Ever wake up, grab your coffee, and feel personally attacked by a grid of 16 words? That was me this morning. Honestly, the NYT Connections hints August 21 puzzle (No. 802) felt like Wyna Liu and the editorial team decided to test every single corner of my brain, from childhood TV shows to the most random snack foods.
If you’re staring at the screen and wondering why "Teletubby" and "Radio Tower" are looking at each other, don't worry. You've got this. We’re going to break down the logic—or the lack thereof—behind today's groups.
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The Mental Trap of August 21
The first thing I noticed when I opened the app was a massive red herring. It’s almost mean. You see DIPSY and TELETUBBY, and your brain instantly screams, "90s kids' show!" You start hunting for Tinky Winky or Po. They aren't there.
Instead, you find LA-LA, and now you're convinced. You’ve got three. But that fourth one? It’s nowhere to be found. This is where Connections gets you—it uses your childhood nostalgia as bait to make you waste your four precious mistakes.
Quick Hints to Get You Moving
Before I just hand over the keys to the kingdom, maybe you just need a little nudge? Think about these themes:
- Yellow: That feeling when you trip on a flat surface or send a text to the wrong person.
- Green: Places you go when you're asleep or just daydreaming during a boring meeting.
- Blue: What do a bug, an old TV, and a giant metal tower have in common?
- Purple: Try saying these words out loud and then add the word "Doodle" to the end.
Today’s Connections Groups Explained
The Yellow Group: Blunders and Mess-ups
This was probably the most straightforward group, though "NO-NO" felt a little like a stretch compared to the others.
- BOO-BOO
- FLUB
- GAFFE
- NO-NO
Basically, these are all ways to describe a mistake. A "gaffe" sounds fancy, like something a politician does, while a "boo-boo" is what my toddler does, but they all fit that "Whoops" vibe.
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The Green Group: Lands of the Imagination
I actually found this one pretty quickly once I stopped looking for the Teletubbies.
- DREAM
- FANTASY
- LA-LA (as in La-La Land)
- NEVER NEVER (Peter Pan, anyone?)
These are all fictional realms. If you were stuck on "La-La" being a character, this is where the puzzle probably broke you. You have to pivot and think of "La-La Land" instead.
The Blue Group: Things with Antenna/e
This was the "Aha!" moment of the day for me.
- INSECT
- RADIO TOWER
- SATELLITE DISH
- TELETUBBY
What do they all have? Those little pokey things on their heads or tops. It's clever because it mixes biological antennae with technological ones. And yes, the Teletubbies are famous for their silver antennas.
The Purple Group: ____ Doodle
The dreaded purple. It’s usually wordplay, and today was no exception.
- CHEESE (Cheese Doodle)
- DIPSY (Dipsy Doodle—a classic baseball pitch or just a silly term for a deceptive move)
- GOOGLE (Google Doodle)
- YANKEE (Yankee Doodle)
"Dipsy" was the real killer here. If you haven't heard of a Dipsy Doodle, you probably thought it had to go with the other Teletubby words.
Why Today’s Puzzle Was Tricky
The overlapping themes are what make the NYT Connections hints August 21 board so difficult. You have the Teletubby overlap (Dipsy, La-La, Teletubby) and you even have a slight food overlap with "Cheese" and "Pie" (wait, was Pie in here? No, that was a different day—see how the brain works?).
Actually, "Cheese" stood all alone until you realized the "Doodle" connection. Most people get stuck because they try to force a category that seems 75% complete. The trick is always to look for the word that has the most possible meanings and set it aside until the end.
How to Solve These Faster Next Time
- Don't click yet. Even if you see four words that "definitely" go together, wait. Check if one of those words fits somewhere else better.
- Say it out loud. The "Doodle" category is a perfect example. "Google Doodle" sounds right when you say it, but you might not think of it just by looking at the word.
- Use the Shuffle button. It’s there for a reason. Sometimes the grid is laid out specifically to trick your eyes into seeing patterns that aren't there.
If you’re still working through the week, keep an eye on how the difficulty spikes. Tuesdays and Wednesdays are often the "sweet spot" where the red herrings are most aggressive before the truly obscure wordplay of the weekend kicks in.
To keep your streak alive, try scanning the board for the most "specific" word first. A word like "Teletubby" is so specific that it must belong to either a show category or a physical trait category. Once you realize there are no other characters, you have to look for physical traits, which leads you right to the antenna connection.
Happy puzzling.