Buzz
If you’re seeking the answer for Tuesday, September 5, 2023, Connections, keep reading for helpful hints, strategies, and ultimately the answers to each category. Warning: spoilers ahead for September 5, NYT Connections #86! If you prefer hints first, scroll to the end for guidance (and then the solution).
By the way, to easily revisit our daily Connections tips, bookmark this page. You’ll also find previous hints there in case you want to catch up on any puzzles you’ve missed.
How to play the Connections game
I’ve put together a comprehensive guide for playing Connections, but here’s a quick refresher on the rules:
To get started, access the Connections game either on the New York Times website or through their Crossword app. The game board consists of 16 tiles, each displaying a word or phrase. Your task is to identify four tiles that belong to the same group. These tiles often share a common category (for example: RAIN, SLEET, HAIL, and SNOW are all forms of wet weather), but sometimes there’s a twist involving wordplay (for example, BUCKET, GUEST, TOP TEN, and WISH are types of lists: bucket list, guest list, and more).
Pick four matching items and click Submit. If your selection is correct, the category and color will appear. (Yellow is the easiest, followed by green, blue, and purple.) If your guess is wrong, you’ll have another chance to try again.
You win once you’ve successfully identified all four groups. However, if you make four mistakes before finishing, the game ends and the answers are revealed.
How to conquer Connections
The key to winning Connections is understanding that the groupings are intentionally tricky. Prepare for overlapping groups. For instance, one puzzle had six breakfast items: BACON, EGG, PANCAKE, OMELET, WAFFLE, and CEREAL. However, BACON was actually part of a group of painters alongside CLOSE, MUNCH, and WHISTLER, and EGG was in a group of things that come in dozens (along with JUROR, ROSE, and MONTH). Be sure to confirm that your group of four consists of only those four items before clicking 'submit.'
If you're stuck, try focusing on the words that seem to have no connection to the rest. For example, when you see WHISTLER, the painting “Whistler’s Mother” might come to mind. This could be your clue. When I solved this puzzle, I googled whether there was a painter named Close because Close didn’t seem to fit any obvious themes either.
Another way to break through when you're stuck is, of course, to check a few helpful hints. Below, I’ve provided some subtle clues for today’s Connections answers. Further down the page, you’ll find the full themes and solutions. Scroll carefully and only use the hints you really need!
Does today’s Connections puzzle require any special knowledge?
There are some musical references, but the rest are just simple words with mostly clear meanings.
Clues for the themes in today’s Connections puzzle
Here are some spoiler-free tips for today’s Connections groupings:
Yellow category - Infographic lovers will enjoy these.
Green category - These will be a crowd favorite.
Blue category - You might remember feeling...stuffed.
Purple category - These will remind you of something from the jukebox (or record shop) (or wherever kids are listening to music nowadays).
Does today’s Connections game involve any wordplay?
The purple category has some wordplay, though it's still solvable even if you don't fully grasp what ties these four items together. (I didn’t!)
Want to see the answers? Keep going if you need a bit more assistance.
WARNING: Spoilers ahead for today’s Connections puzzle!
We’re about to reveal some of the answers. Scroll cautiously if you don’t want everything spoiled. (The complete solution is further down the page.)
What are the tricky words in today’s Connections?
TURKEY could be a food or a country, although since 2021, the country has been spelled Turkïye.
ISTANBUL is a city in Turkïye; “Istanbul (Not Constantinople)” is a famous song by the Four Lads, later covered by They Might Be Giants.
PIE might seem like it belongs with CHART, but they belong to different categories today.
What categories are featured in today’s Connections puzzle?
Yellow: INFORMATION DISPLAYS
Green: EXTRA BENEFITS
Blue: THANKSGIVING FOODS
Purple: SONG TITLES WITH PARENTHESES
CAUTION: THE SOLUTION IS BELOW
Ready to discover the answers to today’s Connections puzzle? They’re all revealed below.
What are the yellow words in today’s Connections puzzle?
The yellow category is generally regarded as the easiest. Today’s theme for the yellow group is INFORMATION DISPLAYS, and the words are: CHART, DIAGRAM, GRAPH, MAP.
What are the green words in today’s Connections puzzle?
The green category is considered the second easiest. Today’s theme for the green group is ADDITIONAL BENEFIT, and the words are: BONUS, EXTRA, ICING, PERK.
What are the blue words in today’s Connections puzzle?
The blue category is the second hardest. Today’s theme for the blue group is THANKSGIVING FOOD, and the words are: GRAVY, PIE, STUFFING, TURKEY.
What are the purple words in today’s Connections puzzle?
The purple category is considered the toughest. Today’s theme for the purple group is SONG TITLES WITH PARENTHESES, and the words are: I RAN, ISTANBUL, MONTERO, SATISFACTION.
How I solved today’s Connections puzzle
I started with the Thanksgiving foods; PIE clearly belonged with this group instead of CHART, and TURKEY, GRAVY, and STUFFING were the perfect matches.
That led me to place CHART with DIAGRAM, GRAPH, and MAP, so that was the next group I solved.
Four of the leftover words were unmistakably song titles, but I couldn’t initially grasp their common theme. It turns out they are song titles with parentheses, specifically:
(I Can’t Get No) SATISFACTION
I RAN (So Far Away)
MONTERO (Call Me By Your Name)
ISTANBUL (Not Constantinople)
The other four words were simply the ICING on the cake, alongside BONUS, EXTRA, and PERK.
Connections Puzzle #86 🟦🟦🟦🟦 🟨🟨🟨🟨 🟪🟪🟪🟪 🟩🟩🟩🟩
