News crossword for August 28, 2026
A 9×9 grid, three clue difficulties, and a few stories worth a closer look.
Play this edition →One word across three different worlds
An answer can stay fixed while its meaning moves. In this edition, one nine-letter entry provides an especially clear example: the clues approach it through a news reference, a sporting action, and a mathematical noun. You do not have to know all three associations to solve it. Start with the one you recognise, check the word length, and let the other entries confirm the letters. This is the shared-grid idea in practice: different clues can give different solvers a way to the same answer.
Follow the verb back to its story
The Easy clue gives this action a specific news context. The sporting clue removes that context while preserving the action. The source link lets you read beyond the small detail used in the puzzle.
Read the source at Associated Press ↗
Inside a clue
Published clue example; open the answer only when you are ready for a spoiler.
From the 2026-08-28 edition · 9 letters
- Easy
- Catch a missile in flight, as Patriot systems are built to
- Medium
- Cut off in transit, as a football pass
- Hard
- Point where a graph line crosses an axis
Reveal the answer and explanation
INTERCEPT
INTERCEPT is a verb in the first two clues: to catch or cut something off in transit. In the graph clue it is a noun. Watching for that change in grammatical role can make a familiar word visible in a new context.
The reporting behind this puzzle
These are the original source stories linked to news answers in this edition. Reading them may give you a head start on the clues.
- Associated PressExclusive: US Patriot missile stocks in Europe are 'beyond critical' due to Iran war, officials say ↗
- Associated PressJudge says Pentagon's measures against Anthropic were 'illegal and baseless' ↗
- Associated PressRescuers retrieve flood survivors caked in mud as death toll in Nepal-China border disaster climbs ↗
- Associated PressEbola outbreak in eastern Congo spreads to 2 new health zones with a total of 60 areas now affected ↗
One edition, however you solve.
Everyone playing this date sees the same grid. Easy, Medium and Hard change the clue wording, not the answers. Your progress is saved in this browser.