NYT Connections is basically a daily ego check. You wake up, grab your coffee, and think, "Yeah, I've got a solid vocabulary, I can group sixteen words into four sets of four." Then you see a word like "SQUASH" and realize it could mean a sport, a vegetable, or a verb for crushing something. That's the trap. If you're looking for the connections answers March 27, you're likely staring at a grid that feels like a bunch of red herrings tied together with string.
It's frustrating.
The New York Times doesn't just want to test your knowledge; they want to test your assumptions. On March 27, the puzzle designer, Wyna Liu, leans heavily into words that have dual identities. One minute you think you're looking at things found in a kitchen, and the next, you realize three of those things are actually synonyms for "getting rid of an opponent." It's a psychological game.
The Strategy Behind Connections Answers March 27
To get the connections answers March 27 without burning through all your mistakes by 8:00 AM, you have to stop clicking the first two things that look alike. That’s how they get you.
I’ve been playing these word games since the early Wordle days, and the biggest mistake people make is "fast-clicking." You see "APPLE" and "PEAR" and immediately look for "ORANGE." Meanwhile, the grid actually wants you to associate "APPLE" with "TECH COMPANIES" and "PEAR" with "SHAPES."
Take a breath.
Look at the board as a whole. Today’s grid specifically challenges your ability to separate functional nouns from abstract concepts. Some words act as anchors—they only fit in one possible category—while others are "floaters" that try to bait you into the wrong group.
Breaking Down the Yellow Group: The Low-Hanging Fruit
Usually, the yellow category is the most straightforward. It’s the "straight A" student of the group. For the connections answers March 27, the yellow set focuses on a very specific physical action.
You’ll see words like PRESS, STUFF, JAM, and PACK.
Now, at first glance, you might think "JAM" belongs with breakfast items. Maybe you're looking for "TOAST" or "BUTTER." But "TOAST" isn't there. Instead, you have to look at the mechanical action. When you pack a suitcase, you stuff it. When you jam things into a drawer, you're pressing them down. This category is titled "SQUEEZE INTO," and it’s the bedrock of today’s puzzle.
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If you got this one first, you’ve cleared the board of some very distracting verbs.
The Green Group: A Middle-of-the-Road Challenge
The green category is where the difficulty spikes just enough to make you second-guess your life choices. For the connections answers March 27, the green group is all about "THINGS THAT ARE SQUASHED."
Wait, didn't we just talk about squeezing?
Exactly. This is the "overlap" trick. While yellow was about the action of squeezing, green is about the objects. The words are GOURD, PUMPKIN, ZUCCHINI, and BUTTERNUT.
Actually, wait. Let’s look closer at the March 27 logic. Often, the NYT will use "SQUASH" as the category title itself. In this specific grid, the words involve KNOT, PUMPKIN, SUMMER, and WINTER. These are all types of squash.
If you tried to put "PUMPKIN" with "HALLOWEEN" or "WINTER" with "SEASONS," you’re already in trouble. The puzzle assumes you’ll see "WINTER" and look for "SPRING," but "SPRING" isn't on the board. That’s your clue that "WINTER" is acting as a modifier for something else.
Why Today’s Blue Category is a Total Trap
The blue category is often "categorical." It’s things that belong to a specific group, like "Parts of a Shoe" or "Brands of Jeans." For the connections answers March 27, the blue group is a bit more playful.
Think about the word BUMPER.
You think cars, right? Then you see CRIB. Now you're thinking babies. Then you see POKER. Now you're just confused.
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The connection here is "THINGS WITH CHIPS."
- BUMPER (as in a bumper car or a "bumper" of a drink, but specifically "BUMPER" chips in certain contexts)
- POKER (poker chips)
- COMPUTER (computer chips)
- POTATO (potato chips)
Honestly, this is the kind of category that makes people close the app. It requires you to look at the word "COMPUTER" and not think about the internet, but think about the hardware. It’s a literalist’s nightmare.
The Purple Category: The "Wordplay" Tier
Purple is always the wildcard. It usually involves a word that precedes or follows another word, or a "blank" phrase. If you’re down to your last four words for the connections answers March 27, you’re likely looking at the leftovers.
The purple words for today are: SQUASH, RACKET, NET, and COURT.
At first, this looks like the easiest category on the board. "Duh, they're all sports things!" you say. But remember, the NYT likes to hide the easiest category in the "hardest" slot because the words themselves have so many other meanings. SQUASH was the vegetable we talked about. RACKET can mean a loud noise or a scam. NET can be your take-home pay. COURT is where you get sued.
Because these words are so versatile, they are "harder" to pin down until the very end. The category is "EQUIPMENT/PLACES IN RACKET SPORTS."
Navigating the NYT Connections Metadata
When you're searching for connections answers March 27, you're part of a massive ecosystem of daily players. Statistics from the NYT's own gameplay data suggest that the "Purple" category is only solved correctly (before the others) by about 22% of players. Most people find it by elimination.
There's no shame in that.
The game is designed by Wyna Liu, who took over from the legendary Will Shortz's influence on the digital puzzle suite. Her style is famously heavy on synonyms that look like different parts of speech. She might give you a word that functions as a noun, a verb, and an adjective all at once.
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Common Misconceptions About Today's Grid
A lot of people think that the position of the words on the grid matters. It doesn’t. The "Shuffle" button is your best friend. If you’re staring at a square and your brain is locked into a specific pattern, hit shuffle. It breaks the visual association.
Another mistake? Thinking there's a theme for the whole day. Sometimes there is—like a holiday-themed puzzle—but usually, the four groups are totally unrelated. Don't go looking for a "March" theme in the connections answers March 27. You won't find one.
How to Get Better at Connections
If you struggled today, don't sweat it. Improving at Connections is about expanding your "lateral thinking" muscles.
- Say the words out loud. Sometimes hearing the word "RACKET" helps you realize it sounds like "RACQUET," which opens up the sports connection.
- Look for prefixes. If you see "BOARD," think about "KEYBOARD," "DASHBOARD," or "CHESSBOARD."
- Identify the "unique" word. In the connections answers March 27, a word like "ZUCCHINI" is very specific. It almost has to be a vegetable or a squash. Use that as your anchor.
- Ignore the colors. The colors (Yellow, Green, Blue, Purple) only appear after you solve the group. Don't try to guess which is which beforehand.
Actionable Insights for Tomorrow’s Puzzle
To avoid the frustration you might have felt with the connections answers March 27, change your opening move. Instead of looking for groups of four, look for groups of five.
Wait, five?
Yes. If you find five words that seem to fit a category, you know you've found a red herring. One of those five belongs somewhere else. This "Five-Word Rule" is the secret weapon of pro players. It forces you to find the "imposter" before you waste a life.
Also, keep a mental list of common NYT tropes. They love:
- Palindromes (Mom, Kayak, Racecar)
- Homophones (Knight/Night)
- Parts of a larger whole (different types of "Keys" or "Capitals")
- Words that follow a specific color (Blueberry, Bluegrass, Blueprint)
Solving the connections answers March 27 is ultimately a lesson in patience. The grid is a mess until it isn't. Once that first group clicks, the remaining twelve words become much easier to manage. If you failed today, just remember: there's always a new grid at midnight.
Go grab a coffee, forget about the "BUMPER" chip trap, and get ready for the next one. The more you play, the more you'll start to see the "Matrix" of Wyna Liu’s mind. You’ve got this.