NYT Connections Hints and Answers for December 23, 2025, #927

Happy Tuesday, fellow puzzlers! Hope you're navigating your way through the week with a touch of grace and a dash of caffeine. Speaking of which, my morning routine lately involves a tug-of-war between my cat's insistence on breakfast at dawn and my keyboard's silent plea for some quality typing time. Ah, the joys of working from home!

As you sip your coffee or tea (or perhaps wrangle with your own demanding furball), it's the perfect day to dive into today's "Connections" puzzle. Keep an eye out for those sneaky cross-category decoys that might throw you off track. Remember, sometimes the answer is just a synonym away, so scan for loose connections to unlock those colorful tiers.

With a warm nudge and a sprinkle of puzzle magic, I invite you to unravel the clues and uncover the hidden links waiting to be discovered. Need a hint or a gentle push in the right direction? Don't hesitate to jump in and join the fun. Who knows what delightful connections you might stumble upon today? Let's puzzle it out together!

How to Play NYT Connections

Overview

Connections is a daily word puzzle game from The New York Times. The goal is to find groups of four words that share something in common. You’re presented with 16 words arranged in a 4×4 grid, and you must identify four groups of four related words.

Basic Rules

• You have 16 words total, arranged in a 4×4 grid
• There are exactly 4 groups of 4 related words each
• Each word belongs to exactly one group
• You must find all four groups to complete the puzzle
• You have 4 mistakes allowed before the game ends

How to Play

• Look at all 16 words and try to identify patterns or connections
• Select 4 words you think belong together by clicking/tapping them
• Click “Submit” to check if your group is correct
• If correct, those 4 words will be removed and grouped together
• If incorrect, you lose one of your 4 allowed mistakes
• Continue until you find all 4 groups or run out of mistakes

Difficulty Levels

The four groups are color-coded by difficulty:

• 🟨 YELLOW: Easiest – usually straightforward categories
• 🟩 GREEN: Easy-Medium – slightly more complex connections
• 🟦 BLUE: Medium-Hard – trickier associations or wordplay
• 🟪 PURPLE: Hardest – often involves puns, multiple meanings, or very subtle connections

Strategy Tips

• Start with the most obvious connections first
• Be careful of red herrings – words that seem to fit multiple categories
• If you’re unsure, try to eliminate what doesn’t belong first
• The purple group often involves wordplay, homophones, or very creative connections
• Don’t guess randomly – you only have 4 mistakes

Scoring

• Complete the puzzle to see your results
• Mistakes are tracked but don’t affect your final score
• Share your results with friends using the share button
• Results show how many mistakes you made for each group