Strands #987 Hints & Answers Today, November 15, 2026

Sunday’s Strands is puzzle #987, dated Nov. 15, 2026, and The New York Times (NYT) runs the clue “Foiled again!” The theme is a Gotham rogues’ gallery, so think of the crooks who scheme against the Caped Crusader. Tracy Bennett is credited as both constructor and editor. A thirteen-letter spangram names the group; what a spangram has to span is on our Strands page. Hints come first, and the answers wait in the spoiler section at the end.

Spangram hints

• Hint 1

  the catch-all for any crook who schemes against the Caped Crusader.
• Hint 2

  two words; the first is the hero’s own name, the second a word for a bad guy.
• Hint 3

  thirteen letters across two words, starting with B.
• Reveal the spangram

  Batmanvillain
• Letter by letter: the spangram, one more letter per tap.
  Show the first letter

  b____________ (1 of 13 letters)

  Show letter 2

  ba___________ (2 of 13 letters)

  Show letter 3

  bat__________ (3 of 13 letters)

  Show letter 4

  batm_________ (4 of 13 letters)

  Show letter 5

  batma________ (5 of 13 letters)

  Show letter 6

  batman_______ (6 of 13 letters)

  Show letter 7

  batmanv______ (7 of 13 letters)

  Show letter 8

  batmanvi_____ (8 of 13 letters)

  Show letter 9

  batmanvil____ (9 of 13 letters)

  Show letter 10

  batmanvill___ (10 of 13 letters)

  Show letter 11

  batmanvilla__ (11 of 13 letters)

  Show letter 12

  batmanvillai_ (12 of 13 letters)

  Show the last letter

  batmanvillain (13 of 13 letters)

Theme word hints

Every answer is a foe of the Dark Knight, shortest to longest:

• 5 letters, starts with J

  the grinning Clown Prince of Crime.

  Show the word

  Joker
• 7 letters, starts with F

  a Gotham arsonist whose name doubles as a glowing night insect.

  Show the word

  Firefly
• 7 letters, starts with P

  the top-hatted Oswald Cobblepot, fond of trick umbrellas.

  Show the word

  Penguin
• 7 letters, starts with R

  the foe who leaves question-mark clues for the hero to solve.

  Show the word

  Riddler
• 9 letters, starts with S

  Jonathan Crane, who attacks with fear gas.

  Show the word

  Scarecrow

A twisting spangram and a Sunday rogues’ gallery

The spangram is a twisting two-word phrase that never settles. It enters on the left edge in the fourth row, zigzags up and back down through the center in ten short turns, and exits on the right edge, staying between the second and sixth rows. No straight run tops three tiles.

The five foes ring that twist. The nine-letter S word, the longest, sweeps across the lower rows from the left. The seven-letter P word is boxed whole into the bottom-right corner, and the seven-letter F word sits in the lower-left. Up top, the five-letter J word fills the top-left corner and the seven-letter R word runs across the top-right. The lower-left quarter is the densest, ten of its twelve tiles themed. Three of the five foes share the same length, exactly seven letters.

Solving tips

Show the solving tips

Three of the five foes are exactly seven letters, so once you land one of that length, test the same count elsewhere. Start with the longest answer sweeping the lower rows, which clears the most tiles at once.

Logging a Sunday solve? The printable weekly calendar and the November 2026 printable calendar both work.

Sunday’s other puzzles: Wordle, Connections and Pips.

Today’s Strands answers (spoilers)

Spoilers from here down.

• Spangram: Batman Villain
• Theme words: Firefly, Joker, Penguin, Riddler, Scarecrow

Each theme word is a foe of the Dark Knight, and the spangram, Batman Villain, names the rogues’ gallery they belong to.

Yesterday's Strands answer

Strands on Saturday, Nov. 14, 2026 had the theme clue "Preschool fun". The spangram was Followtheleader, and the theme words were Gallop, Jump, March, Skip, Spin, Tiptoe, Walk. Yesterday's hints and full solution.