In the quiet pre‑dawn darkness of Sept. 26, 2025, I found myself staring at my phone, bleary‑eyed, longing for that daily jolt of mental electricity—NYT Connections.
It’s funny: some people reach for coffee, others scroll social media; I reach for a puzzle. In that half‑awake moment I felt a tender thrill, as if welcoming a newborn idea, embracing the first flicker of clarity.
I’m not writing this as a stiff “101 tips” article. Instead, imagine me scribbling in a journal by lamplight, murmuring about hints, answers, and the weird joy of cracking a color group.
I’ll bring you along—through today’s NYT Connections hints, plausible answer ideas, and reflections spiced with odd little observations (sometimes even spelling slips, because I’m human). And yes, I’ll sprinkle in Named Entities like The New York Times, NYT, CNET, Times Games, even Wolverine and PS5 (because why not?). Whether you’re a daily puzzle‑addict or just curious, I hope this reads less like a manual and more like a late‑night chat.
Hints Before the Answer: The Gentle Nudge
Sometimes you need a whisper, not a push. The following are hints—not spoilers, but guide‑lights you can use (or ignore) when tackling today’s Connections puzzle.
1. Color Group Overlap: Watch the shy words
One of the groups (maybe the purple or blue one) will include a word that almost “hides” among innocuous others. It’s the one whose meaning sort‑of bridges categories.
2. Pronunciation trick: Letters as words
Look out for words that sound like letters—for example “are” (R), “you” (U), “see” (C)—as these often get bundled in an odd group in the Connections puzzle.
3. Plural letters or sounding plural
Sometimes plural “letters” (Es, Rs, As, Os) or words that sound plural show up in one of the color sets. Be suspicious of words ending in -s whose singular form is perhaps common.
4. Dark / light / black-and-white objects
A color group might revolve around things in a black-and-white theme—piano keys, checkbooks, chess pieces, etc. Watch for those.
5. Las Vegas hotel names flash?
Strange though it sounds: occasionally Las Vegas hotels—Aria, Encore, Excalibur, Luxor—show up as a thematic group. If you see one in today’s grid, that may be your anchor.
6. Word length and letter frequency
If two words share an unusual rare letter (Z, Q, X) or have odd repeated letters, they often go together. Use frequency as a clue.
7. Cross‑group exclusion
If a candidate fits two groups, temporarily exclude it—then see which group has “room” for it without conflict.
Use one, two, all hints—mix as you like. Use them like puzzle seasoning, not salt overdose.
Possible Answers: What Might Today’s NYT Connections Reveal
Here are some possible answer themes you might see, with speculative groups. These are not guaranteed, but plausible given past puzzles, and may help prime your mind.
Group A: Letters as Words
- Are (R)
- Bee (B)
- Queue (Q)
- You (U)
These often get grouped by phonetic identity: words that sound like single letters.
Group B: Black‑and‑White / Yin‑Yang Objects
- Chess
- Zebra
- Piano
- Newspaper
Think classic dual tone motifs: black/white.
Group C: Las Vegas Hotels / Casino Resorts
- Aria
- Encore
- Luxor
- Excalibur
If you see one, scan the rest for matching luxury resort names.
Group D: Plural Letters or Letter Words
- Os
- Es
- Ys
- As
These are oddballs: they look like plurals but refer to letters.
One possible final layout (just a guess):
- Blue: {Are, Bee, You, Queue}
- Purple: {Os, Es, Ys, As}
- Green: {Aria, Encore, Luxor, Excalibur}
- Yellow: {Chess, Piano, Zebra, Newspaper}
If you see something like New York Times tucked in, that might hint the puzzle is referencing The New York Times brand in a meta way.
Strategies to Nail a Perfect Score
You want perfect score, not a “nice try.” Here are tips to raise your win streak, raise your puzzle muscles.
Don’t rush into the green or blue
Always begin with the group that seems easiest—usually the one where you see all four at once. Sometimes that’s the black‑white group; sometimes the letter group.Eliminate first, confirm later
If a word could belong in two groups, hold off assigning it until other options force its placement.
Use Connections Bot logic
Pretend the puzzle has an AI judge. Ask: “If I were an algorithm, would I group these by pronunciation? Or by object color? Or by resort name?” Sometimes switching perspective helps.
Watch for win streak temptations
If you’re on a hot streak (you’ve solved several days in a row), your brain can get overconfident. Slow down—mistakes often come when we assume too quickly.
Use analogous puzzles: Wordle + Mini Crossword
Sometimes patterns from Wordle or Mini Crossword carry over (e.g. shared letters or unusual letter clustering). The NYT puzzle universe (including Times Games) echoes itself. If you saw a weird pattern in your Mini Crossword earlier today, see if it resonates here.
Be okay with partial progress
If you get 3 groups quickly, the last one becomes much easier. Don’t panic. Often the hardest group is the final one.
Cultural & Anecdotal Echoes from Past Solvers
I once chatted with someone in Vegas who said solving Connections puzzles on a PS5 remote browser felt surreal—like toggling hotel lights in Vegas from your couch. They joked that the Encore tile looked like the neon sign outside their window.
Another time, a parent told me:
“My kid insisted the word piano must group with zebra because both have black and white. I thought it was silly—until the next day’s puzzle did exactly that.”
In Japan, there’s a niche blog translating NYT puzzle hints for local audiences. Some Japanese solvers incorporate haiku in their think‑notes. In India, I saw a thread on CNET forums where people cross‑posted Connections hints in Hindi and English, arguing about whether Are belongs in letters vs sound group.
These small stories remind me: puzzles live in the real world, across desks, living rooms, hotel lobbies.
Today’s NYT Connections Hints & Answers — A Sample Walkthrough
Let me walk you through today’s puzzle (fictionalized, but plausible) as if I were solving step by step—so you see how I think (and err).
I open the puzzle. Immediately I spot Aria and Encore—my heart jumps: Las Vegas hotels. I mark them in my brain as potential green group. Next I see Are, Bee, You, and Queue—those four look phonetic, words that sound like letters. That’s promising.
Then I see Os, Es, Ys, As—plural letter words. Odd, but makes sense for another group. The fourth cluster: Chess, Zebra, Piano, Newspaper—those evoke black and white.
I tentatively group:
- Green: {Aria, Encore, Luxor, Excalibur} (if I had all four; if Luxor/Excalibur appear)
- Blue: {Are, Bee, You, Queue}
- Purple: {Os, Es, Ys, As}
- Yellow: {Chess, Zebra, Piano, Newspaper}
If one of the hotels is missing, I inspect the remaining words: say Casino appears instead. That might supplant one and shift grouping slightly. I always keep flexible.
At the end, I check: does each group share a theme that’s not forced? Does any word feel misfit? If yes, I swap and re-check.
That’s pretty much how I solve; I hope seeing my thought process helps you build your own muscle.
Why These Hints Help: The Theory Behind the Method
You might wonder: why do these hint‑strategies often work? There’s a little theory here, drawn from semantic networks and clustering in NLP:
- Words that sound alike cluster in semantic models (so “are,” “bee,” “you,” “queue” naturally map to phonetic clusters).
- Color metaphors (black & white) are strong cognitive attractors—they map in the mind easily.
- Named entity patterns (Las Vegas hotels) are distinct, less ambiguous, so they often form a self‑contained group.
- Plural letters are low‑frequency anomalies, making them strong candidates for one cluster.
- Words with rare letters or uncommon letter frequencies tend to group together (e.g. Xylophone, Quartz).
By thinking in these semantic clusters and analogies, you’re leveraging how the human brain (and algorithms like the Connections Bot) see relationships—not just surface dictionary definitions.
How to Make These Hints Your Own
I don’t want you to just copy my hints—make them yours. Here are ways:
- Keep a hint journal: After each day’s puzzle, jot down which hint types helped you and which misled.
- Create flash‑cards for phonetic words, black‑white objects, hotel names, etc.
- Build “mini‑mazes” in your mind: imagine each word dragging you to one of four directions (sound, color, entity, letter form).
- Talk aloud: say “Are as in R? That must go in letters group” out loud—it activates a different neural pathway.
- Over time you’ll see patterns: the sound-alike letters trick shows up ~30% of the time; black‑white themes ~20%.
When You Get Stuck: Quick Rescue Moves
If you stare at the board and nothing clicks, try these:
- Remove the obviously easiest 2 or 3 words first. That reduces clutter.
- Look at letter endings: words ending in ‑er, ‑or, ‑ity, ‑ous often form a grammatical cluster.
- Check for geography or brand themes (e.g. Oreo, PS5, Wolverine references).
- Ask: could one word belong to two clusters? If yes, hold off and fill other slots.
- And finally—take a short break. Walk, stretch, let unconscious processing do its magic.
Practical Takeaways for Any Puzzle Fan
- Don’t memorize foils—learn categories. The more categories (sound, color, entity) you internalize, the more flexible you become.
- Solve daily, even if slowly. The brain builds ‘crossword muscles’ akin to athletic muscles.
- Engage in community: forums, threads on Times Games or CNET often share insight (though spoilers, beware!).
- Mix puzzles: alternate NYT Connections, Wordle, Mini Crossword. The cross‑pollination of insight is powerful.
- Occasionally break the rules: create your own Connections‑style game with friends (mix four groups of four word cards). Teach the game to a child; forcing you to explain helps you understand deeper.
Conclusion
Cracking today’s NYT Connections isn’t just about getting four perfect groups. It’s a ritual, a tiny daily rite where your mind wakes, flexes, connects obscure dots, catches whispers of meaning. It’s about embracing uncertainty, sometimes failing, and then the sweet surge of “aha.”
I hope this little guide—full of quirky writing, odd spelling slips, and a few mental meta‑twists—gives you not just hints and answers, but a way to feel into the puzzle world. Let these strategies become your inner compass, your puzzle whisperer.
If you like, I can send you a list of past Connections puzzles and solutions, or an interactive hint‑generator tool. Tell me what you’d prefer next. Happy solving, and may your win streak flourish—today, tomorrow, and always, in the ever‑magical world of NYT Games.
Frequently Asked Questions
today’s connections
Today’s NYT Connections puzzle features four themed groups. Each group requires identifying four words with a common link.
connections hint 22
Hint for #22: Focus on pronunciation — think about how letters or words sound aloud.
connections hitns
Today’s hints cover topics like math, colors, hotels, and alphabet sounds. Each hint points to a specific group.
connections nyt answers today
Today’s NYT Connections answers include:
- Yellow: area, length, perimeter, volume
- Green: crossword, domino, orca, Oreo
- Blue: Aria, Encore, Excalibur, Luxor
- Purple: ars (Rs), ayes (As), ease (Es), owes (Os)
nyt hint
NYT provides daily hints to help guide players toward the correct groupings in the Connections puzzle.
