NYT Connections (#1042) April 18, 2026: Hints, Clues, and Answers Today

If today’s Connections puzzle has made you go into a spin, we’re here to help. We’ll start with some general hints and let you have a crack at the puzzle by yourself. If that doesn’t help, we’ll give you one word from each category. This will be followed by the category names. At the end, you’ll find the list of answers. So, without further ado, here are all the hints, clues, and answers you need for today’s NYT Connections (#1042, April 18, 2026).

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What is Connections?

Connections is a daily puzzle game from the New York Times. You can play it on your mobile or PC by clicking this link. The aim of the puzzle is pretty straightforward – you are supposed to find 4 groups of 4 words with common themes. These groups are arranged in 4 levels of difficulty: Yellow (Easiest), Green, Blue, and Purple (Toughest). While this may seem simple, the puzzle often has some red herrings that can catch you off guard. Oftentimes, the Purple category can be a headscratcher with themes that may have something to do with the nomenclature rather than the meaning of the words. You never really know for sure what’s coming your way, and that’s what keeps Connections fresh!

First, let’s take a look at today’s grid

• MARVEL
• DC
• CRUSHWORTHY
• POWER
• FANTAGRAPHICS
• DARK HORSE
• VOLTAGE
• WONDER
• SLEEPER
• FRESCADE
• STARE
• LONG SHOT
• PEPSINOGEN
• UNDERDOG
• GOOGLE
• AC

Hints for NYT Connections (#1042) April 18, 2026

These hints do not contain any spoilers. They will nudge you in the right direction without giving away any answers.

• Yellow Group: Appreciate or admire.

• Green Group: Zap/Bzzt.

• Blue Group: Slept on.

• Purple Group: Carbonated and delicious.

• Extra hint: Marvel/DC is a mislead.

One Word Per Category (Contains Spoilers)

Not able to spot any underlying themes or commonalities? We’ll help you get started. Here is one word for every group in today’s puzzle.

• Yellow Group: Goggle.

• Green Group: AC.

• Blue Group: Dark Horse.

• Purple Group: Crushworthy.

List of Themes (Major Spoilers)

If the last round of hints didn’t help, maybe it’s time to look up the themes and retrospectively find the connections.

• Yellow Group: Look at with awe.

• Green Group: Basic electricity terms.

• Blue Group: Unexpected winner.

• Purple Group: Starting with soda brands.

Answers to NYT Connections (#1042) April 18, 2026

On your last attempt, and don’t want to ruin the streak? Fine, we’ll give you the answers.

• Yellow Group: Goggle, Marvel, Stare, Wonder (Look at with awe).

• Green Group: AC, DC, Power, Voltage (Basic electricity terms).

• Blue Group: Dark Horse, Long Shot, Sleeper, Underdog (Unexpected winner).

• Purple Group: Crushworthy, Fantagraphics, Frescade, Pepsinogen (Starting with soda brands).

Answers to yesterday’s Connections puzzle

• Yellow Group: Bulb, Leaf, Root, Stem (Vegetable parts).

• Green Group: Common, Dominant, General, Popular (Prevailing).

• Blue Group: Hammer, Key, Pedal, String (Parts of a piano).

• Purple Group: Soda, Stormy, Tan, Tonic (Second halves of drink names).

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What we think

Today’s NYT Connections puzzle was rated 1.5 out of 5 for difficulty. Were you able to crack it without making any mistakes? Let us know in the comments!