NYT Strands today — hints, answers and spangram for Thursday, May 23 (game #81)

The NYT’s Strands word game is still in beta, which means its status as a bonafide member of the publisher’s Games site, alongside the likes of Wordle and Connections, is yet to be confirmed. I hope it does get full status, because it’s really good fun: taxing without being impossible, and offering a slightly different challenge from day to day. 

I found today’s to be a pretty tough one, and if you do too then you’ll find some helpful hints below.