Connections is a daily grouping puzzle from The New York Times. You get 16 words and must split them into four groups of four. It sounds easy until you notice that half the words seem to fit two groups.
The rules
- Select four words you think share a connection, then press Submit.
- If you're right, the group locks in with its colour and category name.
- If you're wrong, you lose one of your four mistakes. Three right and one wrong shows a "One away" message.
- Solve all four groups before your mistakes run out.
The four colours
- Yellow: the most straightforward group.
- Green: a bit harder.
- Blue: trickier, sometimes needs specific knowledge.
- Purple: the hardest, usually wordplay.
You don't have to solve them in order. Many players save purple for last because it's easier to spot once 12 words are gone.
A real example
Connections #1216 (October 9, 2026) had these groups:
The trap was sport: SWEEP, SCORES and BLOWOUT all feel like they belong in a sports group, and RECAP or HIGHLIGHTS could describe a big win. The purple group only makes sense when you read each word as something that can follow AIR.
Tips that save mistakes
- Count the candidates. If five or six words fit a category, the extras belong elsewhere. Find where before you submit.
- Solve your surest group first. Every solved group removes four words of noise.
- Don't submit on "probably". A "One away" is useful information, but it still costs a mistake.
- Shuffle the board. The game's shuffle button breaks up false patterns your eye has latched onto.
Cracking the purple group
Purple groups usually use one of a handful of tricks:
- Words that go with a missing word, like AIR ___ above, or ___ BALL.
- Hidden words, such as words containing an animal or a body part.
- Sound-alikes, homophones or words that rhyme with something.
- Letter tricks, such as anagrams or words that become new words with one letter changed.
When you're stuck, look at the leftover words as strings of letters rather than meanings. Need a nudge today? Our Connections hints today page gives a hint for each colour before showing any answers.