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If you need help solving the Connections puzzle for Thursday, August 31, 2023, keep reading—I’ll provide hints, strategies, and eventually reveal the answers to all four categories. Warning: Spoilers ahead for August 31, NYT Connections #81! Scroll down for hints and the final solution to today’s game.
Guide to Playing Connections
For a detailed guide on how to play Connections, here’s a quick overview of the rules:
To begin, locate the Connections game on the New York Times website or within their Crossword app. The game board consists of 16 tiles, each displaying a word or phrase. Your objective is to identify a set of four tiles that share a common theme. These could be items of the same category (e.g., RAIN, SLEET, HAIL, and SNOW, which are all forms of precipitation) or involve wordplay (e.g., BUCKET, GUEST, TOP TEN, and WISH, which all relate to types of lists like bucket list or guest list).
Choose four items and press the Submit button. A correct guess will reveal the category and its corresponding color (yellow being the easiest, followed by green, blue, and purple). If your guess is wrong, you’ll have another opportunity to try.
You succeed by correctly identifying all four groups. However, if you make four incorrect guesses before completing the puzzle, the game ends, and the answers are displayed.
Strategies for Winning Connections
The key to winning Connections is understanding that the groupings are intentionally deceptive. Be prepared for overlapping categories. For instance, one puzzle appeared to feature six breakfast items: BACON, EGG, PANCAKE, OMELET, WAFFLE, and CEREAL. However, BACON was part of a group of artists like CLOSE, MUNCH, and WHISTLER, while EGG belonged to a group of items counted by the dozen (alongside JUROR, ROSE, and MONTH). Always double-check your selections before submitting to ensure they fit exclusively within one category.
When you’re stuck, consider focusing on words that appear unrelated to the rest. For example, if WHISTLER only brings to mind the famous painting “Whistler’s Mother,”
Another effective strategy when struggling is to seek hints. Below, I’ll provide subtle clues for today’s Connections puzzle. Further down, I’ll disclose the themes and solutions. Scroll carefully and use only the hints you need!
Does today’s Connections puzzle demand any specialized knowledge?
Not at all—these are all common, everyday terms. For instance, a jalapeño POPPER is a cheese-stuffed fried pepper, but you likely already knew that. (If so, why not try Allie Reinmann’s charcuterie-board-friendly twist on this classic snack?)
Clues for the themes in today’s Connections game
Here are some spoiler-free clues to help you identify the groups in today’s Connections puzzle:
Yellow category - These items might make your stomach growl.
Green category - Fingers crossed you’ll ace this group!
Blue category - Each of these has seen a bit of wear and tear.
Purple category - Prepare for a sudden “eureka” moment that might spring to mind unexpectedly.
Does today’s Connections puzzle include any wordplay?
Beyond the usual clever twists (where a word might function as a noun in one category and a verb in another), there’s a particularly tricky group. This one, predictably, is purple and involves a fill-in-the-blank concept. Each of the four words completes a two-word phrase: “____ [something],” with the “[something]” being identical across all four.
If this sounds confusing, don’t worry—just solve the other categories first, and the remaining words will clarify everything.
WARNING: Spoilers and solutions for today’s Connections puzzle are ahead!
Curious about the answers to today’s Connections game? I’ll reveal them all below.
What words belong to the yellow category in today’s Connections?
The yellow group is the easiest to identify. Today’s theme for this category is APPETIZER UNIT, and the words included are: FRY, NACHO, POPPER, WING.
What words are part of the green category in today’s Connections?
The green category is designed to be the second simplest. Today’s theme for this group is RESPONSE TO A CORRECT ANSWER, featuring the words: BINGO, CORRECT, RIGHT, YES.
Which words fall under the blue category in today’s Connections?
The blue group ranks as the second most challenging. The theme for today’s blue category is MAR, and the words included are: CHIP, DING, NICK, SCRATCH.
What words are part of the purple category in today’s Connections?
The purple group is the most difficult. Today’s theme is “____ JACK,” with the words: APPLE, CRACKER, FLAP, LUMBER. Applejack refers to a distilled apple cider liquor or an apple-flavored cereal. Crackerjack denotes exceptional skill or a popular popcorn-and-peanut snack. Flapjacks are pancakes or, in Europe, granola-like bars. Lastly, a lumberjack is someone who fells trees professionally.
My approach to solving today’s Connections puzzle
Initially, I noticed words like DING, BINGO, YES, and CORRECT, which seemed like a potential group. However, when I spotted RIGHT, I realized I had too many words for a single category.
To organize my thoughts, I listed possible groupings. Several food-related words stood out: APPLE, CHIP, CRACKER, WING, and POPPER. I excluded FRY at first, as I was interpreting it as a verb rather than a noun.
While analyzing NICK and SCRATCH, it dawned on me that they could pair with DING and CHIP to represent items that might appear in a scratch-and-dent sale. This was the first group I submitted, and it was correct.
With DING removed from the initial group, I was left with BINGO, YES, CORRECT, and RIGHT, which I submitted as another category. This also turned out to be correct.
With eight words remaining, I noticed that six were food-related, including APPLE and CRACKER. Among them, four were fried foods. Although NACHOs aren’t fried, they seemed to fit the theme. FRY, being the singular form of fries, helped me realize the category was singular-named appetizers.
Eventually, the fill-in-the-blank clicked: APPLEjack, CRACKERjack, LUMBERjack, and FLAPjack. I felt a surge of confidence as I correctly identified them all.
Connections Puzzle #81 🟦🟦🟦🟦 🟩🟩🟩🟩 🟨🟨🟨🟨 🟪🟪🟪🟪
