Strategic Crossword Clue

Looking for the answer to “Strategic” from the USA Today crossword of July 9, 2026? It has 8 letters. Flip the tiles one at a time, try a hint first, or look through the rest of that puzzle.

Crossword answer

USA TODAY, JULY 9, 2026

Tap a tile to see one letter, or show the whole answer.

Hints

Three clues to the answer, gentle first. Open one at a time.

Hint 1 Meaning

Hint 2 Anagram

Hint 3 Another clue

More clues from the USA Today (July 9, 2026)

Across

1. Do some sums
4. "Sum" homophone
8. ___ couture
13. Not against
14. Flibbertigibbet
16. Stripped-down NPR music event
18. Role play?
19. ___ Braden (civil rights activist)
20. Really lay on, like a horn
21. Butt one can bum
22. Ocean color
24. ___ fairy
26. Luau dish
27. Ingredient in beer and bread
31. "Soon"
33. Poetic shoutout
35. What a facepalm might mean
36. Crow sounds
37. More unusual
39. "Da ___" (nickname for a world-famous Chicagoan)
40. Accessibility law, for short
41. Insta post
42. Queen Latifah, e.g.
44. Like a friend who always has your back
47. That lady
49. Vintage
50. Purr-fect spot for sleeping, playing and scratching
53. "Te ___ mucho"
54. Cheeky
56. Celebrity couple
57. Rodent in a lab
58. YouTubers and TikTokkers, e.g.
61. Green Bay Packers fan
62. ___ tai
63. Scatter some seeds
64. Nile vipers
65. Likely response to "Who wants to go to Disneyland?"

Down

1. Enthusiast
2. "Stay tuned . . . we'll be right back!"
3. Like an arid climate
4. Play part
5. "Sick burn!"
6. "Don't do anything I wouldn't do!"
7. " . . . you get the idea"
8. Pullover shirt with buttons at the neckline
9. Like knowledge that might elicit a "How on EARTH did you know that?!"
10. Lyft alternative
11. Ripped
12. Phone number add-on (Abbr.)
15. Father-___ (expectant parent)
16. Strategic
17. Japanese soup stock
23. Roller coaster, e.g.
25. Channel with "Young Sheldon" reruns
28. Highway beautification program
29. Game series with warp pipes and mushroom power-ups
30. Questlove's band
32. Apex
34. Omit the word "not" in "Thou shalt not commit adultery" (as happened in a King James reprint dubbed the Wicked Bible), say
38. ___ golf
39. N95 masks, e.g.
43. Swell smell
45. Not quite right?
46. Shoestrings
48. Lure into a sting operation
51. Actress Daly
52. Property documents
54. Fashionable Manhattan neighborhood
55. Once more
58. Includes on an email
59. "J to ___ L-O! The Remixes" (2002 album)
60. "I SO did not need to know that"

Fresh clues from recent puzzles

Mischievous demon
Dessert consumed on 3/14
(Don't pet me!)
"Eureka!"
Support in the closet
"Sadly ..."
Pepsi, e.g.
Dumbbell units, for short
Greek K
State with only three counties: Abbr.

Questions

What is the answer to “Strategic”?

TACTICAL, 8 letters: a maneuver for gaining an objective.

When was “Strategic” last seen in a crossword?

In the USA Today crossword of July 9, 2026.

How many letters does the answer have?

8 letters, starting with T.