Past solves keep you moving.

Catching up? Here are the most recent solutions.

Date	Puzzle	Answer
Tue, May 19, 2026	Strands #807	HIGHERGROUND - BUTTE, HILL, HUMMOCK, KNOLL, MOUND, RIDGE, SLOPE
Mon, May 18, 2026	Strands #806	CITRUS - CLEMENTINE, KUMQUAT, LIME, ORANGE, POMELO, TANGERINE
Sun, May 17, 2026	Strands #805	BOWLINGALLEY - ARCADE, BALLS, LANES, LOUNGE, PINS, SCOREBOARD