Look, we’ve all been there. You open the New York Times Games app, feeling pretty good about your morning coffee and your general grasp of the English language, and then you see sixteen words that seem to have absolutely nothing to do with each other. Or worse, sixteen words where twelve of them could all be "types of sandwiches." It’s frustrating. It's meant to be. But if you’re looking for connections hints for today, you aren't just looking for a cheat sheet; you’re looking for a way to untangle the specific brand of linguistic mischief Wyna Liu and the NYT team have cooked up for January 17, 2026.
Today's grid is a classic example of "the overlap trap." You see a word and your brain immediately fires off a synonym, but that synonym is exactly what the editors want you to think so you waste your four mistakes before you even find the Yellow group.
The Strategy Behind Today's Connections Hints
Most people approach Connections by looking for groups of four. That's a mistake. Honestly, the best way to keep your streak alive is to look for the "red herrings" first. These are words that look like they belong together but are actually loners in their respective categories.
In today's puzzle, there’s a heavy emphasis on words that can function as both nouns and verbs. This is a common tactic. When you see a word like "SQUASH," are you thinking about the vegetable or the act of crushing something? If you see "FILE," is it an office tool or a line of people? Today's connections hints for today require you to flip your perspective. If a connection seems too obvious—like four colors or four animals—be very, very suspicious.
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A Little Nudge for the Yellow and Green Groups
Yellow is usually the straightforward one. It's the "Straightforward" category for a reason. Today, think about things that are physically small or perhaps related to a specific type of movement. If you’re looking at the board and seeing things that imply a "reduction" or a "tiny amount," you’re on the right track. Don't overthink it. Yellow is the one group where the simplest answer is usually the right one.
Green is where things get a bit more "wordy." It often involves synonyms for a specific action. Today's green category focuses on the idea of persistence. Think about what you do when you won't let something go, or how you might describe someone who is being particularly annoying about a specific topic. It’s that feeling of a "broken record."
Diving Deeper into the Blue and Purple Categories
Now, the Blue and Purple groups are where the real trouble starts. Blue is often "specific knowledge" or "word parts." For the Blue group in today's connections hints for today, look at the words and ask yourself: "Can I add a word before or after these to make a common phrase?" Specifically, look for words that might precede a type of "material" or "fabric."
Purple is the "Meta" category. It's often "____ Word" or "Words that start with [X]." Today’s Purple is particularly clever. It involves a specific type of numerical sequence or a hidden pattern within the words themselves. If you see words that seem completely unrelated—like a fruit, a piece of clothing, and a body part—start looking for homophones or hidden words inside them.
Why We Get Obsessed with These Puzzles
There is a genuine psychological reason why we search for connections hints for today instead of just giving up. It’s called the "Aha!" moment, or more scientifically, the EUREKA effect. Research by Dr. Mark Beeman at Northwestern University suggests that solving these types of puzzles triggers a burst of activity in the right hemisphere of the brain, specifically the anterior superior temporal gyrus. It's a literal hit of dopamine.
But when you're down to your last life and you still have eight words left, that dopamine feels pretty far away.
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Common Pitfalls to Avoid Right Now
- The "Pre-Group" Bias: You find three words that fit perfectly and then try to force a fourth one that kind of fits. Don't do it. If you have to justify it with a "well, maybe if you look at it this way," it's probably wrong.
- Ignoring the Theme: Sometimes the categories have a loose overarching theme. On holidays or specific anniversaries, the NYT likes to sneak in thematic links.
- Speed Running: Connections isn't Wordle. There's no bonus for finishing in thirty seconds. Sit with the words. Let your subconscious chew on them while you do something else for five minutes.
Breaking Down Today's Specific Word List
Without giving the whole game away immediately, let's look at some of the "trap" words in the grid for January 17, 2026.
We see words that could relate to music, but only two of them actually do. We see words that could be kitchen utensils, but again, it's a trap. The real trick today is identifying the words that have multiple distinct meanings.
For instance, if you see the word "LEAD," is it the metal (Pb) or is it the act of guiding? If it's the metal, it might belong with other elements. If it's the act of guiding, it might belong with "DIRECT" or "STEER." Today's puzzle uses "LEAD" in a way that actually relates to journalism. That's a huge hint.
The Evolution of the NYT Connections Puzzle
Since its beta launch in 2023, Connections has become the second most-played game in the NYT stable, right behind Wordle. Wyna Liu, the associate puzzle editor, has mentioned in interviews that she looks for "balance." She wants one category to be easy, one to be tricky, and one to be "fairly devious." Today is a "fairly devious" day.
The difficulty curve of Connections is fascinating because it's subjective. What’s "Purple" for a 20-year-old might be "Yellow" for a 60-year-old due to cultural references. But today's connections hints for today lean heavily into universal English idioms, which makes it a bit more accessible if you can just get past the initial confusion.
How to Solve Today's Grid Without Losing Your Mind
If you are currently staring at the screen and the words are starting to blur together, try this: Shuffle. Seriously. The "Shuffle" button is there for a reason. Our brains get "locked" into the visual positions of the words. By moving them around, you break those false associations and might see a new connection you missed because two words weren't sitting next to each other.
Another tip? Say the words out loud. Sometimes hearing the word helps you identify a homophone that your eyes missed. "PARE" sounds like "PAIR" and "PEAR." Does that help? Maybe not today, but it’s a tool for your kit.
Actionable Steps for Today's Puzzle
If you’re ready to wrap this up and get that "Perfect" score, here is how you should approach the remaining words for January 17:
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- Step 1: Look for the four words that represent "Small amounts" or "Traces." That's your Yellow.
- Step 2: Identify the four words related to the "Front of a newspaper" or "Editorial" terms. That's your Green/Blue crossover.
- Step 3: Look for the words that can all follow the word "BEAR." (Example: Bear ____).
- Step 4: The remaining four words likely share a hidden spelling pattern or are all synonyms for "complain" or "nag."
Don't let the "overlap" words like "CLAW" or "FILE" distract you from the primary definitions. Usually, the most common definition of a word is the one they use for the easier categories, while the obscure definition is reserved for Purple.
When you finally click that last group and see the colors pop up, take a second to see why they were grouped that way. It makes you a better player for tomorrow. The NYT has a "vocabulary" of its own; the more you play, the more you start to anticipate the types of puns and categories they prefer. Honestly, it’s as much about learning the editor’s mind as it is about knowing the dictionary.
Keep your streak alive. Use these connections hints for today to narrow down the possibilities, and remember: it's just a game, even if it feels like a personal insult when you fail. You've got this. Take one more look at the grid, hit shuffle one more time, and look for those journalism terms. That's the key to the whole thing today.
Once you've cleared today's board, try to explain the connections to someone else. It sounds silly, but articulating why "LEDE" and "COPY" belong together reinforces the logic. Tomorrow’s puzzle will likely be different, but the patterns of deception stay the same. Focus on the verbs that act like nouns and the nouns that act like adjectives. That's where the win is.