NYT Connections Answers: The New York Times’ daily word game, Connections, dropped its October 26 puzzle, and it was packed with clever links and fun wordplay. This one gave players a mix of music, boxing, and some tiny twists in language. As usual, the goal was to group 16 words into four hidden sets, but the trick was spotting how each word fit.
If today’s game threw you off, here’s a full breakdown with all the hints and solutions.
What Is Connections & How Do You Play?
Connections is a word puzzle from The New York Times where players must find the link between groups of four words. You’re given 16 words, and each belongs to only one group. The tough part? Many words look like they could fit in more than one category, which makes guessing tricky.
For example, “Hook,” “Nana,” “Peter,” and “Wendy” are all Peter Pan characters. Another example: “Action,” “Ballpark,” “Go,” and “Stick” all fit before the word “Figure.”
Each day, you get four chances before the game ends and reveals the answers. Every group has a colour-coded difficulty level:
- Yellow (easiest)
- Green (easy)
- Blue (medium)
- Purple (hardest)
It’s short, smart, and addictive, a daily mental warm-up that keeps players coming back.
Hints & Full Solution To NYT Connections (October 26)
Here are today’s official hints:
- Yellow: Find the instruments.
- Green: They’re part of a quote.
- Blue: There can only be one winner.
- Purple: These words are adjusted to be “smaller.”
Extra hints:
- Some words relate to boxing and competitions, but they belong to different themes.
- Every theme has at least one word beginning with an “S.”
Spoiler words (one from each group):
- Yellow: String
- Green: Bee
- Blue: Staring
- Purple: Droplet
Full Solution For October 26 (Puzzle #867)
- Yellow (Kinds of Instruments): Brass, Percussion, String, Wind
- Green (Words in a Famous Muhammad Ali Quote): Bee, Butterfly, Float, Sting
- Blue (Kinds of Contests): Beauty, Popularity, Staring, Talent
- Purple (Words With Diminutive Suffixes): Doggy, Droplet, Kitchenette, Starling
Today’s puzzle was a clever mix of wordplay and cultural references. The Muhammad Ali quote, “Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee”, gave away the green group for many players. The instrument’s theme was easy to spot once “Brass” and “String” appeared together.
The blue group tested quick thinking with contest names, while the purple group was all about spotting smaller or “cute” versions of words like “Doggy” and “Droplet.” All in all, a fun and balanced challenge for a Sunday.
