Looking for a different day?
A new NYT Connections puzzle appears at midnight each day for your time zone – which means that some people are always playing ‘today’s game’ while others are playing ‘yesterday’s’. If you’re looking for Friday’s puzzle instead then click here: NYT Connections hints and answers for Friday, October 10 (game #852).
Good morning! Let’s play Connections, the NYT’s clever word game that challenges you to group answers in various categories. It can be tough, so read on if you need Connections hints.
What should you do once you’ve finished? Why, play some more word games of course. I’ve also got daily Strands hints and answers and Quordle hints and answers articles if you need help for those too, while Marc’s Wordle today page covers the original viral word game.
SPOILER WARNING: Information about NYT Connections today is below, so don’t read on if you don’t want to know the answers.
NYT Connections today (game #853) – today’s words
Today’s NYT Connections words are…
- ALLEY
- SPORT
- TACKLE
- LANE
- TOM
- COURT
- KIT
- BOB
- DON
- BILL
- WEAR
- GEAR
- PAT
- WAY
- PUT ON
- STUFF
NYT Connections today (game #853) – hint #1 – group hints
What are some clues for today’s NYT Connections groups?
- YELLOW: Necessary items
- GREEN: Clothe oneself
- BLUE: Types of residential road
- PURPLE: Names with several meanings
Need more clues?
We’re firmly in spoiler territory now, but read on if you want to know what the four theme answers are for today’s NYT Connections puzzles…
NYT Connections today (game #853) – hint #2 – group answers
What are the answers for today’s NYT Connections groups?
- YELLOW: EQUIPMENT
- GREEN: DRESS IN
- BLUE: STREET SUFFIXES
- PURPLE: NICKNAMES THAT HAVE OTHER MEANINGS
Right, the answers are below, so DO NOT SCROLL ANY FURTHER IF YOU DON’T WANT TO SEE THEM.
NYT Connections today (game #853) – the answers
The answers to today’s Connections, game #853, are…
- YELLOW: EQUIPMENT GEAR, KIT, STUFF, TACKLE
- GREEN: DRESS IN DON, PUT ON, SPORT, WEAR
- BLUE: STREET SUFFIXES ALLEY, COURT, LANE, WAY
- PURPLE: NICKNAMES THAT HAVE OTHER MEANINGS BILL, BOB, PAT, TOM
- My rating: Easy
- My score: Perfect
There were several crossovers today that could have caught players out – DON and WAY also work as NICKNAMES THAT HAVE OTHER MEANINGS, while BOB could also classify as a piece of EQUIPMENT.
After wasting some time thinking that there must be a band with four of the male names in today’s game, I got STREET SUFFIXES first. Although I have to admit that it was by accident, as I thought the connection was bowling.
The reasons for these suffixes are often lost when streets are named today – COURT, for example, is supposed to indicate a circular dead-end street, LANE a narrow unpaved road, and WAY a road that connects one place to another.
It’s an interesting topic, and if you are feeling a sense of deja-vu it’s because Connections has been down this road before with a near-identical group in July 2024 (with Drive instead of Way).
Yesterday’s NYT Connections answers (Friday, October 10, game #852)
- YELLOW: SIGNIFICANT BIG, IMPORTANT, MAJOR, SERIOUS
- GREEN: ONE IN A SEPTET CONTINENT, DEADLY SIN, SISTER, WONDER
- BLUE: TAROT CARDS, WITH “THE” DEVIL, LOVERS, MAGICIAN, STAR
- PURPLE: ___ EYE EVIL, MAGIC, NAKED, THIRD
What is NYT Connections?
NYT Connections is one of several increasingly popular word games made by the New York Times. It challenges you to find groups of four items that share something in common, and each group has a different difficulty level: green is easy, yellow a little harder, blue often quite tough and purple usually very difficult.
On the plus side, you don’t technically need to solve the final one, as you’ll be able to answer that one by a process of elimination. What’s more, you can make up to four mistakes, which gives you a little bit of breathing room.
It’s a little more involved than something like Wordle, however, and there are plenty of opportunities for the game to trip you up with tricks. For instance, watch out for homophones and other word games that could disguise the answers.
It’s playable for free via the NYT Games site on desktop or mobile.
