Friday morning. You’ve got your coffee, the sun is barely up, and you’re staring at sixteen words on a screen that make absolutely zero sense together. We've all been there. Today, January 16, 2026, the NYT Connections Forbes today guide—penned by the usual suspects like Kris Holt—is a lifeline for anyone currently trapped in a mental loop between "Derby" and "Slam."
Honestly, today’s grid is a bit of a trickster. It’s game number 950. That’s a lot of puzzles. Wyna Liu, the editor over at the New York Times who builds these things, has clearly been feeling festive or maybe just particularly devious lately. If you’re here, you probably have three words in a row and you’re terrified of that fourth mistake. It’s okay. We’re going to fix that.
What’s Tripping Everyone Up Today?
The thing about NYT Connections Forbes today is that the "obvious" links are usually traps. You see "Canyon" and "Piano" and maybe you think about things that are big? Or things that make sound? Nope. It’s a classic "fill in the blank" setup.
The difficulty rating for today is hovering around a 1.8 out of 5 according to the Connections Companion, which means it’s technically "easy," but that’s only if you don't overthink the blue category.
The Yellow Category: Head Accessories
This is the "straightforward" one. Usually, yellow is just a list of synonyms.
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- DERBY
- FEDORA
- PANAMA
- PORKPIE
These are all kinds of hats. Simple. Except if you’re like me and you haven't thought about a "Porkpie" hat since watching a 1940s noir film, it might take a second to click.
The Green Category: Bedtime Stories
Green is usually a bit more conceptual but still grounded. Today, it’s all about the routine.
- BATH
- BRUSHING
- PAJAMAS
- STORY
If you have kids, you probably got this in five seconds. If you don't, you might have tried to put "Story" with the purple category. Don't do that.
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The "A" List: Why Blue is Brutal
The blue category today is a classic Wyna Liu move. It’s not about what the words mean; it’s about how they are spelled. This is where the NYT Connections Forbes today hints really earn their keep.
The category is: Musical Acts with "A" as the Only Vowel.
- ALABAMA
- BANANARAMA
- KANSAS
- SANTANA
It’s one of those things where once you see it, you can't unsee it. But until you do? You’re just looking at a list of names wondering if they all played at the same festival in 1984.
The Purple Category: The "Grand" Finale
Finally, we have the purple group. In NYT Connections Forbes today, purple is the wildcard. It’s often a word that precedes or follows another word.
- BAHAMA (Grand Bahama)
- CANYON (Grand Canyon)
- PIANO (Grand Piano)
- SLAM (Grand Slam)
"Grand ___." It’s elegant. It’s annoying. It’s the reason you probably have two mistakes right now.
How to Win at Connections Every Day
Look, the NYT knows what they're doing. They put words like "Slam" and "Derby" together to make you think about sports. They put "Panama" and "Bahama" together to make you think about islands. This is called "overlap," and it’s the primary way they defeat you.
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The best strategy? Don't submit your first guess.
Try to find five words that fit a category. If you find five, you know at least one of them belongs somewhere else. It’s a process of elimination, not a sprint.
Quick Recap of January 16, 2026 Answers:
- Yellow: Derby, Fedora, Panama, Porkpie (Kinds of Hats)
- Green: Bath, Brushing, Pajamas, Story (Bedtime Routine)
- Blue: Alabama, Bananarama, Kansas, Santana (Musical Acts with 'A' as the only vowel)
- Purple: Bahama, Canyon, Piano, Slam (Grand ____)
If you're still struggling with the other daily games, the Wordle today is "RIDER" and the Strands spangram is "BATMAN."
Now that you've cleared the grid, take that momentum into the weekend. If you found the vowel-counting in the blue category particularly tough, try scanning the board for letter patterns before you look at word meanings tomorrow. It’s a common trick that’s been appearing more frequently in the 2026 puzzles.