Can’t find a breakthrough in today’s Connections puzzle? You’ve come to the right place for help. Before we reveal the answers, we’ll give you some spoiler-free hints to nudge you in the right direction. Then, we’ll disclose one word from each category. This will be followed by the official list of themes. Finally, you can have the answer key. So, without further ado, here are all the hints, clues, and answers to today’s NYT Connections (#1,083, May 29, 2026).
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In This Article
What is Connections?
Connections is a daily word game from The New York Times. You can play it in the NYT Games app or on the NYT website. 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). There are misdirects and red herrings in the grid that lead you down different paths, but you must make your submissions wisely, as you only get 4 attempts to solve the puzzle. 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!
Some tips to solve Connections
Look for the obvious patterns: Not every category in the puzzle is confusing. The Yellow and Green category words are relatively easy to spot. However, if something seems too obvious, it could be a red herring. Typically, the first two categories comprise verbs and adjectives. The misdirects are often nouns.
Double-check your submissions: ‘Do not overthink’ is usually a good tip for solving most puzzles, but it doesn’t really apply to Connections. Before submitting a set of words, you should always check whether they fit somewhere else too.
Hit a dead end? Use the shuffle button: The shuffle button at the bottom of the grid exists for a reason. Placing the words in different positions can spark new connections. Think of it as a mental refresh. New patterns will emerge, and you may be able to find a breakthrough.
Tackle the Purple category with extra caution: The Connections team is known to serve up the toughest and most unexpected words for the Purple category. Here are some of the common tropes that you should look out for:
- Homophones (For example: ‘Where’, ‘Wear’, ‘Ware’, and ‘Weir’)
- Words within words (For example: ‘Slip’, ‘Hear’, ‘Keyes’, and ‘Undiagnosed’ could be ‘Words containing parts of the face’)
- Words minus a letter (For example: ‘Anther’, ‘Easel’, ‘Hark’, and ‘Lama’ could be ‘Animals minus starting letter’)
- Words preceded or followed by another word (For example: ‘Face’, ‘Sports’, ‘Note’, and ‘Year’ could be ‘____ Book’)
Here’s your grid for today
- POWDER
- FATHER
- READING
- ATLANTIC
- PENNYSYLVANIA
- BILLIARD
- PACIFIC
- BO
- AMMONIA
- PROTACTINIUM
- WET DOG
- DRAWING
- SOUTHERN
- DURIAN
- PUBLIC ADDRESS
- ARCTIC
Hints for NYT Connections (#1,083) May 29, 2026
Let’s get you started with some general, spoiler-free hints.
- 🟡Yellow Group: Names of large bodies of water.
- 🟢Green Group: Smelly.
- 🔵Blue Group: Rooms in a big house.
- 🟣Purple Group: Focus on the abbreviations.
One Word Per Category (Contains Spoilers)
Can’t seem to find an in? We’ll give you one word from each category.
- 🟡Yellow Group: Arctic.
- 🟢Green Group: Ammonia.
- 🔵Blue Group: Billiard.
- 🟣Purple Group: Public Address.
List of Themes (Major Spoilers)
Maybe getting to know the common themes among the words will help you spot them faster. Here are all the categories for today.
- 🟡Yellow Group: Ocean.
- 🟢Green Group: Sources Of Distinctive Smells.
- 🔵Blue Group: Kinds Of Rooms In A Mansion.
- 🟣Purple Group: What ‘PA’ Might Refer To.
Answers to NYT Connections (#1,083) Today (May 29, 2026)
Close to waving the white flag? Fine, we’ll give you the answers.
- 🟡Yellow Group: Arctic, Atlantic, Pacific, Southern. (Ocean)
‘Southern’ may have confused some, but it is another word for the Antarctic Ocean.
- 🟢Green Group: Ammonia, BO, Durian, Wet Dog. (Sources Of Distinctive Smells)
All these things have pungent or musty smells.
- 🔵Blue Group: Billiard, Drawing, Powder, Reading. (Kinds Of Rooms In A Mansion)
This is one pretty self-explanatory. If you pegged ‘Billiard’ and ‘Pennsylvania’ together because they both start with currency denominations, you may have been overthinking it.
- 🟣Purple Group: Father, Pennsylvania, Protactinium, Public Address. (What ‘PA’ Might Refer To)
‘Pa’ is an endearing term for father, the postal abbreviation for the state of Pennsylvania, the atomic symbol for Protactinium, while PA is the abbreviation for a Public Address system.
Answers to yesterday’s puzzle (#1,082, May 28, 2026)
- 🟡Yellow Group: Duck, Hunch, Squat, Stoop. (Get Low)
- 🟢Green Group: Media, News, Papers, Press. (Fourth Estate)
- 🔵Blue Group: Bar, Bench, Podium, Stand. (Parts Of A Courtroom)
- 🟣Purple Group: Jump, Lift, Lodge, Slope. (Ski ___)
Answers to NYT Connections #1,081 (May 27, 2026)
- 🟡Yellow Group: Commune, Hamlet, Township, Village. (Small Community)
- 🟢Green Group: Battleship, Operation, Othello, Trouble. (Classic Board Games)
- 🔵Blue Group: Aye, Lear, Pier, Stair. (Homophones Of Ways Of Looking)
- 🟣Purple Group: Banjo, Macbeth, Monogamy, Nutmeg. (Ending In The ‘Little Women’ March Sisters)
Answers to NYT Connections #1,080 (May 26, 2026)
- 🟡Yellow Group: Cup, Medal, Pennant, Ring. (Championship Awards)
- 🟢Green Group: Concern, Focus, Point, Subject. (Matter At Hand)
- 🔵Blue Group: Airplane, Big, Clue, Twins. (‘80s Comedies)
- 🟣Purple Group: Enlist, Listen, Silent, Tinsel. (Anagrams)
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How did other solvers do today?
NYT’s early testers rated today’s Connection puzzle 3.3 out of 5. This puts it in the hard difficulty level. Let us know how you fared in the comments!
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