NYT Connections hints today: #1224, Saturday, October 17
Play along below. Stuck? Each group has four hints, from a gentle nudge to the full answer. Take only what you need.
Play along
Mistakes left: 4Stuck? Each group’s nudge in the hint ladder points the way without naming a word.
Progress saves on this device. Nothing is spoiled unless you ask.
The hint ladder
0 of 16 hints usedNudgeReveal nudge
Your pocket keeps interrupting dinner.
HintReveal hint
Short sounds and pop-ups a device produces when something new arrives for you.
One wordReveal one word
One of the four: CHIME
AnswerReveal answer
DIGITAL NOTIFICATIONS: ALERT, CHIME, DING, PING
NudgeReveal nudge
Darkroom and viewfinder share a glossary.
HintReveal hint
Nouns a camera person uses for one captured frame, or a paper copy of it.
One wordReveal one word
One of the four: STILL
AnswerReveal answer
PHOTO: PRINT, SHOT, SNAP, STILL
NudgeReveal nudge
Sideways walkers answer to several names.
HintReveal hint
Varieties of a clawed shellfish, sold by the pound at seafood counters.
One wordReveal one word
One of the four: FIDDLER
AnswerReveal answer
KINDS OF CRABS: FIDDLER, HERMIT, KING, SNOW
NudgeReveal nudge
A tiny foreign article does the heavy lifting.
HintReveal hint
Each follows the same feminine article from Romance languages: a theater, an opera, a city, a tar site.
One wordReveal one word
One of the four: SCALA
AnswerReveal answer
LA ___: BOHÈME, BREA, PAZ, SCALA
Hints drafted with AI and checked automatically for spoilers. How we write hints
Yesterday’s Connections answers · Connections archive · Play past puzzles: Connections Unlimited
How to play Connections
Sort sixteen words into four groups of four that share something in common. Select four words and submit; you can make four mistakes before the game ends.
Groups are colored by difficulty, from yellow (most straightforward) to purple (trickiest, often wordplay). A new puzzle goes live at midnight Eastern.
Tips to solve Connections faster
- Look for the red herring first: most puzzles include a word that fits two groups. Solve the group it can’t belong to before committing.
- Purple groups are usually about the words themselves: hidden words, anagrams, words that follow or precede another word.
- If you are sure of four words, submit them early. Each solved group removes decoys from the board.