Good day! Let's play Connections, the NYT's clever word game that challenges you to group answers into various categories. It can be difficult, so read on if you need clues.
What should you do once you're done? Well, play more word games, of course. I also have daily Wordle hints and answers, Strands hints and answers, and Quordle hints and answers articles if you need help too.
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 #524): Today's Words
Today's words from NYT Connections are…
- ROGUE
- COVER
- CROCODILE
- SEAL
- BERET
- GLUTTON
- COMMAND
- FIGURE
- VOLUNTEER
- DERBY
- FORT
- COVER
- PLUG
- SNAPBACK
- BEFORE
- BANANAS
NYT Connections Today (Game #524) – Clue #1 – Group Hints
What are some leads for current NYT Connections groups?
- Yellow: Plugs
- Green: Hat
- Blue: Athletes who are not quite NFL yet
- Purple: [Move/travel] white
Do you need more clues?
We're firmly in spoiler territory now, but read on if you want to know what the answers are to the four topics for today's NYT Connections riddles…
NYT Connections Today (Game #524) – Clue #2 – Group Answers
What are the answers for current NYT Connections groups?
- YELLOW: THINGS THAT PREVENT LEAKS
- GREEN: TYPES OF HATS
- BLUE: MEMBERS OF THE UNIVERSITY FOOTBALL TEAM
- PURPLE: COME ON ___
Well, the answers are below, so DON'T SCROLL FURTHER IF YOU DON'T WANT TO SEE THEM.
NYT Connections Today (Game #524): The Answers
The answers to today's Connections game #524 are…
- YELLOW: THINGS THAT PREVENT LEAKS CAP, COVER, PLUG, SEAL
- GREEN: TYPES OF HATS BERET, DERBY, PILLBOX, SNAPBACK
- BLUE: MEMBERS OF THE UNIVERSITY FOOTBALL TEAM GATOR, FORMER, VOLUNTEER, WOLVERINE
- PURPLE: COME ON ___ BANANAS, COMMAND, FIGURE, ROGUE
- My rating: Moderate
- My score: 1 error
I needed a lot of guesswork to figure out today's Connections, because two of the groups were about topics I know very, very little about. These were CAP GUYS (green) and COLLEGE FOOTBALL TEAM MEMBERS (blue), and they were both way out of my comfort zone.
Luckily, I was able to solve the purple one first. This is always a good thing, because it meant I had already eliminated the supposedly toughest group. Format-wise, that was the hardest: those blank word games can be very difficult compared to ones that are simply collections of linked things/terms. But equally, no specialized knowledge is required, whereas college football… well, since I live in the UK and don't even know (or care) what a quarterback is, I was never going to get it. The NYT's apparent obsession with including football-related answers in Connections is actually quite frustrating, especially since there is now a dedicated sports version of the game!
Anyway, I turned purple when I saw that GO COMMANDO and GO ROGUE were phrases, so adding BANANAS and FIGURE wasn't too complicated. The yellow was pretty easy too. And at that moment, I just had to guess. I knew a PILLBOX was a hat (thanks to the Dylan song) and of course I knew a BERET was too. I thought DERBY was too and decided to bet on the fourth. I had one failed attempt, then got lucky with SNAPBACK (no idea what that is!) and lived to fight another day.
How was today? Send me an email and let me know.
Answers from yesterday's NYT Connections (Friday, November 15, game #523)
- YELLOW: FISSURE CRACKS, HOLES, LEAKS, PUNCTURES
- GREEN: WRITING ELEMENTS LETTER, PHRASE, PRAYER, WORD
- BLUE: INSTRUMENTS YOU BLOW JUG, PIPE, RECORDER, WHISTLE
- PURPLE: ___ OF TIME NICK, PASSAGE, SANDS, WASTE
What are NYT connections?
On the plus side, you don't technically need to solve the final question since you'll be able to answer it through a process of elimination. What's more, you can make up to four mistakes, which gives you a little breathing room.
However, it's a little more complicated than something like Wordle and there are plenty of opportunities for the game to trip you up with tricks. For example, be careful with homophones and other puns that could disguise answers.
It can be played for free via the NYT Games site on desktop or mobile devices.