Okay, so if you're like me and got stuck on today’s Connections puzzle from The New York Times, don’t stress. I’ve got you. I played around with it for a while this morning and finally figured it out. So, I thought I’d share what helped — plus the full answers, if you just want to skip to that part.
Wait, What’s This Puzzle Again?
If you’re new to Connections, here’s how it works. Basically, you get 16 words, and your job is to sort them into 4 groups of 4. Each group shares a common theme — could be anything from kitchen tools to types of dogs to random slang words.
And the cool thing? Each group has a color based on how tough it is:
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Yellow is usually the easiest one.
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Green is medium.
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Blue starts getting tricky.
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Purple... yeah, that’s where things get weird or sneaky.
You only get 4 chances to mess up, so it gets intense pretty quick.
Hints for Today’s Puzzle – May 17
Today’s puzzle (#706) had a fun mix, but I won’t lie — purple threw me off a bit. Here’s what helped me figure it out, in case you want a nudge but not the full spoiler right away:
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Yellow group: Think of stuff you'd see in a regular classroom. Like real basic stuff you probably used in school.
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Green group: All about measuring or drawing tools — kind of things you'd find in a toolbox or a math class.
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Blue group: Medical stuff. Honestly, if you’ve watched any hospital drama, these will feel familiar.
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Purple group: This one was actually pasta names — but they didn't scream “pasta” right away. Took me a minute to catch on.
Answers for Puzzle #706 (Spoilers Ahead)
Alright, if you just want the full solution, here’s how the groups broke down:
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Classroom Items (Yellow):
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Chalk
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Desk
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Eraser
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Pencil
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Measuring Tools (Green):
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Caliper
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Ruler
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Tape
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Yardstick
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Medical Instruments (Blue):
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Needle
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Scalpel
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Stethoscope
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Syringe
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Pasta Types (Purple):
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Fettuccine
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Macaroni
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Penne
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Spaghetti
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Once you see it, it all makes sense — but getting there? Kinda frustrating. I got stuck trying to put “penne” with tools for some reason.
Quick Guide: How Connections Works
In case you wanna give it a shot yourself tomorrow, here’s the gist:
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You’ll see 16 words on your screen.
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Your goal: group them into 4 sets of 4.
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Each set has something in common — a theme.
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Try to solve it with the fewest wrong guesses.
