The New York Times ’ daily puzzle game, Connections, presents a new challenge each day. Today’s edition, published by The Athletic, focuses on sports-related terms. Players must group four words together based on a common theme. If you’re stuck, here’s a breakdown of the puzzle, including hints and solutions.
Understanding the Puzzle
Connections challenges players to think laterally and identify hidden relationships between seemingly unrelated words. The game features four categories: yellow (easiest), green, blue, and purple (hardest). Each category requires finding four words that share a unifying theme. The game is available through The Athletic app or online for free.
Hints for Each Category
If you’d rather solve it yourself, here are hints ranked by difficulty.
- Yellow: This group is about physical exertion and building strength.
- Green: Think about a specific U.S. state and its well-known institutions.
- Blue: A boxing icon and the people around him.
- Purple: This one’s tricky… look for words that start with items you wear.
The Solutions
Here are the solutions if you’re ready to reveal the answers.
Yellow Group: Weightlifting Needs
The connection is equipment and personnel in weightlifting.
– Barbell
– Bench
– Plates
– Spotter
Green Group: Follows “Texas”
This group consists of entities associated with Texas.
– A&M (Texas A&M University)
– Longhorns (University of Texas at Austin)
– Rangers (Texas Rangers baseball team)
– Tech (Texas Tech University)
Blue Group: Characters in the Rocky Franchise
The shared theme is figures from the Rocky films.
– Adrian (Rocky’s wife)
– Apollo (Apollo Creed, Rocky’s opponent)
– Clubber (Clubber Lang, another opponent)
– Rocky (Rocky Balboa, the protagonist)
Purple Group: Starts with a Piece of Clothing
This group is the most obscure, linking words that begin with apparel terms.
– Beltré (Adrian Beltré, a baseball player)
– Capitals (Washington Capitals hockey team)
– Shoestring Catch (a baseball play involving a glove)
– Shortstop (a baseball position)
Connections tests not just knowledge but also the ability to recognize patterns and associations in unexpected places. The purple category, in particular, often relies on lateral thinking rather than direct recall.
