Play Connections #1231
These are the 16 words in the order NYT shows them. Tap four words you think belong together and press Submit. You get four mistakes, and we'll tell you when you are one word away. Nothing is saved, so you can practise without touching your real streak.
Connections #1231 hints
Yellow is usually the easiest group and purple the trickiest. Start with one colour and see if the rest falls into place.
Hints used: 0
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Yellow group hintGentle hint
Each one can be a long, thin piece of something, from breakfast meat to the funny pages to a twisted loop.
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Green group hintGentle hint
Toys and treats that spin, gallop, melt, or fizzle on a thin wooden handle.
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Blue group hintHelpful hint
Ways websites put promotions in front of your eyes, sometimes blocking what you came to read.
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Purple group hintHelpful hint
Each one goes before a missing word that can mean a counter for serving food or drinks.
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Where's the trap?Strong hint
CANDY and POPSICLE both feel like sweet treats, and the word pop appears in two different words, so it is easy to group them wrongly.
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The four group namesStrong hint
- KINDS OF STRIPS
- THINGS ON STICKS
- ONLINE AD FORMATS
- ___ BAR
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Difficulty: Medium. The fill-in-the-blank group is loose, and the web group needs a bit of tech vocabulary, but the stick and long-piece groups are fairly friendly.
Connections #1231 answers
Spoiler zone. Below are all four groups for October 24, 2026, with why each word fits.
Reveal one group at a time
Each colour opens in three steps: one word from the group, then the group name, then all four words. Stop as soon as you can finish it yourself.
Show one word
BACON is in the yellow group. Look for three more words that share something with it.
Show the group name
The group is KINDS OF STRIPS.
Show all four words
BACON, COMIC, FILM, MÖBIUS
Show one word
HOBBY HORSE is in the green group. Look for three more words that share something with it.
Show the group name
The group is THINGS ON STICKS.
Show all four words
HOBBY HORSE, PINWHEEL, POPSICLE, SPARKLER
Show one word
BANNER is in the blue group. Look for three more words that share something with it.
Show the group name
The group is ONLINE AD FORMATS.
Show all four words
BANNER, INTERSTITIAL, OVERLAY, POP-UP
Show one word
CANDY is in the purple group. Look for three more words that share something with it.
Show the group name
The group is ___ BAR.
Show all four words
CANDY, SALAD, SPACE, SPORTS
All four groups at once
Show all four groups
- BACON: Cooked in thin slices called strips.
- COMIC: Newspaper funnies run as short panel strips.
- FILM: Old movie reels are long strips of celluloid.
- MÖBIUS: A twisted loop made from a single strip of paper.
- HOBBY HORSE: A toy horse head on a wooden pole.
- PINWHEEL: Paper blades spin on a stick.
- POPSICLE: Frozen treat served on a wooden stick.
- SPARKLER: A handheld firework on a metal stick.
- BANNER: A wide ad across the top of a page.
- INTERSTITIAL: A full-screen ad shown between pages.
- OVERLAY: An ad layered over the page content.
- POP-UP: An ad window that suddenly appears.
Purple group explained
- CANDY: A chocolate or candy bar.
- SALAD: A buffet station for building your own plate.
- SPACE: The spacebar on a keyboard.
- SPORTS: A pub with games on the TV.
What does MÖBIUS mean?
A Möbius strip is a surface with only one side and one edge, made by giving a long strip of paper a half twist and joining its ends into a loop. It's the 'strip' kind here.
What does INTERSTITIAL mean?
A full-page ad that appears between content, like between pages of a website or app screens, and has to be dismissed before you carry on. Its everyday meaning is 'in the gaps between things'.
Recent Connections puzzles
| Date | Puzzle | Purple group |
|---|---|---|
| Oct 23 | #1230 | ___ TAP |
| Oct 22 | #1229 | STARTS OF BEDDING |
| Oct 21 | #1228 | DOUBLE MISNOMERS (NEITHER WORD IS AN ACCURATE DESCRIPTION) |
| Oct 20 | #1227 | HOMOPHONES OF DISNEY CHARACTERS |
| Oct 19 | #1226 | ENDING IN BIRDS |
| Oct 18 | #1225 | STARTING WITH THINGS THAT CLOUD THE AIR |
| Oct 17 | #1224 | LA ___ |
About Connections
Connections is a daily New York Times puzzle where you sort 16 words into four groups of four. Groups are colour-coded from yellow, the most direct, to purple, which usually relies on wordplay. You can make four mistakes. Looking back at past puzzles is one of the best ways to learn the kinds of tricks the editors like to use.
Other puzzles on Oct 24
Connections #1231 questions
What were the Connections answers on October 24, 2026?
KINDS OF STRIPS: BACON, COMIC, FILM, MÖBIUS. THINGS ON STICKS: HOBBY HORSE, PINWHEEL, POPSICLE, SPARKLER. ONLINE AD FORMATS: BANNER, INTERSTITIAL, OVERLAY, POP-UP. ___ BAR: CANDY, SALAD, SPACE, SPORTS.
What was the purple group in Connections #1231?
___ BAR: CANDY, SALAD, SPACE, SPORTS.
What made Connections #1231 tricky?
CANDY and POPSICLE both feel like sweet treats, and the word pop appears in two different words, so it is easy to group them wrongly.