NYT Connections Answers: The New York Times’ daily word puzzle, Connections, dropped its October 21 challenge, and this one had players thinking hard. The goal was the same as always, sort 16 words into four secret groups, but today’s set came with plenty of sneaky connections. Like Wordle, Connections resets every day and has built a loyal fan base that loves its mix of logic, language, and strategy.
If you found yourself stuck today, here’s a full look at the hints and complete solution.
What Is Connections & How Do You Play?
Connections is a word game where you need to group 16 words into four sets of four. Each group shares a theme, but some words are placed to confuse you on purpose.
For example, “Hook,” “Nana,” “Peter,” and “Wendy” are all Peter Pan characters. Another example: “Action,” “Ballpark,” “Go,” and “Stick” all go before the word “Figure.”
You only get four wrong tries before the puzzle ends and the correct answers are shown. Each group is color-coded by difficulty:
- Yellow (easiest)
- Green (easy)
- Blue (medium)
- Purple (hardest)
It’s a short daily brain workout that’s simple to play but tricky to win.
Hints & Full Solution To NYT Connections (October 21)
Here are today’s official hints:
- Yellow: Can you play with them?
- Green: “I’ll take care of it.”
- Blue: They’re related to basketball.
- Purple: They’re operable from a distance.
Extra hints:
- Only one theme does not contain any animals.
- There’s one verb-only theme in today’s puzzle.
Spoiler help: one word from each group:
- Yellow: Queens
- Green: Tackles
- Blue: Hornets
- Purple: Drones
Full Solution For October 21 (Puzzle #862):
- Yellow (Playing Cards): Aces, Jacks, Kings, Queens
- Green (Takes On): Addresses, Does, Handles, Tackles
- Blue (N.B.A. Teams): Bucks, Bulls, Hornets, Spurs
- Purple (Things You Can Control With Remotes): Drones, Garage Doors, Televisions, Wiis
Today’s puzzle was a clever mix of sports, tech, and card play. The card theme was the easiest to spot, but the “Takes On” verbs threw many players off.
The purple set stood out once you noticed everything could be operated with a remote. A neat and balanced challenge that tested both logic and observation.
