Clean with a rough spray

Latest answer — July 21, 2026

28 Across

Think of a powerful method used to strip away layers or imperfections! 💨

Scroll down for rest of crossword answers

NYT Crossword

This clue's Tuesday, July 21, 2026 appearance

Tap a square to reveal a letter.

Or reveal one clue at a time with the Hint and Answer buttons below.

Across

  1. 1"Chocolate" pets
  2. 5Genome component
  3. 8Breaks in winter weather
  4. 13___ vera
  5. 14Gave a hand
  6. 16Greet someone informally
  7. 17"Easy-peasy!"
  8. 20Attire for an infant
  9. 21Awe-inspiring solar phenomenon
  10. 22Severity
  11. 23Urban environmental hazard
  12. 24Pen tips
  13. 28Clean with a rough spray
  14. 31Blood ___
  15. 32Acorn producer
  16. 33The 12 angry men in "12 Angry Men," e.g.
  17. 34Finish flamboyantly ... like 17-, 28-, 43- and 56-Across?
  18. 402000-09, with "the"
  19. 41___ and haw
  20. 42Jumbo
  21. 43Colorful taffy candy brand
  22. 49Laptop brand
  23. 50Tons
  24. 51Not having quite enough money
  25. 53"Really?"
  26. 55Backside
  27. 562023 double-platinum Chappell Roan record
  28. 60Toyota hybrid
  29. 61Plumbing fixture found under the sink
  30. 62Things assayers assay
  31. 63Reactions akin to "OMG!"
  32. 64Pigs' digs
  33. 65Fill up

Down

  1. 1Hard work
  2. 2Morissette with the 1996 hit "Ironic"
  3. 3Corner store
  4. 4Fall, e.g.
  5. 5Reading room
  6. 6Japanese city that's home to the Chinese Sofukuji Temple
  7. 7Subjects of some Billboard charts
  8. 8Old Russian ruler
  9. 9Cuban dance style
  10. 10Actress Edebiri
  11. 11"Which person are you referring to?"
  12. 12___ card
  13. 14A standard one has 21 pips
  14. 15Fortune-telling deck
  15. 18Aviary inhabitant
  16. 19Hound
  17. 25It's "pumped" by bodybuilders
  18. 26Town
  19. 27Texting format, in brief
  20. 29Many internet spammers
  21. 30Rule
  22. 31Teacher for a day
  23. 33Part of a doorframe
  24. 34Tortilla chip dip, informally
  25. 35Shrek, e.g.
  26. 36"Wow, real mature"
  27. 37Sport-___
  28. 38"Ow! Watch it!"
  29. 39"___/she" (chocolate bar's pronouns in a corny joke)
  30. 40In the manner of
  31. 43Power-saving computer mode
  32. 44They're often made at weddings
  33. 45One may accept the terms and conditions
  34. 46Heavyweight beasts, familiarly
  35. 47Mexican state bordering Chihuahua
  36. 48Hot pot holder
  37. 50Novelist Rand
  38. 52Backcomb
  39. 54Cat's warning
  40. 55Old-school term for "cool"
  41. 56World of Warcraft, e.g., in brief
  42. 57Long period
  43. 58Put down
  44. 59Salary

The answer to “Clean with a rough spray” in the New York Times crossword is SANDBLAST — a 9-letter word. It most recently appeared in the New York Times crossword on July 21, 2026, a Tuesday puzzle, at 28-Across. Below you'll find why that fill fits, every other answer we've recorded for this clue, and links into the puzzle it came from.

“Clean with a rough spray” answer

SANDBLAST (9 letters)

Reveal the solution one letter at a time with the tiles above if you'd rather nudge yourself toward it than see the whole word at once. Just want it outright? The answer is SANDBLAST.

Why the answer is SANDBLAST

Think of a powerful method used to strip away layers or imperfections! 💨

What does SANDBLAST mean?

Reading the plain dictionary sense of SANDBLAST is often the fastest way to see why it answers this clue.

(verb)

  • roughen or clean (a surface) with a jet of sand driven by compressed air or steam

When else has “Clean with a rough spray” appeared?

New York Times reuses clues across dates, sometimes with a different answer depending on the grid. Here's where this exact clue has shown up, and what the answer was each time — handy when you're checking whether today's fill is the only one.

July 21, 2026 (most recent) → SANDBLAST. We haven't indexed another appearance of this exact clue yet.

Frequently asked questions

What is the answer to “Clean with a rough spray”?

The answer is SANDBLAST, a 9-letter word. It most recently appeared in the New York Times crossword on July 21, 2026.

How many letters is the answer to “Clean with a rough spray”?

9 letters: SANDBLAST.

When did this clue appear?

Most recently in the New York Times crossword on July 21, 2026 (a Tuesday puzzle), at 28-Across.

Can “Clean with a rough spray” have a different answer?

Yes — New York Times sometimes reuses a clue with a different solution to fit the grid. The answers we've recorded for each date it appeared are listed above when available.

Where can I find the rest of this day's NYT Crossword answers?

The full grid for July 21, 2026 is on the NYT Crossword answers page, with every clue and answer from that puzzle.

New York Times Crossword is published by The New York Times; WordHint is an independent site and is not affiliated with or endorsed by the publisher.

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