Waking up on a Sunday morning usually means two things: coffee and the nagging suspicion that the New York Times puzzle editors are actively trying to ruin your week. The Sunday, November 30, puzzle (Game #903) is a classic example of that specific "Connections" brand of psychological warfare. You see a word like TURKEY and your brain immediately goes to Thanksgiving leftovers or perhaps a weird bird-themed category. But then you see SWALLOW. Okay, birds? No. Not today.
Honestly, if you're looking for nyt connections hints november 30, you've probably already stared at words like LUFFY and COCKATIEL long enough to feel a minor headache coming on. This board is particularly heavy on the red herrings. It’s the kind of day where the most obvious connections are actually just traps set to eat your four mistakes before you’ve even finished your first cup of joe.
Breaking Down the November 30 Grid
Most people fail this specific puzzle because they refuse to let go of the "Bird" category. You’ve got SWALLOW, SPARROW, TURKEY, and COCKATIEL. It looks perfect. It looks like a gift. It is, in fact, a total lie. Only two of those words actually belong together in a way that relates to their biological nature, and even then, they’re part of a completely different theme.
If you want to survive this round, you have to look at the words through a different lens. Think about what these words do or how they sound rather than just what they are. For instance, what does a BUST have in common with a LEMON? If you bought a car that was a LEMON, it was a... well, you get where I’m going.
Hints for Every Category
Let's talk strategy without just dumping the answers in your lap yet.
The Yellow Category: Emotional Fortitude
This group is basically about grit. If you’re at a boring party, what do you have to do? You have to "put up with it." Look for four words that are synonyms for enduring something unpleasant.
The Green Category: Total Failures
This is where TURKEY actually lives. It’s not a bird here; it’s a flop. If a movie comes out and nobody sees it, or a business venture collapses, what words do we use? One of them is a fruit, and one is a part of a statue (kinda).
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The Blue Category: High Seas Legends
This is the "Fan Favorite" category for the day. If you’re a fan of One Piece or Pirates of the Caribbean, this will click instantly. One name is a literal pirate from a classic novel, another is a captain with a prosthetic, and one is a rubbery anime protagonist.
The Purple Category: The Phonetic Trap
This is the hardest group. It always is. For November 30, the connection is purely auditory. Say the words out loud. Specifically, look at the ends of the words. If they sound like a color—even if they aren't spelled like one—you’ve found your Purple group.
The Actual Answers for November 30
If you've run out of guesses or you're just done with the "bird" red herring, here is the breakdown of how these 16 words actually fit together.
Yellow: TOLERATE
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- BEAR
- STAND
- STOMACH
- SWALLOW
(Note: This is why SWALLOW wasn't a bird! It’s a verb here.)
Green: FLOP
- BUST
- LEMON
- MISS
- TURKEY
(Yes, TURKEY is a "strike" or a "flop" in this context.)
Blue: FICTIONAL PIRATES
- HOOK
- LUFFY
- SILVER
- SPARROW
(Shoutout to Monkey D. Luffy making an appearance in the NYT. Long John Silver and Jack Sparrow are the more traditional choices here.)
Purple: ENDING IN COLOR HOMOPHONES
- CAMEROON (Maroon)
- COCKATIEL (Teal)
- UNREAD (Red)
- WHISTLEBLEW (Blue)
Why This Puzzle is a "Hard" Rating
TechRadar and several Reddit communities rated this specific Sunday puzzle as "Hard," and for good reason. The "Endure" category (Yellow) and the "Flop" category (Green) share a lot of semantic space. You might think "STAND" belongs with "BUST" in a gambling sense (like Blackjack), but that’s another trap.
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The inclusion of LUFFY is a major shift for the NYT. Usually, they stick to very Western, mid-century literary references. Bringing in a modern manga/anime protagonist shows they are trying to skew a bit younger, though it certainly frustrated the "older" demographic in the daily discussion threads.
Actionable Insights for Your Next Game
If you want to stop losing your streak to these traps, try these three things:
- The "Wait and See" Rule: If you see four words that fit perfectly (like the birds today), do not submit them first. Look for a fifth or sixth word that could also fit. If there are more than four, it's a trap.
- Say It Out Loud: Always read the words aloud if you’re stuck. Purple categories are almost always about how words sound, prefixes, or suffixes.
- Check the Part of Speech: Is "SWALLOW" a bird (noun) or an action (verb)? If you can’t find a group for the noun, try the verb.
Tomorrow's puzzle will likely be just as tricky, so keep these phonetic tricks in your back pocket.