Make Winning Look Easy With These NYT Connections (#1,202) Hints, Clues, and Answers (September 25, 2026)

Today’s Connections puzzle is a tricky one. You may have noticed more than 4 words in the grid that seem to belong in one category. Instead of using the hit-and-trial method, we suggest you take a look at the hints we’ve curated for you. To make the process of elimination even easier, we’ve also listed one word from each group. Those struggling to find other groups can scroll down to the list of themes. The answers and their explanations are mentioned at the end of the page. So, without further ado, here are all the hints, clues, and answers to today’s NYT Connections (#1,202, September 25, 2026).  

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What is Connections?

After Wordle, Connections is the New York Times’ most popular word game. The rules are simple. You need to find words with a common theme and group them into 4 groups of 4. The 16-word grid is designed with an increasing level of difficulty. The Yellow group is the easiest to spot, followed by Green, Blue, and Purple. The misdirects and red herrings can trip you up, but they also make the puzzle more fun. You can play Connections in the NYT Games app or on the NYT website.

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

• RATHER
• BOUGIE
• GENIUS
• SPRING
• BORDER
• RATCHET
• SWANK
• SAVAGE
• CLASSY
• LEVY
• PENDULUM
• FANCY
• ESCAPEMENT
• POSH
• FOAMILY
• AYKROYD

Hints for NYT Connections (#1,202) September 25, 2026

Let’s get you started with some general, spoiler-free hints.

• 🟡Yellow Group: Opulent.
• 🟢Green Group: Hickory Dickory Dock.
• 🔵Blue Group: Daniels.
• 🟣Purple Group: Biological classifications with a random letter thrown in the mix.

One Word Per Category (Contains Spoilers)

Can’t seem to find an in? We’ll give you one word from each category.

• 🟡Yellow Group: Bougie.
• 🟢Green Group: Escapement.
• 🔵Blue Group: Aykroyd.
• 🟣Purple Group: Border.

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: Luxe.
• 🟢Green Group: Parts Of A Mechanical Clock.
• 🔵Blue Group: Famous Dans.
• 🟣Purple Group: Taxonomic Ranks Plus A Letter.

Answers to NYT Connections (#1,202) Today (September 25, 2026)

Close to waving the white flag? Fine, we’ll give you the answers.

• 🟡Yellow Group: Bougie, Fancy, Posh, Swank. (Luxe)

These words are used to describe expensive and luxurious things.

• 🟢Green Group: Escapement, Pendulum, Ratchet, Spring. (Parts Of A Mechanical Clock)

These are the essential components of a standing clock.

• 🔵Blue Group: Aykroyd, Levy, Rather, Savage. (Famous Dans)

Dan Aykroyd (Actor/Comedian). Dan Levy (Actor). Dan Rather (Journalist/Commentator). Dan Savage (Author/Columnist).

• 🟣Purple Group: Border, Classy, Foamily, Genius. (Taxonomic Ranks Plus A Letter)

(B)order. Class(y). F(o)amily. Gen(i)us.

Answers to yesterday’s puzzle (#1,201, September 24, 2026)

• 🟡Yellow Group: Cape, Face Paint, Fake Blood, Fangs. (Parts Of A Vampire Costume)
• 🟢Green Group: Bobblehead, Pogo Stick, Snakes In A Can, Trampoline. (Things With Spring/s)
• 🔵Blue Group: Creation Of Adam, Foam Finger, I’m With Stupid Shirt, Uncle Sam. (Featuring Pointing)
• 🟣Purple Group: Beer Hat, Breathe, Herb Tea, The Bear. (Anagrams)

Answers to NYT Connections #1,200 (September 23, 2026)

• 🟡Yellow Group: Keys, Phone, Sunglasses, Wallet. (Things You Grab Before Leaving The House)
• 🟢Green Group: Age Verification, Captcha, Cookie Consent, Paywall. (Website Hurdles)
• 🔵Blue Group: Condensed Milk, Paint, Shaving Cream, Spam. (Things That Come In Cans)
• 🟣Purple Group: Bitcoin, Record Label, Rub-A-Dub, Suriname. (Ending In Synonyms For ‘Term’)

Answers to NYT Connections #1,199 (September 22, 2026)

• 🟡Yellow Group: That, These, This, Those. (Demonstratives)
• 🟢Green Group: Accent, Detail, Flourish, Touch. (Embellishment)
• 🔵Blue Group: Agree, Disagree, Neutral, Other. (Options On A Multiple Choice Survey)
• 🟣Purple Group: Cafe, Patron, Rose, The. (Beverages With Acute Accents Removed)

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How did other solvers do today?

NYT’s early testers rated today’s Connections puzzle 2.5 out of 5. This puts it in the medium difficulty level. Let us know how you fared in the comments!