Looking for a hint for today’s Connections puzzle? It's a tricky one — there are a few words that overlap between clues, so watch out.
Below, we have clues to help you unlock whichever category has you stumped, from green to purple.
Connections first launched on the New York Times in June 2023. The premise is deceptively simple: Players have to find the thematic connection of four groups of four words ... without making more than four mistakes.
Puzzle designer David Kwong, who writes crossword puzzles for the New York Times, shares some tips for solving Connections.
First, Kwong says, look for the most obvious group. “Hunt around for ‘gimmes!’ If you can get an easy category off the board, it’s easier to solve. The easiest category is often composed of synonyms,” he says.
There’s often a word meant to deliberately “throw you off,” Kwong says — look out for that one, too.
“There’s usually one word that is an overlap between two categories. I often look for a word that has multiple meanings. If you see a bunch of fish and a bunch of musical instruments, there’s probably a word like 'Bass,' which is both,” he says.
The categories are grouped into four colors that go in order from easiest to hardest: Yellow, green, blue and purple. Kwong and his friends aspire to solve Purple first as a personal challenge — but he says do whatever gets you to the finish line.
Kwong says Connections lights up a different part of our puzzle-solving abilities versus other popular games, like Wordle.
“(Wordle) and Connections (require) different problem-solving skills because Connections is more about wordplay," he explains.
However, both NYT games "stretch your brain," Kwong says, with "social sharing" built in.
Below are the hints and clues, including categories, for today’s Connections game. Plus, find the answers to puzzle #624 at the bottom.
Hints for Connections today, February 24
Yellow group hint: What you do if you're really hungry
Green group hint: Ready to collapse
Blue group hint: What you might get after a life at sea
Purple group hint: Think body parts
Connections categories today, February 24
Yellow group category: Eat voraciously
Green group category: Bend under pressure
Blue group category: Classic nautical tattoos
Purple group category: Body parts plus letter
Connections answer today, February 24
Yellow group words: Gobble, gulp, scarf, wolf
Green group words: Bow, buckle, cave, give
Blue group words: Anchor, compass, mermaid, swallow
Purple group words: Butte, China, hearth, shine
