Waking up and opening the New York Times Games app has basically become a secular ritual for millions of us. You grab your coffee, maybe ignore a few emails, and dive straight into that 4x4 grid of words. Sometimes it's a breeze. Other times, it's like Wyna Liu, the associate puzzle editor, personally decided to ruin your morning. That’s the beauty of it. Or the frustration. Honestly, it depends on how many lives you have left.
If you’re hunting for clues for today's connections game, you’re likely down to your last mistake and staring at a screen that makes zero sense. We’ve all been there. You see four words that look like they belong together, click them, and get that "One Away" message that feels like a personal insult.
The trick isn't just knowing the definitions. It's about spotting the trap. Connections is built on the "red herring"—words that fit into two different categories at once. To win, you have to find the four words that only fit into one specific group.
Why Today’s Grid is Messing With Your Head
Every daily puzzle has a rhythm. Usually, there's a straightforward category—stuff like "Types of Cheese" or "Synonyms for Big." Then, things get weird. You might see a category based on a "Blank ____" phrase, or words that share a prefix. Today’s puzzle is no different. It plays with your expectations by using words that function as both nouns and verbs.
Look at the words carefully. Do you see anything that relates to sound? What about words that describe a specific type of movement?
One of the hardest things to do in this game is to "un-see" a connection you've already made. If you’ve convinced yourself that "SQUASH" and "TENNIS" go together because they are sports, you might miss that "SQUASH" is actually part of a group of words meaning "To Crush." This is the classic Connections bait-and-switch.
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Hints for the Yellow and Green Categories
Yellow is the "easy" one. It’s usually a list of synonyms. If you look at today’s grid, look for words that mean to hold something firmly or to get a grip. Think about what you do when you're trying to open a jar or stay steady on a moving train.
The Green category is slightly more specific. It often involves a common theme, like things you’d find in a kitchen or parts of a car. Today, think about things that make a repetitive noise. It’s not just any noise; it’s a specific, rhythmic sound. If you’re a musician or just someone who fidgets with a pen, this might click faster for you.
- Yellow Hint: Think about physical contact and holding on.
- Green Hint: These are all distinct, sharp sounds.
Sometimes the green category hides behind words that have other meanings. A word like "TICK" could be a bug, but in this context, it’s a sound. Don't let the primary definition blind you to the secondary ones.
The Infamous Purple Category
Purple is where things get truly devious. This is the "Wordplay" category. Usually, these words don't have a logical connection in terms of meaning. Instead, they share a linguistic quirk. It could be "Words that start with a Greek letter" or "Words that follow a color."
To crack the purple category in the clues for today's connections game, try saying the words out loud. Sometimes the connection is phonetic. Or, try adding a word before or after them. For example, if you see "JACK," "LUMBER," and "APPLE," the connection might be the word "JACK" (Jackpot, Lumberjack, Applejack).
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Today’s purple category is particularly clever because it involves a specific part of a word being replaced or a common suffix that isn't immediately obvious. If you are down to the final eight words and can’t find a connection, stop looking for what the words mean and start looking at how they are built.
Real Strategies to Save Your Streak
Stop guessing.
Seriously. The biggest mistake players make is burning through their four mistakes in the first two minutes. If you aren't 100% sure about a group, don't click it. Use the "Shuffle" button. It sounds simple, but changing the visual layout of the words can break the mental loops that keep you stuck on a red herring.
Another pro tip: identify the "outlier." If there is a word like "BOB" or "SQUASH" that seems to fit in three different places, leave it for last. Focus on the words that can only mean one thing. Once you lock those in, the board becomes much clearer.
- Shuffle constantly. It resets your brain's pattern recognition.
- Say it out loud. Phonetic clues are common in the harder categories.
- Find the "Red Herring" first. If you see five words that fit a category, you know one of them is a trap. Figure out where else that fifth word could go.
The New York Times has a specific style. They love pop culture, but they also love old-school trivia. You might see a category of "90s Grunge Bands" one day and "Parts of a Printing Press" the next. This range is what makes clues for today's connections game so sought after—the knowledge required is incredibly broad.
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Moving Past Today's Puzzle
Once you've solved it (or, let's be honest, looked up the answers because "PURPLE" was just too much today), take a second to analyze the logic. The puzzle designers at the NYT, led by Wyna Liu, often reuse certain types of logic. By understanding the "why" behind today's categories, you'll be much better prepared for tomorrow.
If you struggled with a category that used "homophones" (words that sound the same but are spelled differently), keep that in your mental toolkit. If today’s puzzle used "words that can follow 'Blue'," start looking for that pattern in future grids.
The game isn't just about vocabulary; it's about flexibility. The most successful players are those who can pivot their thinking the moment they realize a connection isn't working.
Next Steps for Your Daily Routine:
- Review the results: Look at the category names after the game ends. If you missed one, ask yourself what the "hidden" link was.
- Practice lateral thinking: Try other word games like Letter Boxed or the Spelling Bee to broaden your association skills.
- Don't rush the start: Spend at least sixty seconds just looking at all 16 words before making your first selection.
By slowing down and looking for the "trap" words first, you’ll find that your win rate climbs significantly. Most people lose because they are too fast to click on the most obvious group, which is exactly what the puzzle designer wants you to do. Stay patient, stay skeptical of the easy connections, and you'll protect that streak.